Men's Basketball Wraps Up Homestand Tuesday Against Missouri State
December 16, 2013 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 16, 2013
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's basketball team concludes its five-game homestand on Tuesday with an ESPN2 matchup against Missouri State in the KFC Yum! Center at 9 p.m.
It is just the second meeting between the two programs, with Louisville owning a 1-0 series advantage. The Cardinals defeated the Bears 74-56 in the NIT quarterfinals in Freedom Hall on March 22, 2006.
The Dec. 17 game will air on ESPN2, with Bob Wischusen (play-by-play) and Len Elmore (analyst) calling the action. The game also is available on the WatchESPN platform. Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (analyst) will announce the game on WHAS 840 AM.
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Louisville, which remained No. 6 in the Associated Press poll and fourth in the USA Today Coaches Poll, won its lone game last week with a 79-63 victory over Western Kentucky in the Billy Minardi Classic.
The Cardinals shot 50.8 percent for the game, including 69 percent from the field and 75 percent from 3-point range in the second half. Collectively, Louisville turned over the ball just seven times and tied a season high for the third time with 19 assists. Defensively, the Cardinals limited the Hilltoppers to just 36.4 percent shooting for the game.
Chane Behanan, the game's most valuable player, came off the bench and had 11 points, seven rebounds, and two assists. He went 5-of-6 from the field. Russ Smith led the Cardinals with 14 points and 10 assists - his second double-double of that kind this season - and turned the ball over just twice in 34 minutes.
Reigning American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week Mangok Mathiang scored a season-best 13 points and had five rebounds and one blocked shot, marking his fourth-consecutive game with at least one block.
Smith, who ranks fifth in the conference in scoring, leads the team with 17.2 points per game. His 4.9 assists per game rank fourth in the league. Montrezl Harrell, who ranks 17th nationally in field goal shooting at 62.7 percent, is averaging 12.3 points and 8.7 rebounds.
Missouri State boasts an 8-1 record and registered its second-consecutive win after defeating Oral Roberts 70-67 on Friday. The Bears' only loss of the season came against Virginia on Nov. 30, a day after Missouri State posted a 73-67 win over Texas A&M.
In the win over Oral Robers, Marcus Marshall paced Missouri State with a game-high 20 points in 25 minutes off the bench. Nine of his points came from the free throw line. Jamar Gulley added 15 points, and Christian Kirk, who came off the bench, added 12 points and six boards.
The Bears, who received 39 points from their bench, turned the ball over just seven times.
For the season, Gulley and Marshall lead the team in scoring, averaging 13.7 and 13.4 points, respectively. Gulley ranks first on the squad with 21 steals and 5.7 rebounds per game.
Collectively, the Bears rank 12th nationally in turnovers per game (9.9) and 18th in fewest turnovers (89). They are averaging 19 free throws made per game.
Missouri State is under the direction of third-year coach Paul Lusk, who's directed the team to a 35-39 record. The Bears return all five starters from last year's team that went 11-22 and lost in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament quarterfinals to Wichita State. The team was picked to finish fourth in the conference's preseason poll and Marshall earned preseason league honors.
GAME FACTS - Missouri State at Louisville
Date: Tuesday, Dec. 17
Time: 9:05 p.m. ET
Site: KFC Yum! Center/Crum Court, Louisville, Ky. (22,000)
TV: ESPN2 will broadcast the game, with Bob Wischusen (play-by-play) and Len Elmore (analyst) calling the action. It also will be available on the WatchESPN platform.
Radio: WHAS 840 AM will broadcast the game, with Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (analyst) calling the action. The broadcast also is available on SIRIUS channel 85 and XM channel 85.
Series History: The Cardinals won the only meeting with a 74-56 decision in the 2006 NIT quarterfinals at Freedom Hall.
Next UofL Game: Saturday, Dec. 21 vs. Florida International in Miami, Fla., 6 p.m. ET (FOX Sports 1)
