As for the game...

...Cards win 97-70. The big story was Mike Marra, who scored a career-high 23 points and hit 5 three pointers out of 14 taken. Something tells me that 23 won't be his career high in points for long. Or that this will be the last time we see him jack up 14 three-pointers.

What shouldn't be lost about Marra's impressive play is his athleticism and passing prowess. Mike had three dunks today -- each one sent home with authority. And some of the passes that he's needling into the post -- I just didn't know before this year he had that type of capability. No one did. Except Rick Pitino. And he'll never let us forget it.

Beyond Marra, I was happy to see Peyton Siva find a groove especially in the second half. He finished with 15 points, 4 assists and 3 steals, with only one turnover and two personal fouls. Like Mr. Red, I've been concerned about his rhythm early on this year. Today was a step forward. His dashes to the rim are faster than last year. I think he should look for it more often.

Our presence down low was solid. Both Buckles! and Jennings performed well, each playing within their game for the most part. TJ finished with 10 points, 8 rebounds and 3 embarrassing blocks (only 3? seemed like more). Buckles! scored 12 points and pulled down 14 (!) boards. 7 offensive rebounds between them. Dieng also played hard, though there was some dispute about the number of fouls he committed.

Knowles shot selection makes me nervous. My sense is I'm preaching to the choir on that one. Nonetheless, he made impressive baskets today. The announcers said he leads the team in steals. I wouldn't have guessed that.

The announcers also said that Louisville is 4th in the country in steals and 1st among Big East teams. That should be everyone's favorite statistic at this point. They keep that up, and they can play up-tempo forever.

Full stat sheet here. Awesome win today. More awesome if we win the next two.

Where are we? Answer is Louisville... this team doesn't get out much. How good are we? See below

Another stellar performance against an overmatched team is in the books. With every game that passes before UNLV, the danger grows that fans will overestimate this team's progress against weak competition.

On the other hand, overly cautious fans can be faulted for not recognizing how impressive -- and consistent -- these feats have been. I submit that this early season schedule is not profoundly less difficult than those of years previous, yet the Cards are blowing out the competition and playing with more consistency than we have seen in a few years.

Even when there have been glaring holes (i.e. Jackson State), they have always found ways to build leads. The same could not be said of last season. When the Cards struggled last year, they struggled. When they struggle this year, they find different sources of strength, new ways to win.

Today was no struggle. Pitino experimented with different lineups. One got the sense that the Cards could have amped up the intensity at any moment but instead preferred to tinker. They controlled from beginning to end nonetheless.

So where do we stand? Definitely too early to declare a Top 10 team or anything like that. But as the Cards possibly make their entrance into the Top 25 this week, I implore that we should remain cautiously optimistic, if for no other reason than it's a lot of fun -- there's no greater truth, or wider agreement among the blogs, than to say that this team has been fun to watch.

On to the San Francisco game on Wednesday. Assuming (praying) the early season Pitino-letdown doesn't come then, a major test will take place next Saturday at noon: the showdown with Card-killing UNLV.

Darius Ashley charged with DUI

Not only that, but he passed out while ordering fast food in a drive-thru. According to WLKY:

Police said they were advised by another driver around 2:30 a.m. Friday that 20-year-old Darius Ashley was passed out at the restaurant on 1500 South Brook Street.

So much for his story of redemption and transformation ongoing from the Kragthorpe era.

UofL head football coach Charlie Strong said he is handling the situation internally and Ashley will be disciplined immediately.

Hat tip: Card Chronicle.

Mr. Red is without computer access at the moment, but he sent in his report via text. Single word. Began with F and ended with K. All capital letters. Exclamation mark. My sentiments exactly.

Rebels with a cause

Just a reminder to all that mistakenly believe that Louisville basktball is on cruise control until December 31st. The UNLV Runnin' Rebs are flatout playing ball, vaulting into top #25 after taking down Va. Tech in the championship of an early-season California tourney. Perhaps even more impressive, in their previous game they destroyed a very good Murray State team by 14 points.

The Cards have lost two in a row to UNLV in a rivalry that's turned heated in recent years.

The Old Lady dies and Mr. Red's second trip to the Kayefseum

1999 was a fine year for the Ford Taurus. Mine was no exception. She had the finest stereo speakers in the land, miracles of American engineering that announced her presence to all. Her hunter green paint job glinted brightly in the sun. She had driven reliably for years, even after some young hoodlum took off the sideview mirror, scarring her otherwise proud face.

