Cards hang on to win third straight Big East game

It was a tale of two halves, but luckily for the Cards, they played well enough in the first half to hang on and win the game. UofL improved to 17-5, 5-4 with a 60-51 road win against Seton Hall (15-6, 4-5). After scoring 36 points in the first half and really clicking on offense, the second half was full of turnovers and missed shots for the Cards. Some Seton Hall missed free throws allowed Louisville to keep a good enough lead for the game to not be in serious jeopardy.

Gorgui Dieng had the biggest impact on this game. He got his 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Of those 14 rebounds, 13 came on defense, which is where he made his biggest impact. He also had 5 blocks, and altered many other shots. Anything Seton Hall tried to do on offense was affected by Dieng, whether he was blocking shots or causing guys to stay out of the lane.

The Cards had 23 turnovers for the game, with Peyton Siva and Chane Behanan combining for 13 of those. Seton Hall’s press in the second half really flustered UofL, and they could not maintain their composure. Luckily, they had built up a good enough lead, Seton Hall missed clutch free throws, and Gorgui Dieng did not allow second chances for the Pirates, so the Cards could hold on and get out of there with a road victory.

Aside from his turnovers, Chane Behanan played another great game. He finished with 8 points and 12 rebounds. He almost had a double-double by halftime. Like we have been saying, since Rakeem Buckles went down, Behanan has stepped up in a big way, showing that he doesn’t really need a back-up at his position. In the last 4 games, Behanan is averaging 12.8 points and 9 rebounds per game.

Although the second half wasn’t exactly pretty, any Big East win–especially on the road–is a big one. With 3 wins in a row, the Cardinals are now right in the thick of things in the Big East race. They are starting to turn things around at the right time, and with a week off before hosting Rutgers, a 4th win in a row is very possible. Don’t ever count out a Rick Pitino coached team around this time of year.