Thursday, November 01, 2001
Pitino's Louisville debut typical exhibition
Coach's intensity, fun revived in 81-63 win
LOUISVILLE — Rick Pitino was finally back in his element Wednesday night at Freedom Hall.
He hollered, paced, yanked players out of the game for making mistakes and vigorously applauded when they did something right in Louisville's 81-63 exhibition victory over EA Sports.
Hired in March to replace Denny Crum, Pitino was coaching a college game for the first time since his Kentucky team lost to Arizona in the 1997 NCAA championship game.
“I felt great, because when you're as happy as I am working with these guys, you feel really good,” said Pitino, 352-124 in 16 seasons as a college coach. “I'm excited about teaching them. It's great to have so many eyes wanting to learn with such a positive attitude.”
Ellis Myles led the Cardinals with 15 points and 15 rebounds, Reece Gaines added 19 points, and point guard Carlos Hurt had 11. Eric Holmes led EA Sports with 23.
Pitino jokingly asked two police escorts how to get to the Freedom Hall court as he left the locker room minutes before tipoff.
He was all business once the game started, settling into a baseball catcher's stance and barking instructions at a fast pace from the opening minute.
He screamed at Erik Brown for passing on an open 3-point shot and at Hurt and Luke Whitehead for not sprinting back on defense after missed shots. He pulled freshman Larry O'Bannon out of the game twice for defensive mistakes.
“The first 15 minutes was as good as it gets, watching guys pass the ball, watching guys run the break and not turn it over,” Pitino said. “That was really fun to watch.
EA SPORTS - Jackson 1-8 0-0 3, Bankhead 4-8 5-6 15, Rassloff 1-2 2-2 4, Holmes 8-18 2-3 23, Parris 4-10 2-3 10, Ellison 1-7 0-0 2, Willform 1-6 0-0 2, Dottin 0-4 2-2 2, Tower 0-1 2-3 2. Totals 20-64 15-19 63.
LOUISVILLE - Myles 6-6 3-5 15, Whitehead 5-12 0-2 10, Brown 1-4 1-2 3, Hurt 5-14 0-0 11, Gaines 6-15 6-7 19, Wilkinson 3-4 0-0 6, Northern 1-4 0-0 3, Mohammed 0-0 0-0 0, Naydenov 2-6 0-0 6, O'Bannon 2-9 9-9 4, George 0-0 0-0 0, N'Sima 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 33-79 10-16 81.
Halftime—Louisville 43, EA Sports 32. 3-Point Goals—EA Sports 8-28 (Jackson 1-7, Bankhead 2-3, Holmes 5-11, Parris 0-1, Ellison 0-5, Dottin 0-1), Louisville 5-26 (Brown 0-1, Hurt 1-6, Gaines 1-8, Northern 1-3, Naydenov 2-5, O'Bannon 0-3). Fouled out—Myles. Rebounds—Louisville 59 (Myles 15), EA Sports 38 (Jackson 7). Assists—Louisville 17 (Hurt 8), EA Sports 11 (Holmes 5). Total fouls—Louisville 18, EA Sports 20. A—17,623.
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Pitino's Louisville debut typical exhibition
