Louisville Too Much
January 10, 2008 09:17 PM | General
January 10, 2008
BOX SCORE
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bob Huggins warned his team that it had to shoot the basketball well and keep Louisville off the offensive glass if West Virginia entertained any hopes of knocking off the Cardinals. The Mountaineers had trouble doing both, dropping a 63-54 decision to the Louisville Thursday night at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Ky.
West Virginia (11-4, 1-2) shot just 36.4 percent overall and 23.5 percent from 3-point range and Louisville was able to grab 11 offensive rebounds, including nine first-half offensive boards.
Second chance points helped Louisville build an eight-point halftime lead. The Cardinals got three straight stick-back baskets, two by Earl Clark, and a Clark offensive rebound set up Edgar Sosa’s 3 from the wing to give Louisville a 32-24 lead.
Leading 53-42 with 7:44 remaining, Louisville went on a 10-0 run to put the game out of reach. Following the 3:50 media timeout West Virginia scored the final 12 points of the game.
Joe Alexander led all scorers with 22 points on 7 of 14 shooting. Alex Ruoff was the only other player to reach double figures with 13 points, though he made just 4 of 14 from the floor.
WVU also left points at the free throw line, going 10 of 18 for 55.6 percent.
Louisville’s bench outscored West Virginia’s 30-4 with Clark leading the Cardinals with 14 points. Sosa added 10 for Louisville, now 11-4, 1-1.
It was just the second game this season that Louisville has had its full roster after injuries had sidelined David Padgett and Juan Palacios.
The Mountaineers had season lows of 24 first-half points and 54 points for the game.
West Virginia returns to action on Sunday afternoon in a Big East game against Syracuse at the WVU Coliseum at 2:30. It will be the Mountaineers first game in front of the student body since Dec. 8. The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
