CARDINALS

Marshall game chance for U of L progress

Jeff Greer

@jeffgreer_cj

Nov 17, 2014; Louisville, KY, USA; Louisville Cardinals forward Montrezl Harrell (24) dunks against Jacksonville State Gamecocks guard Undra Mitchem (5) during the first half at KFC Yum! Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports

It's November, which means three things: Basketball season's starting, football season's ending and retail companies are advertising Christmas stuff before anyone's even touched a turkey.

In other words, the University of Louisville basketball team is in the incubation period of the 2014-15 campaign, with two games under its belt and a lot of learning in front of it.

"We're getting better. Every single day that goes by, we're improving as a basketball team," U of L coach Rick Pitino said. "We're nowhere near where we need to be, but you wouldn't expect that before Thanksgiving."

The next step in the process comes Friday, when Louisville hosts Marshall at 9 p.m. at the KFC Yum! Center. The game, which will be shown on ESPNU, is one of four Cards games in the Global Sports Showcase tournament.

Marshall (3-0) presents a far different challenge than Louisville's first home opponent, Jacksonville State, a team that the Cards simply overpowered in a 49-point win on Monday.

Coached by Dan D'Antoni, Marshall uses the same offensive philosophy that made D'Antoni's brother, Mike, famous.

Mike D'Antoni, the former Lakers, Knicks and Suns coach, preaches spreading the floor and running a fast-paced offense, with skilled players capable of shooting and handling at each position.

That means Louisville big men like Mangok Mathiang and Chinanu Onuaku will have to guard someone on the perimeter in certain situations and be alert in the Cards' rotations.

It also means that U of L's players, six of whom are freshmen, have to take seriously the task at hand, which hasn't been an issue with his team, Pitino said.

"This team's very focused," he said. "They understand that they have weaknesses. The older guys understand that they've got to get these younger guys to play harder (and) to play better by the time we get into the meat of the schedule."

But as much as Pitino seemed concerned with Marshall's offense, surely the Thundering Herd faces significant challenges of its own.

All-American forward Montrezl Harrell is off to one of the best starts in the country, with 45 points and 14 rebounds in two games.

The 6-foot-8 junior has put together such numbers in a much different way than last season, too, which makes him that much tougher to defend.

Harrell added 3-point range to his game this offseason, and the work has paid off, at least in the first two games. Fifty-eight percent of his shots in two games have been jumpers, and he's making 57 percent on 2-point jumpers and 42 percent on 3-pointers.

"He's improved his shot immensely," Pitino said. "It not only goes in, but every time he shoots it, it looks good. His free throw looks good, his jump shot looks good. It's taken a lot of hard work and a lot of jump shots to get to that point."

That said, Pitino wants Harrell to remember what butters his bread. The hulking power forward became a star with his interior tenacity, dunking and offensive rebounding. A jump shooter can't mix it up inside as often.

"I still want him to go through five or six post moves a game," Pitino said. "I don't want him running to the perimeter on the fast break; I want him running to the rim."

So far, Pitino added, Harrell's done a solid job of balancing the inside-outside aspects of his game. But like everything else this early in the season, it's a work in progress. Remember: It's not even Thanksgiving yet.

Reach U of L beat writer Jeff Greer at (502) 582-4044 and follow him on Twitter (@jeffgreer_cj).