College basketball has become a place where anything goes if the game between the University of Louisville and Indiana is any indication. One takes his life in his hands when he gets the basketball or goes anywhere close to the basket. Players seemingly have little protection from the men in stripes on the court. Hell night every night these days.
Indiana appeared to be in a state of shock as UofL raced to an early 16-0 lead in front of 18,877 at Gainbridge Field House in Indianapolis on Saturday. The Hoosiers could either roll over or come out fighting for their lives. They chose to go the physical route, believing it was the chance they had. The Cardinals were not going to be intimidated, matching blow for blow in an 87-78 win over the Hoosiers.
The officials blew the whistle 21 times on the Hoosiers and 19 times on the Cardinals. They could easily have twice as many fouls on both teams, it was that kind of melee on the court. IU’s leading scorer Tucker DeVries, with 26 points, actually seeming to deliver a blow and bumping a UofL player at one point with no response from any mediators. DeVries had four 3-pointers and hit 12 of 13 free throw attempts.
Early indications are that the game is going to continue getting worse physically before it gets better. A far cry from overly sensitive touch fouls from a couple of seasons ago. One can expect to see more fisticuffs and brawls as the trend continues.
“I thought it was a big-time college basketball game in a big-time environment and a big-time venue,” said UofL Coach Pat Kelsey. “This is an unbelievably exciting day in [Indianapolis] with, obviously, the [Big 10] championship game of football tonight and this game – there was a buzz in the city and there was a buzz tonight. I credit Indiana. Darian [DeVries] is a really, really good coach, a good dude. I’ve known him for a long time… [Indiana is] a bear to prepare for. They force you to be on it on the defensive end, your communication, your urgency; you can’t relax at any second. I thought, for the most part, our guys did that.”
Five Cardinals scored in double figures as as sixth-ranked Louisville improved its record to 8-1 for the season. Indiana dropped it second straight game, falling to 8-2. Ryan Conwell led Louisville with 21 points, going four-of-10 from the field with three 3-pointers and 10-of-11 from the free throw line. J’Vonne Hadley added a season-high 15 points, going six-of-13 from the field and grabbed six rebounds.
Isaac McKneely contribugted five 3-pointers and finished with 15 points. Sananda Fru scored 12 points on 3-of-3 shooting with a 3-pointer and a 5-of-7 performance from the charity stripe while pulling down a team-high seven boards and adding three steals. Kobe Rodgers poured in a season-high 12 points off the bench with 4-of-4 shooting from the field with two 3-pointers in 13 minutes of action.
