Russell unsure how U of L fans will greet him

Between attending Florida basketball powerhouse Montverde Academy and playing on the AAU circuit, D'Angelo Russell spent just about three weeks a summer at home in Louisville as his high school career wound down.

The rising freshman star has had his latest trip back circled on the calendar for a while.

Ohio State's leading scorer carries the Buckeyes into Tuesday's 9:30 p.m. tipoff at the KFC Yum! Center and against his hometown team, the University of Louisville, for the Cardinals' first ACC/Big Ten Challenge game.

"It's definitely a dream come true to play for them or play against them," said Russell, who originally attended Central High School. "But still, it's another game we're trying to get a W from."

The Buckeyes, ranked 14th in the latest Associated Press Top 25, are off to a 5-0 start, and the 6-foot-5 guard averages 18 points per game. He'll be the focal point of U of L's suffocating defensive pressure and a Yum! Center crowd coach Rick Pitino expects to be the best since the arena opened in 2010.

"I'm definitely looking forward to the atmosphere," Russell said. "I'm not sure how the fans will accept me as an individual."

And that's because Russell's recruitment was just different. Once getting involved with Ohio State, he committed to the Buckeyes the June before his senior year of high school over offers from primarily U of L, Michigan State and North Carolina.

"We wanted him obviously," Pitino said. "He chose the right place because he can go and start for them — play a lot of minutes. And he's playing great basketball. Always loved D'Angelo. He can pass. He can handle. He can shoot, go 1 on 1.

"We wanted him very much here."

Russell, who went on to lead Montverde to a 28-0 record his senior year and became a McDonald's All American, heard little backlash from a hometown he still makes sure to pronounce "Looavul."

"Out of the players who decided not to go to Louisville or Kentucky or whatnot, I felt like I got a great vibe," he said. "Everybody was just like, 'Good luck. I'm looking forward to seeing you at that level.'

"… I didn't really get any negative."

Russell doesn't have a Facebook page. He shut down his Twitter account over the summer. Sure, there will be family and friends on hand among the Yum! Center's 20,000 fans.

But the nation's second-leading scorer among true freshmen has attempted to put all distractions aside before Tuesday night's game, and "like I said, no matter what happens I want to get the win just to say we won."

Jonathan Lintner can be reached at (502) 582-4199. Follow him on Twitter @JonathanLintner.