But lately, something was amiss. She was aging. Last evening, I knew something was wrong when I turned onto Main Street. The excitement of getting halfcourt tickets to the UofL-FIU game suddenly gave way to more grave concerns. Her lights had dimmed, the panel lights began to go out.

"No Old Girl!" I exclaimed, "Don't do this to me!"

She responded to my pleas, and juiced seemed to flow through the Old Lady once more. But as we were stopped for the long light on 2nd and Main, directly in front of the Arena, as traffic mounted and thousands of fans were pouring by on the streets, things took a turn for the worst.

She was in pain. The radio went silent. The engine stalled, the life was draining from of her. She grunted a strange sound that seemed to ask, "Here?". I momentarily lost my normally unflappable demeanor, I was seconds away from being "that guy" who's car died in front of the Arena and prevented half the fans from making tipoff.

I pleaded with her to dig deep, "Not here, not now!"

Once more she responded. And when the light turned green she leapt forth once more with a burst of imaginable power. I steered her gently into a parking lot past 6th Street. She put-putted into one of the last remaining spots as many people stared at us.

And that was it. I said a quick goodbye, in case it was our last time together, and turned off the ignition.

I tried her life support once more, just to check, but got nothing more than rapid clicks.

Soon, I'll be bombarded with elitist mechanic talk and mumbo-jumbo terms like "dead battery" and "shot alternator". But I know what I saw. It was the most dignified death of an automobile I've ever witnessed.

I couldn't linger over my grief for long. I had tickets. Halfcourt tickets! The Arena looked awesome all decked out in Christmas decor, and my lil' sis bought an almost-worth-it, delicious but expensive prime rib sandwich that we split. But we couldn't dally in the concourse long because we had to find our seats. Did I mention they were close?

Say it together class..."How close were you, Mr. Red?"

I was so close I can confirm that Ralph Willard moves.

I was so close I could see that rumors about Preston Knowles' receding hairline have been greatly exaggerated.

I was so I close was blinded by the shininess of Charlie Strong's head (who received the loudest ovation of the night).

I was close. Annnnnd, I was precisely 24 steps from the beer tap at the Evan Williams Bourbon Bar, annnnnnd I was sitting right next to Patti Swope (who's aging like fine wine). I was in heaven.

As for the action, I agree with Rick Bozich's column today. When you play a team that bad there's very little you can learn about your team.

But here's a few quick thoughts anyways...

* It's not a UofL game without leaving with something to worry about. I'm worried about Peyton Siva, who is being legitimately outplayed by Elisha Justice. He hasn't found his range from the field, always hitting back iron on his jumpers, and isn't slashing to the basket like last season. Considering Pitino's love affair with his "Bullet", I'm starting to fear a sophomore slump for Siva.

* Mike Marra is quickly becoming the cog the rest of the Louisville offense revolves around. And that's a good thing. I never thought I'd type those words.

* There hasn't been a funnier "What do you think they're talking about?" moment than watching Pitino and Isiah Thomas yukking it up pregame.

* Russ Smith was very impressive in his limited action. He handles the ball effortlessly and with flair, and passes well. He also has enormous feet. Seriously, look at him next game, his feet are completely disproportional to the rest of his body. He's like a clown.

* As noted on Card Game, those that stayed to the end were treated to a stellar performance from Gorgui Dieng. His 7 blocks and 3 dunks were the highlight of the game if you ask me, and it's hilarious seeing him momentarily think about popping a 3 when he gets the ball outside.

* This team's strength, obviously, is it's depth. And it's not "token depth" as it has been in years past. You can go 10-11 deep off the bench and still not be certain if the current lineup isn't perhaps better than the starting five. Of course, the flip side of this is that there are no real "go to" guys on the team, which could be detrimental when the Big East white-knucklers invariably roll around. But there's not a coach I'd want trying to press the right buttons for 11 overachieving scrappers than Rick Pitino.

No one wants T-Will!

Former Cardinal standout Terrence Williams was recently demoted to the NBA D-league in what's perceived by most as punishment for chronic problems with professionalism with the Nets.

He's currently suiting up for the Springfield Armor. But it turns out even they may not want him! The move has been criticized by many who run the D-league, not wishing to become the Elba of professional basketball. Blogger Matt Moore writes...

Williams is a problem child for (Avery) Johnson. And maybe he's completely justified in his approach to punish the youngster to get him in line. But using the D-League seems like a creative solution for them, when in reality, it's a reckless maneuver that only hurts Williams, the Nets, the D-League, and the NBA. Use the D-League for what it was designed to do: develop players. Don't use it as your own personal timeout corner. You're only hurting yourself.

