Louisville Basketball: Darius Perry is the X Factor vs Michigan State

Louisville basketball continues its tough stretch of games against No. 8 Michigan State on Tuesday night. We examine how Darius Perry is a key against a tough Spartans back court.

The beginning of the tough stretch for Louisville basketball that spans the end of November into December has not been kind to the Cards.

Louisville made the trip to Brooklyn for the NIT Season Tip-Off last week 3-0, but came back with two in the loss column. Now, the Cards are faced with an almost must-win situation against a top 10 Michigan State squad.

If the Cards are going have any shot at bringing down the Spartans, it is going to start with their front court defense, specifically with the defense of Sophomore Darius Perry.

Perry has been streaky throughout his career, and as recently as this past week, he showed flashes of brilliance. Against Tennessee, Perry recorded 8 points, 8 assists, and 3 steals in 31 minutes, and looked like the player many expected him to be for the Cards this season. Against Marquette, however, Perry had no four points, no assists, and a steal.

Perry’s performance against Marquette is a bit more understandable- he was tasked with guarding Marquette’s Markus Howard who went scoreless in the first half while being guarded by Perry. The rest of the game, on the other hand, slipped from the Cards’s grasp when Howard dropped 21 points in the second half and overtime against a worn down Cards defense.

Now, Perry and the Cards face a Michigan State team that features two guards of Howard’s caliber. Joshua Langford (6-5) and Cassius Winston (6-0), are both incredibly gifted players who can score at all three levels. Most notably, both Langford and Winston can shoot the lights out.

Winston is a deceptively quick guard who compliments his great outside shooting with an excellent mid-range game and exceptional passing. In Michigan State’s last game against Texas, he dished out 10 assists. On the receiving end of the assists more often than not was Langford. A match-up nightmare, Langford is a catch-and-shoot wizard, who was 5-6 from deep in route to 29 points.

Michigan State is stacked at every position, and brings a group of talented freshmen and sophomores off the bench. However, Winston and Langford are this team’s engine. The offense runs through Winston, and Langford will score at will given the opportunity.

Exploiting the Spartan’s Weaknesses

Michigan State’s weak points are hard to find, but if there are a couple it would be in the post, and with their propensity to turn the ball over.

Chris Mack spoke in his press conference Monday about encouraging Louisville sophomore forward Jordan Nwora to value possessions. If there is a weakness to this MSU team early on, it is probably the same thing. Winston and the Spartans fell behind early on multiple occasions because of Winston’s carelessness with the ball. The Spartans love to run, and Winston is not the most fleet of foot. He is an elite athlete, but think more Luke Hancock than Russ Smith.

That is where the Cards’s X factor, Darius Perry, comes into play. Perry will almost certainly be tasked with guarding Winston and Langford, and he should be salivating at the chance to get into some passing lanes and trying to push the Cards out to an early lead.

State is also lacking in height in the post. Kenny Goins, Nick Ward, and Xavier Tillman are the three bigs that are likely to see the most action against Louisville, and they all stand at about 6-7 or 6-8. By no means does that make Michigan State’s inside presence a weakness, as all three players are strong in the post and aggressive on the boards. However, Louisville has an overall height advantage in the post with 6-10 Steven Enoch and 6-11 Malik Williams.

Enoch and Williams will need to use their length to separate from the shorter Spartans defenders, but they will also need someone to get them the ball. Perry will need to remain under control against the high-paced Spartans, and continue to feed the ball to Louisville’s big men.

If you are a Cards fan, your biggest fear should be Louisville running with Michigan State. They have neither the talent, nor depth, to make this game a track meet. Look for Louisville to slow the pace, and for the guards to try and push the Spartans away from the basket further than the pack line defense often dictates.

Applying the pressure and remaining composed all starts with the bulldog, Perry, on the perimeter. The Cards will need him to impress against Michigan State in order to snap their two game skid.