Louisville conquers a Big Ten Challenge
In a game many assumed would pit Louisville's talented perimeter players against Purdue's big, strong frontcourt stars, it was U of L's own big men who stole the show.
Ray Spalding had 11 points and nine rebounds and Mangok Mathiang added 11 points and eight rebounds as Louisville topped Purdue in a 71-64 ACC/Big Ten Challenge win at the KFC Yum! Center.
It was a significant bounce-back victory for the 14th-ranked Cards, who relinquished a 22-point lead in the Battle 4 Atlantis final against Baylor on Friday and lost the competitive tournament's championship game.
"We knew we would have to win this game on defense, and we certainly played unbelievable defense in the first half," U of L coach Rick Pitino said. "Purdue is one of the two or three teams that can win the Big Ten, and if we keep playing this type of defense, we're going to be a very good basketball team down the road."
Louisville (6-1) used its speedy frontcourt to pester Purdue's Caleb Swanigan and Isaac Haas, star post players who lead the 16th-ranked Boilermakers in scoring.
Swanigan, a preseason All-Big Ten selection, made his first field goal with 9:48 to play. And though the 6-9, 260-pound sophomore finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, his seventh double-double already this season, he labored through six turnovers to get there
►Greer | U ofL aces frontcourt test from Purdue
►Sullivan | Long-armed Spalding raises his game
►Game Rewind | U of L 71, Purdue 64
►Highlights | U of L beats Purdue
The 7-foot-2, 290-pound Haas totaled eight points and five rebounds, but he also shot just 2 of 9 from the field.
It was a quartet of Cardinals who did most of the dirty work against Haas and Swanigan.
Spalding, a sophomore, had one of the best games of his young career, playing 26 minutes off the bench and adding a block and an assist to his near double-double performance.
Mathiang was persistent in looking for his offense in the post, attempting 11 shots in going right at Haas. His fellow starter, Jaylen Johnson, had six points and two rebounds, while Anas Mahmoud added nine points and two assists off the bench before fouling out.
On defense, that four Louisville big men constantly swarmed Haas and Swanigan, slapping at the ball and forcing seven turnovers. Purdue scrounged only 18 points in the paint, the first time this season the Boilermakers (5-2) didn't reach 20 points in the lane.
They shot 36.5 percent for the game, but that number hovered around 30 for most of the contest before a late flourish of 3-pointers, including one from Swanigan.
As for the perimeter players, it was a big game for Ryan McMahon (six points) and Tony Hicks, who logged 13 important minutes off the bench after not playing in three of the past four games.
U of L shot 48.3 percent as a team, although that number was largely thanks to 32 points in the paint and a 53.3-percent clip on 2-pointers.