I don't care about the long-term viability of the D-league, but I do care about T-Will, and he seems to have put himself on a dangerous path. An article on the subject on a Nets blog (who knew such a thing existed?) sparked 184 reader comments, and the general sentiment was that Williams is wearing out his welcome in New Jersey.

Complaints center around Williams' chronic tardiness for flights and practices, insubordination with the coaching staff, and perhaps most shockingly, showing up for the season out of shape. And remember the New York Times article that had hinted T-Will's lavish spending was outpacing his earning ability?

T-Will has always had massive talent to complement his mercurial personality. But he's playing in a league that has chewed up and spit out players with far more talent than he. Williams needs an immediate shot of professionalism or I fear his NBA story will end badly.

theHoff's Top 25 breakdown

Note: theHoff is a special contributor to Cardinal Laws.

What up home skillet?? Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and a long football filled weekend. There is nothing better than seeing family that you only see once a year. Eating with them, talking to them, and being reminded as to why you only see them once a year. I kid of course (kinda). Is there a more exhausting experience than having to humor your uncles/cousins as you watch the Lions play? I can't be alone in being annoyed with people that act as if they know anything about football, hell, sports in general. It's one of my pet peeves. There is no reason to fake 'liking sports'. You don't have to. I can talk to you about the weather, or how my uncle's beer is never as cold as it should be. I don't play World of Warcraft. Therefore, I don't talk to my cousin, the Dork or Dorkopolis, about 'the underworld' or whatever the hell they call it. You don't like football, ok, I get it. Don't try to drag me down the 'I still kinda know what a field goal is' when you refer to the first down line as the 'goal'. You sound like a moron. Now shut up, shoot some pool, and drink your beer. Did I mention I love Thanksgiving??

On to the rankings:

1	Auburn	12-0 vs. South Carolina(19) 4pm (cbs)
2	Oregon	11-0 @ Oregon State 3:30pm (abc)
3	TCU	12-0
4	Stanford	11-1
5	Wisconsin	11-1
6	Ohio State	11-1
7	Arkansas	10-2
8	Michigan State	11-1
9	Oklahoma	10-2 vs. Nebraska(13) 8pm (abc)
10	LSU	10-2
11	Boise State	10-1 vs. Utah State- 3pm (ESPN3)(kicker's live tar and feathering will air on Versus)
12	Missouri	10-2
13	Nebraska	10-2 vs. Oklahoma(9) 8pm (abc)
14	Oklahoma State	10-2
15	Virginia Tech	10-2 vs. Florida State(21) 7:45pm (ESPN)
16	Alabama	9-3
17	Nevada	11-1 @ Louisiana Tech 3pm (no one cares, but thanks Nevada)
18	Texas A&M	9-3
19	South Carolina	9-3 vs. Auburn(Cam Newton) 4pm (cbs)
20	Utah	10-2
21	Florida State	9-3 vs. Virginia Tech(15) 7:45pm (ESPN)
22	Mississippi State	8-4
23	Arizona	7-4 vs. Arizona State- Thursday 8pm (ESPN)
24	West Virginia	8-3 vs. Rutgers- Saturday noon (abc)
25	Northern Illinois	10-2 vs. Miami (OH)- Friday 7pm (ESPN)

So those are the rankings going into the championship game weekend (not you Big Ten). I have to be honest, I didn't get to watch my fill of the games this weekend. I was working a half day on Friday (lame) and then traveled to be with my girlfriends' family for thanksgiving over the weekend. Thankfully, they still enjoy beer and football, so it wasn't a wash. Anyway, back to it:

Auburn jumped Oregon basically because the Tigers had a bad first half quarter. Oregon played a slightly lesser opponent in #23 Arizona, but beat them handily. I'm going to guess the fact that Auburn playing 12 games to Oregon's 11 played a slight role. Who knows?! Rhyme and/or reason has been thrown out the window weeks ago.

If Auburn beats the fake USC, they play in the Championship. Now if my predictions hold true Oregon will go into Reser stadium and lose to an angry bunch of Beavers. I'm not holding my breath on that one, but I'll be the first to say "I told ya so!!".

What I really don't like is that three of the top 10 are playing this weekend. At that, it's the top two that are playing while three Big Ten teams sit happily in their spots with nothing to worry about and an extra week of rest. I HATE THE BIG TEN.

