Louisville basketball game grades: Cards let one get away at Indiana

Louisville Cardinals. CHRISTEN CUNNINGHAM. A. This game dictated that Cunningham shoot the ball more often than he’d like to. But, when he takes shots, he makes them. It’s hard telling where this team would be without his poise and veteran leadership. Credit Cunningham with 16 points and 3 assists. He also made a pretty nice little double clutch half court shot at the buzzer.. PG

D+. This game was the first where we really saw Darius Perry look like his freshman self. He took challenged shots, and really killed the flow of the offense on multiple ocassions. Louisville is at their best when Perry is getting in the lane and distributing. He is better than 17 minutes, 0 points (0/7 shooting), 2 rebounds, and 2 assists, and I’m sure he knows as much. The Cards need more from him if they want to be one of the last 68 teams in March.. PG. Louisville Cardinals. DARIUS PERRY

Louisville Cardinals. V.J. KING. D. There are some games where I have to check the box score to remember if VJ played, mid-game. Chris Mack tried to play King at the four spot and Agau at the five for an entire segment of the first half. VJ could not get anything done. All 0’s on the stat sheet, except a turnover and 2 fouls. That is not what you want to see out of your team captain, especially coming off of his most promising performance of the season.. SF

Louisville Cardinals. DWAYNE SUTTON. B+. Sutton was one of the victims of a couple of fantom fouls that inexplicably put Indiana at the line in the second half. The Cards really needed his energy in the last couple of minutes after he fouled out. Still, he gave the Cards 8 points, 5 rebounds, and no turnovers. If every Card crashed boards like Dwayne, they’d be undefeated. No hyperbole.. SF

C. Enoch was strong on the offensive end, but he was a liability guarding Juwan Morgan. On three occassions, Morgan spun to the baseline side for an easy bucket. You learn in 5th grade that the sideline is your friend on defense. Steve allowed Morgan to go away from the help defense multiple times. Really bad performance on D from a guy who the Cards absolutely need against elite big men.. C. Louisville Cardinals. STEVEN ENOCH

Never thought I’d say this, but Jordan Nwora was one of Louisville’s best defenders on Saturday. Indiana is pretty bland on offense, but I’d take Jordan playing this way on defense all day long. His 24 points come as a surprise to nobody, but he had the ball in his hands more tonight because he was active on defense, and crashed the glass for 14 rebounds. As much as some of Louisville’s guys were disappointing against IU, Nwora nearly made up for their sloppy play.. PF. Louisville Cardinals. JORDAN NWORA. A+

C. Williams made a few threes the last couple of games, and thus his propencity for taking outside shots increased. He didn’t look ready to bang inside with Indiana’s bigs, and one is left to wonder if his return home didn’t make him press just a little bit too much. Once Williams realized his place is in the post, he will be a real weapon. His attitude and hustle are an assett, now it’s about putting the pieces together.. PF. Louisville Cardinals. MALIK WILLIAMS

McMahon took a three with under a minute left that, situationally, I wouldn’t trust any other player in the country more with. It, of course, rattled out, but if he made it we are talking about Louisville being 7-2 and not 6-3. No worries, though. Keep shooting, kid. McMahon was 2/6 from deep, 3/3 from the line (after drawing a clutch foul with :2.2 left), and had a beautiful backdoor cut and crafty lay-in that put the Cards back ahead late.. PG. Louisville Cardinals. RYAN MCMAHON. A-

KHWAN FORE. B. Fore is a monster on the defensive end. He kept Romeo Langford in check while he was giving Cunningham and McMahon breathers. Like Cunningham, he’s not a high volume shot-taker. He just does what is asked of him.. SG. Louisville Cardinals

B. Agau, like Fore, was in for defense and rebounding. He only played six minutes Saturday, but he took Juwan Morgan out of his rhythm on offense. Again, all of the grad transfers are just unflappable. You love to see the maturity- they are there to help the team win, no matter what it takes.. PF. Louisville Cardinals. AKOY AGAU

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