Louisville lost a tough game against Bellarmine, 67-66, last night. Fans are frustrated with the result as well as the officiating, but ultimately want more for the program. Let’s look at how the Cardinals performed individually with these player grades.
- Mike James: B+
The redshirt freshman guard totaled 16 points, three assists, and four rebounds. With three made baskets from behind the arc, James is proving himself to be a consistent threat from long range. He also showed he is capable of scoring at multiple levels by driving into the lane consistently and finishing at the basket.
Defensively, the 6-foot-5 guard showed his athleticism with an awesome block in the first half. The only real criticism of his game that can be taken away from this game was his trouble with Bellarmine’s offensive scheme and the different cuts they made to the basket, which ultimately led to his filthy block because he had to rotate over to the ball carrier.
- El Ellis: C+
The senior guard ended the night with 14 points, five assists, and three rebounds. He showed improvement defensively by staying in front of his defenders and playing better off the ball. This was a large jump compared to the game against Chaminade.
Staying in front of the ball handler was a tall ask due to Scotty Davenport’s offense, which is known for constant cuts to the basket. Offensively, Ellis dribbled down the court several times and took threes early in the shot clock. This may have been a head-scratcher for Cardinal Nation because it goes against what Kenny Payne talked about as his goal for the offense. The Durham, North Carolina product is more than capable of making these shots, but fans know he can create more offensively for himself and others on the court than what was shown last night.
- Roosevelt Wheeler: C+
The sophomore forward finished the game with three points and eight rebounds. Wheeler struggled with confidence even in the exhibition games and continued during the first half against the Knights. He loosened up and found confidence in the second half by being aggressive on the boards. One bright spot that ignited Cardinal Nation was his vicious dunk in the second half.
- Brandon Huntley-Hatfield: C+
The sophomore forward finished the game with 9 points and 10 rebounds. Huntley-Hatfield was a huge factor in ways that do not show up in the box score notching a +24 in the plus-minus metric. For context, the plus-minus metric shows the teams point differential when a player is on the floor. His point differential was achieved by his impact on the defensive side of the ball and his impact on the glass. Even with his 6-foot-10 frame, he is capable of putting the ball on the floor and scoring in different ways, which is what fans are excited to watch unfold.
- JJ Traynor: C
The junior forward finished the night with five points and two rebounds. Traynor had trouble staying on the floor for consecutive minutes due to foul trouble. However, some of the fouls were hard to blame on him due to the lack of consistency on both sides of the court by the officials. The Bardstown, Kentucky native did have some deflections defensively, which is a good sign that he will earn more minutes in the future.
- Sydney Curry: C
The senior forward finished the game with zero points, three rebounds, and a turnover. The sample size of Curry’s game is hard to analyze because he did not get many paint touches and played less than twenty minutes in the game. The one touch he did get in the paint was deflected away immediately. It was very clear that Curry was confused on offense, causing him out of position for rebounds. The Fort Wayne, Indiana product needs more time to adjust to the new system under Head Coach Kenny Payne.
- Kamari Lands: C
The freshman forward finished the game with two points last night. Lands could not find his rhythm offensively going 0-6 from the field and 0-4 from beyond the arc. It appeared as if he were not prepared defensively with the significant amount of cuts to the basket and staying in front of the ball handlers. But, Lands showed potential and will have a great performance eventually.
- Jae’Lyn Withers: B
The redshirt junior forward totaled 17 points and two rebounds in last night’s game. Withers appears to have put last season behind him and looks comfortable with the basketball. Fans can expect more from the athletic specimen because he has the ability to finish at the basket after he drives in the paint. When this happens consistently, watch out.