I hate to admit it, but I turned off the Boise State/ Nevada game at halftime. Actually, I haven't talked to anyone that watched that second half. If you did, I am jealous. If you have it on DVR, let me know. I'll bring the beer. I must claim to have called that one in one of my first posts, although anyone could have taken one look at the schedule and pointed to that one. Also, Nevada might have kicked themselves in the nuts at the same time. Looks like they'll be using the same jerseys next year.

There's a little work left in the Big East as WVU attempts to clinch the title. If WVU loses, and UCONN beats USF, UCONN wins the tiebreak over WVU. Whoever the Big East winner is will likely end up against Nebraska or LSU/USC. Now I didn't read the Bozich article, but I agree with Mr. Black. The notion of volunteering a spot in the BCS would basically signal that the conference should be considered right alongside the Mountain West. Just dumb. For a conference that has been longing for a team like TCU to join the ranks, even considering such a move is mind blowing. The talk of the Horned Frogs joining the B.E. has been somewhat undermined by the massive changes in the Big 12, Pac-10, and Big Ten. I still maintain a little concern on how it will work geographically. If the eight team football conference breaks into two divisions (East/West, Atlantic/Central) that would most likely put Louisville, Cincinnati, South Florida, and TCU in one conference. Then you have WVU, Pitt, Cuse, Rutgers, and UCONN in the other.

Major disadvantage to UofL's side. Look at the map. I'm not sure how it works, or if it works.

There hasn't been the same spotlight shown on TCU as Boise St. What is all the kneejerk reaction to Boise st.? Join a conference and you'll lose a couple games each year. I'm not sure that this won't be the case with TCU. Their only real 'test' this year came against Utah, who they destroyed. So I have more of a concern as to whether the Horned Frogs would roll through the Big East with as much ease as the Mountain West. Let's hold off on making TCU the jewel in the Big East crown, at least until they play a few games in the conference.

OK, I've gone on for too long. Hopefully some of this rambling makes a little sense. I by no means claim to be a wrighter....

And while I'm at it...

... I'm gonna rail on Bozich's column too, the one today where he argues that the Big East should decline its bowl invitation. Man, that just misses the mark... big time. Put aside for the moment that it lacks genuine realism, or that it suggests universities and conferences should cease for a moment from serving the immediate interests of their student-athlete populations (I also think that boosters and donors might have some pointed things to say if schools started to decline bowl bids because "they thought they weren't good enough").

Beyond those reasons, Bozich is way off about how much goodwill such a move would convey. Forget about winning some mythical "profile in courage" award -- declining your conference BCS bowl bid would make other schools look at you like you were crazy. And to surrender something that other conferences wouldn't dare surrender, and that still other conferences desperately want -- that's suicidal. It certainly would do no favors to the Big East as the conference wages its ongoing credibility battle -- would we ever be able to quiet the doubters after a "we're not good enough this year so we're going to give up our bid" scenario?

I also dislike the ambiguous reasoning employed -- "score integrity points," "earn your spot," "show character," these are the listed reasons as to what's in it for the Big East. Maybe it's because I don't have any, but what the hell does it mean for an athletic conference to "show character"? By accepting its contractually-guaranteed bid to a BCS bowl, is the Big East conference suddenly NOT showing character? And how do we keep score of all these integrity points that are flying around? Most important, how will all these flying soaring glowing integrity points benefit the university or conference in any real, tangible way? I abhor it when writers sex up their arguments with jargon and catch-phrases that explains, in terms of fact, virtually nothing. It's like being forced to sit through another Steve Kragthorpe press conference. And I already did my time dammit.

Okay, rant over. If you think it bugged me, check out Charlie Springer's reaction that he posted this morning at U of L Card Game. It REALLY got Charlie revved up.

A note on bowl lobbying

Naturally there is a lot of speculation among fans as to what bowl slot Louisville will eventually fill. The most likely destination appears to be the Little Caesars Bowl in Detroit. But much attention has focused on the possibility that the Sun Bowl in El Paso will extend an invitation for an at-large bid. (Still other possibilities are the Big East tie-ins -- the Beef O Brady Bowl in St. Petersburg and the Compass Bowl in Birmingham)

Any fan who follows college football perhaps intuitively would prefer the Sun Bowl to the Little Caesars Bowl -- the former having more history, a higher-profile opponent, warmer weather, and greater prestige. I have yet to read anything that gauges the Sun Bowl's specific interest in us filling that at large bid, so a lot of this conjecture could end up much ado about nothing. Still, the sad fact remains that even if they are interested, the Sun Bowl is played on New Year's Eve, the day of the U of L-UK basketball game. For better or worse, that makes the choice easy, if unfortunate. Louisville cannot commit to a scenario where the team heads to a bowl and the fans don't follow.

