Instant Analysis | U of L 88, Jax State 39

Louisville romped past Jacksonville State on Monday night, 88-39, more than living up to its 33-point favorite status in the 2014-15 home opener.

The Cards (2-0) have now won 14 consecutive season debuts at home, and they did it in impressive, well-rounded fashion. Here are a few takeaways from the rout:

Blackshear thrives. I know it's shocking, but when Wayne Blackshear doesn't hit foul trouble, he plays with confidence and aggression. And I also know that it's important to mention that this was Jacksonville State. But Blackshear looked sharp all night, assertive and even dominant at times, posting 12 points, nine rebounds, five assists and a block. He had a strong sequence to start the game. He plucked an offensive rebound over a Jacksonville State defender and kicked it out for a Chris Jones 3, and then on the next possession, he carved through the lane and bounced into a Montrezl Harrell dunk. Impressive stuff. Now, if only they can get him to do that against, say, Ohio State and Indiana in a few weeks.

Trio sharp again. My colleague Adam Himmelsbach and I agreed on Friday night in Puerto Rico that we both hate the whole "Big Three" thing. But Louisville's three leading guys -- Harrell, Jones and Terry Rozier -- looked very sharp once again. Harrell is just everywhere, making jumpers and still dunking and attacking the basket inside. He had 15 points and seven rebounds. Rozier was, as usual, under control and occasionally drew a crowd gasp with his athleticism. He had 13 points and four rebounds, but his fast-break block against the glass was the highlight of his game.

And then there's Jones, who asked at halftime what the Louisville program record is for steals in a game, hoping to break it. He didn't, but the 5-10 guard still rolled through 10 points, six rebounds, five assists and five steals. He missed nine shots, but like one of the Red-White scrimmages in October, he was everywhere on defense and very active driving and passing on offense. It was another wow-he's-quick performance.

Freshmen catching up. Before the season started, Blackshear sat off to the side of the ACC media day interview sessions and talked at length about the challenges that present themselves to Louisville freshmen in Rick Pitino's system. It's not the NBA-style offense or the pressing, Blackshear said. It's the defensive rotations in the halfcourt sets. But a few freshmen seem to be getting it rather quickly. Jaylen Johnson, Chinanu Onuaku and Quentin Snider all played meaningful minutes when the game was, well, kind of close. If they can get those three to consistently log minutes and play good defense, that'll be a huge boost.