No. 9 Louisville 69, Southern Mississippi 38: Chris Jones scored 18 points off the bench and the host Cardinals flexed their muscles on defense as the Golden Eagles were manhandled for their first loss of the season.
Montrezl Harrell added 11 points and nine rebounds for Louisville (6-1), which held Southern Mississippi to just four field goals on 16.3 percent shooting over the first 26 minutes of the game to jump out to a 45-13 lead early in the second half. Russ Smith added 11 points and six assists for the Cardinals, who shot 12-of-31 from 3-point range.
Michael Craig's nine points led Southern Mississippi (6-1), which shot 28.9 percent from the floor and committed 22 turnovers against the Cardinals, who lead the nation in turnover margin. The Golden Eagles went in as the top-ranked defense in Conference USA, allowing a season average of 60 points, but the Cardinals reached that mark on Jones' fourth 3-pointer with 7:30 still left to play.
Louisville opened the blowout by scoring the first 11 points en route to a 34-13 halftime lead on the strength of seven 3-pointers, including three from Terry Rozier and two apiece from Wayne Blackshear and Jones. Jerrold Brooks was the only Southern Mississippi shooter with more than one basket in the first half, hitting a field goal and a 3-pointer for a team-high five points.
Southern Mississippi never got closer than 16 points in the second half, as Louisville came out of the intermission with another 11-0 run to pull out to a 45-13 advantage. From there, the Cardinals went to their bench, which outscored the Golden Eagles' reserves, 27-10.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Louisville had more assists in the first half (11) than it had for the whole game its last time out against North Carolina (eight). ... The Cardinals outrebounded the Golden Eagles, 38-33, with a season-high seven rebounds and three blocked shots from C Mangok Mathiang. ... Louisville improved to 31-11 all-time against Southern Mississippi.
Southern Miss | Louisville | |
Michael Craig 9 | Scoring | Chris Jones 18 |
Aaron Brown 2 | Assists | Russ Smith 6 |
Aaron Brown 7 | Rebounds | Montrezl Harrell 9 |
Michael Craig 3 | Free Throws Made | Chris Jones 4 |
Neil Watson 3 | Steals | Russ Smith 4 |
Daveon Boardingham 1 | Blocks | Mangok Mathiang 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Southern Miss | 38 | 28.9 | 2-11 | 10-13 | 7 | 31 | 1 | 7 | 22 |
Louisville | 69 | 41.8 | 12-31 | 11-22 | 16 | 38 | 6 | 9 | 12 |