If the football Cards play the day of the basketball game -- not just the annual showdown this year, but also the first confrontation in the new arena -- then it is unlikely that fans will travel to El Paso, Detroit or anywhere else to show their support. I think it's largely agreed on that that's a fact. And that fact is so important, it can't just be acknowledged, then summarily dismissed. It outweighs even the chance to play a higher profile opponent in warmer weather. After overall record and rankings, fan support is the most critical element to bowl selection. We don't want to embarrass ourselves by entering a situation where we can't turn out our base.

Should the players and coaches see this calculus as a slight, that basketball could hold back the football team from selecting a better bowl? I wouldn't blame them if they reached that conclusion. However, I think that bowl selection (outside of the BCS series) is more about the right fit, not fighting your way into the "best" bowl upon which there is hardly agreement anyway. Will it matter so much if Louisville enters next season as a reigning champion or runner-up of the El Paso Sun Bowl, as opposed to the Little Caesars Bowl? I suppose you could make that argument, but it's specious to me. At any rate, as potentially discouraging as it might seem to Charlie Strong and his players that basketball could dictate the terms of Louisville's bowl selection, it will be far more discouraging for them to go to a bowl where the fans don't show. They deserve their own day.

In my opinion, the real victory here is that the Cards were able to gain bowl eligibility in the first place. Now is the time to maneuver them into a bowl where Planet Red will be able to turn out and show their full support. No less than Charlie Strong has said that he doesn't want to split the fan base; if and when we head to a bowl, he wants (and deserves) their undivided attention. That reasoning makes the most sense to me.

Recappin, thumbs up edition

Thumbs UP: AM football. Cardinal fans know the pain on 11:00AM kickoffs after Thanksgiving, or a few thousand of us do anyways. It's a time God didn't intend for football. I was visiting family up north for Thanksgiving so the game was even earlier, 10:00 Central. And I have to say, rolling out of bed fresh off a turkey coma and turning on the Cards was, dare I say it...pleasant.

Thumbs UP: Quarterback play. Justin Burke must have been stewing over my stinging criticisms all week, because he came out firing last Friday. He was sensing pressure, timely stepping up and out of the pocket, and some of those passes downfield were downright lasers. When he went down, Stein stepped in and was impressive, churning those little legs to keep the chains moving.

If you could carve out the best features of the Froburkein Trio and build a QB, somewhere in there is a solid and consistent leader. But there's only one game left, so it's probably not worth the medical and ethical risks. Probably.

Thumbs UP: Bilal Powell. He'll go down as perhaps the biggest casualty of the Kragthorpe Era with two seasons of untapped potential. He's all heart and effort on the field, and his reclusive nature off the field just adds to the mystique. To say he's a legend is perhaps an overstatement, but Powell has certainly left his mark. Hand-picked by Charlie Strong who saw "something there", kinda like in the movie Seabiscuit when Chris Cooper's character watched the unknown colt and just "saw something", sensed greatness.

Bilal Powell is more like a meteor. He didn't shine long, but he did so brightly, and the rebuilding of Louisville Football would not have been the same without him.

Thumbs UP: Mr. Black. I'd like to echo the sentiments expressed by my colleague immediately after the game and his simple expression of thanks to Charlie Strong.

Too often in the realm of sports people seem to forget about basic decencies. It's as if because someone is paid to do a job, then all bets are off. In everyday life it doesn't work like that, and most civilized people thank everyone from their waiters to the person that checks them out at the gas station, despite the fact that they are compensated. When we transfer into sports fandom, something changes. It's more about what fan's demand, what we're entitled to from paying the cost of admission.

And that's too bad. My fan-life, which is more a part of us than we care to admit, is immeasurably better than it was a year ago. It's only natural to thank the person responsible for the turnaround. So thanks, Charlie Strong, for doing what you do in the manner that you do it, and for restoring pride to Cardinal Football.

The greatest wedding gift of all

Latest on bowl bids

Complements of Eric Crawford, who says consensus in the predictions is forming around the Motor City Bowl in Detroit on Dec. 26. Link here.

Highlights from Cards win over Marshall 80-66 and repeated shots of Louisville Ladybirds

Thought that last headline might help grab your attention. Box score to the game available here.

Strong's name mentioned for Miami vacancy...

...but it doesn't appear to be anything we need to get worried about. Just expect it. Link from Bozich's blog here.