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Louisville basketball: Darius Perry 2018-19 year in review

By Ross Prophater

LOUISVILLE, KY - NOVEMBER 27: Chris Mack the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals gives instructions to Darius Perry #2 during the 82-78 OT win over the Michigan State Spartans at KFC YUM! Center on November 27, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - NOVEMBER 27: Chris Mack the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals gives instructions to Darius Perry #2 during the 82-78 OT win over the Michigan State Spartans at KFC YUM! Center on November 27, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Darius Perry. Louisville basketball
LOUISVILLE, KY – NOVEMBER 12: Darius Perry #2 of the Louisville Cardinals drives to the basket during the second half of the game between the Louisville Cardinals and the George Mason Patriots at KFC YUM! Center on November 12, 2017 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images) /

The Bad

Darius Perry never started a game after the conference season opener against Miami, in a game where he only clocked 4 minutes. Let that sink in for a moment.

For a player who we all had such high expectations, once conference play started and competition got consistently tougher, Darius struggled to give Coach Mack reasons to keep him on the floor.

For me, it all really started against Kentucky right before conference play. Against the Cats, Perry struggled immensely. He played 18mins and earned a stat line of 1 rebound, 0 assists, 5 turnovers, and 5 points, while going 1 of 2 from the 3 points line, and 2 of 2 from the free throw line. For a coach like Chris Mack. who preaches to his players and expects them to do all the little things, that won’t cut it. The Kentucky game was perhaps a sign of things to come.

In the 17 featured games of Louisville basketball’s ACC schedule, Perry only saw the floor for more than 15 minutes on seven occasions. Diving into his season statistics doesn’t tell the full story. If a player doesn’t get a lot of run and time to stay on the floor, its hard to accumulate meaningful stats. However, Perry simply didn’t pass the eye test sometimes. If you go back and watch, or just recall a lot of those games, it’s easy to see why Perry’s work load dwindled as the season progressed.

Darius had a hard time shaking old habits. Particularly on the defensive side while learning Mack’s scheme. He gambled too often playing passing lanes trying to get deflections and steals. This aggressive play often resulted in defensive breakdowns and Darius’ teammates having to adjust and make up for his mental mistakes.

Those defensive lapses- open driving lanes and open shooters- ultimately lead to points for the opposing team. Against the tough sledding of the ACC, obviously the more defensive lapses you have, the higher the frequency your opponent is going to score on those defensive lapses.

For a team in their first year of a new coach and trying to learn a new defensive scheme, Mack could ill-afford any unnecessary, unforced defensive lapses. Top that off with Perry’s inability to control his impulses at times, you could surmise that he lacked the mental toughness to play for Chris Mack much of the season- something that Mack harped on time and time again.

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