Louisville men’s basketball welcomes the Mercyhurst Lakers to the KFC Yum! Center tonight for the second of two exhibition matchups for the Cards this season.  The game will tip at 7 pm and be streamed on ACC Network Extra.  The Cards won their other exhibition game last week against Kansas, 89-83. 

It was Kansas’ first home exhibition loss in 58 tries dating back to the 1993 season.  There were plenty of positives to take out of the win in Lawrence, including outscoring the Jayhawks 53-46 in the second half.  What we want to see from the Mercyhurst exhibition:

Big Man Dominance

Flory Bidunga was widely regarded as the best target in the transfer portal and a defensive phenom.  In the exhibition against his former team last week, he registered 28 minutes and only manufactured five points and three rebounds to go with four fouls.  His ability to protect the rim was evident, especially when 7’2” freshman Obinna Ekezie Jr. was alongside him on in the front court.  Ekezie ended the night with five blocks to go along with 16 points (4-6 from 3-point range). 

Tonight, the tallest player for the Lakers is 6’9”.  I would like to see both big men record double-doubles and the two to combine for 8+ blocks.  7’5” transfer center Gabe Dynes was out for the game at Kansas, a timetable on his return is yet to be disclosed.

Forward Alvaro Folgueiras started at power forward and went 3-for-4 from the field, including 2-for-3 from behind the arc.  He finished the game with eight points, five rebounds and four assists.  Folgueiras won’t always be a primary scorer, but he has to be able to run a “point-forward” position and be ready to get his teammates involved when the shot isn’t there for him.

Trimble/Shelstad

The experienced duo in the backcourt proved to be too much for Jayhawks.  Shelstad was lethal with a step-back jumper, finishing the night 8-for-15 with 23 points and three of Louisville’s six steals.  Trimble had six of his 12 points in the closing minutes to seal the win at the free throw line.  Even though Trimble was 3-for-12 shooting, he pulled down seven rebounds and dished out four assists.  If these two are consistent, Louisville will rack up a ton of wins.

Who Emerges as the “3”

Adrian Wooley is the lone returning scholarship player from a season ago.  He got the start at Phog Allen last Wednesday as the small forward.  In 20 minutes, he went 2-for-7 from the field with both shots being made three pointers in the first minutes of the second half.  Wooley also had three rebounds and three assists. 

Arkansas transfer Karter Knox was first off the bench and contributed seven points, three rebounds and an assist in 12 minutes of playing time. 

The best of the three happened to be the Dayton transfer, De’Shayne Montgomery.  Montgomery had 10 points, two rebounds and an assist in 22 minutes. 

I imagine Wooley will get the start the tonight, but this is the final audition to see who will get the nod in the season opener next Monday against Chattanooga. 

 Complete Game

Kansas jumped out to a 10-3 lead nearly five minutes in a week ago, with the Cards settling for threes early in the shot clock.  Tonight they need to use the experience of playing in front of a hostile sold-out atmosphere to shake off the early game jitters of playing in the KFC Yum! Center for the first time this season.  Set the tone with pace and well-established shots.  This is a complete mismatch in terms of talent, do not get sloppy and play within yourself.  This is one of those exhibitions where you should score close to 100 points, win by 30+ and build confidence and excitement heading into the season opener.