Gill Leads No. 5 Louisville Past FIU, 82-57

Friday, December 5

Louisville, Ky.

7:00 PM

University of Louisville

FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL

December 05, 2014 | Men's Basketball

Dec. 05, 2014

PRESS CONFERENCE
Head Coach Rick Pitino

INTERVIEWS
Harrell | Jones | Blackshear

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Anton Gill scored a career-high 15 points, Montrezl Harrell had 13 points and 12 rebounds, and No. 5 LOUISVILLE rolled to an 82-57 win over Florida International on Friday night.

The Cardinals (7-0) started slow before an 18-0 run in the first half and strong start after halftime overtook the Panthers. Gill shot 3 for 5 on 3-pointers as LOUISVILLE matched a season high by shooting 40 percent (8 of 20) from behind the arc.

The Cardinals forced 25 turnovers, one shy of their season high in an 87-26 rout of Savannah State. It was the third consecutive double-double for Harrell as five Cardinals scored 11 or more points.

Dennis Mavin led FIU (5-4) with 15 points and Marco Porcher Jimenez added 13 while shooting 4 for 6 on 3s.

The Panthers held LOUISVILLE to eight points in the game's opening 10 minutes before LOUISVILLE sprung to 24-10 lead.

FIU had held opponents to 36 percent shooting and Tuesday's 59-38 win against Kennesaw State marked the lowest scoring total for an opponent in program history. The Cardinals' 82 points were the most FIU has allowed as LOUISVILLE shot a season-high 57 percent (32 for 56).

LOUISVILLE trailed 10-6 before scoring 18 consecutive points in less than 6 minutes, capped by Gill's first 3-pointer with 5:51 left in the half. FIU missed 10 straight field goals, going scoreless for nearly 8 minutes.

Tashawn Desir's 3 cut the lead to single digits for the last time at 31-23 before LOUISVILLE scored five points in the final minute to take a 13-point lead at halftime.

The Cardinals then started the second half on a 16-4 run. Gill's final 3 put LOUISVILLE up 61-31 with 11:52 remaining.

TIP-INS

LOUISVILLE: The Cardinals won their 33rd straight home game against non-conference opponents dating back to a Dec. 31, 2010, against Kentucky. The Cardinals have four more non-conference games at home this month before beginning ACC play, including a Dec. 27 matchup against the top-ranked Wildcats.

FIU: The Panthers ranked eighth nationally in 3-point field-goal defense (23 percent) with opposing teams scoring just an average of 55 points per game entering Friday. ... The game marked the start of an eight-game road trip. The Panthers don't play again at home until Jan. 15. ... Richard Pitino, the son of LOUISVILLE's Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, led FIU to an 18-14 record in 2012-13 before taking the job at Minnesota.

UP NEXT

LOUISVILLE: Against Indiana at New York on Tuesday.

FIU: At Florida Gulf Coast on Dec. 14.