Louisville basketball secured a massive 96-88 victory over the Kentucky Wildcats last night, snapping a three-game losing streak to their in-state rival. The Cardinals survived a late push from Mark Pope and the Wildcats as Louisville was up by as much as 20, and Kentucky cut the lead all the way down to four. However, thanks to Mikel Brown Jr. and Ryan Conwell, Louisville survived the comeback and sent the Cats home with a massive loss.
Brown Jr. and Conwell are going to get a lot of attention after this huge win as they combined for 53 points, but Louisville's massive X-factor and hidden gem of this game was the German forward, Sananda Fru. The 6-foot-10, 245-pound forward played his best game of the season so far and was massive for Pat Kelsey on both ends of the floor.
Kelsey had nothing but positive words for Fru after the game and made it clear that as he becomes more and more comfortable, this team will continue to improve.
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Pat Kelsey loved what he saw from Louisville's X-factor in win over Kentucky
The Cardinals' frontcourt was one of the biggest questions entering the season, as well as this game. They had a lot of new faces in the frontcourt, and Fru has the highest expectations of them all. Coming over from Germany, Fru is coming off an award-winning season and has started in every game.
The fans made it clear after the two preseason games that they wanted their center to play more physically and be more involved, and last night, they finally saw just how dominant he can be on the biggest stage.
"Sananda was really good. He's just getting more comfortable." Kelsey stated in his press conference after the win. "He was really good. He rebounded the ball for us, he was good in the pick and roll, was finishing around the rim, thought he was really, really good."
Fru finished the game with 10 points and a game high seven rebounds, which included a game high three offensive rebounds. His biggest offensive rebound might be late in the game after he secured an offensive rebound with a minute left and helped send J'Vonne Hadley to the free-throw line.
The 6-foot-10 245 245-pound center is becoming a massive asset for rebounding. His ability to attack the glass and get an offensive rebound is enormous for this Louisville team, and throughout the game, it showed just how dominant he can be on the glass.
Fru was all over the glass and was nearly impossible to slow down. His presence was felt on offense and defense, and Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats had no answers for Fru when he was on the floor. He went 4-of-4 from the field and added two blocks when the lights were the brightest.
The biggest takeaway was his ability to dominate the paint, whether that was finishing at the rim with a monster slam, blocking a shot, or securing a rebound. Fru had his best game so far, and it is clear that he gets more and more comfortable, he is becoming that unstoppable monster in the paint that Louisville fans were hoping for.