CARDINALS

U of L takes on Northridge without Harrell

Jeff Greer

@jeffgreer_cj

Louisville's Terry Rozier outruns WKU's George Fant (44) to the hoop for two late in the second half.
Dec. 20, 2014

The University of Louisville basketball team learned two valuable lessons in its Saturday win at Western Kentucky.

First, U of L's young players learned what games are going to be like in hostile road environments. More important in the grand scheme of this season, U of L learned that it can win – or at least survive – without All-American forward Montrezl Harrell.

On Tuesday, the fourth-ranked Cardinals must again play without Harrell, who's suspended for one game, when they host Cal State Northridge at 7 p.m. at the KFC Yum! Center. It's Louisville's last tune-up game before the heated annual rivalry matchup against Kentucky on Saturday.

"Foul trouble, thrown out of the game, whatever it is – we're going to have to dig deep," U of L sophomore Terry Rozier said Saturday.

"You obviously can see how badly we need (Harrell)."

Rozier was the main reason Louisville (10-0) outlasted WKU. The 6-foot-1 guard finished with 32 points, and 26 of them came in the second half.

He had help, too. Freshman 7-footer Anas Mahmoud played his most significant role of the season with Harrell out, tallying six points, five rebounds and three blocks in 19 second-half minutes.

For Tuesday's game:Projected starters, storylines and TV info for U of L-Northridge

Montrezl Harrell:Star forward suspended for one game after flagrant foul

Anton Gill and Chris Jones both hit critical 3-pointers, too.

"We told (Harrell) we've got his back," Rozier said. "You've got your brother's back."

Cal State Northridge (3-9) doesn't present the kind of challenge that WKU did on Saturday. The Matadors, coached by former U of L assistant Reggie Theus, have mightily struggled on both ends of the floor and they are winless in six true road games this season.

Northridge has scored 60 or more points in just half of its games, and the Matadors rank 256th in offensive efficiency and 293rd in defensive efficiency.

"We just have to keep working," Theus told the Northridge athletics website after his team's Dec. 20 loss.

"There's no magic trick, there's no drills. Just have to keep working. We need to stay real, but we have to stay positive at the same time."

U of L assistant coach Kenny Johnson, speaking on behalf of head coach Rick Pitino after Saturday's game, found positives in the Cards' WKU win without Harrell.

"The communication level picked up, and that's what you're most proud of as a coach," he said. "The communication picked up as opposed to guys falling apart. They grew closer together."

Himmelsbach:Cards learn big lesson in WKU win

Louisville head coach Rick Pitino went a step further, telling his team in his post-game locker room speech that the Cards would have to win again this season without their star.

He reiterated that message in a brief post-game interview with Fox Sports 1.

"I said, 'What if he sprains his ankle as we're getting ready for the NCAA (tournament)?'" Pitino said. "We've got to be able to play without our leader, and they did a great job of doing that."

With his 32 points on Saturday, Rozier actually moved ahead of Harrell as the team's leading scorer.

While he's struggled with his turnover-to-assist ratio, Rozier's scoring production has picked up considerably over the past four games. He's made 50.9 percent of his shots and averaged 22.3 points a contest.

It's safe to assume Louisville will look to Rozier again on Tuesday to power the Cards past Northridge.

"My guys allowed me to (score vs. WKU) and set good screens and they got in there and played their roles," Rozier said. "There were opportunities given to me and I tried to take advantage of them, and then we just all tried to dig in on defense. Without (Harrell), it's tough. We knew that."

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