MARK MY WORDS: Cards Ground Ospreys, 89-61

Freshman Raymond Spalding was dominant for Louisville

By Mark Bacon

The University of Louisville looked like it was in a dogfight (bird fight?) after a chippy first half against North Florida. The Ospreys came to The Ville with a 3-0 record; plus an attention grabbing thorough defeat of Illinois in their season opener.

Chippy? Two technicals were called in the first stanza; Donovan Mitchell and Mangok Mathiang lost their composure and said things to North Florida players the officials didn’t care for. The latter, a team captain, received a verbal lashing from Coach P.

Then the Cards unveiled the 2015-16 version of The Boom. UNF was completely outplayed in the second half. A 43-41 halftime lead went to a 89-61 final. The Cards’ backcourt shut down Osprey drives and made life between the lines miserable for UNF, who scored only 20 second-half points. A fantastic second-half defensive effort from the Cards.

North Florida connected on 11 of 23 from beyond the arc, their lowest total from deep thus far this season.

Damion Lee found his shooting touch all afternoon

Damion Lee, Trey Lewis and Raymond Spalding led the way all day. This afternoon everyone saw what it looks like when fifth year seniors Lee and Lewis click. Today, they were consistently the best players for Louisville.

The graduate transfers brought their "A Game." The game fans have been waiting to see. Damion Lee - 24 points (10-16 FG), seven rebounds and three assists; Trey Lewis - 15 points (7-16 FG), four rebounds, zero turnovers. They controlled the backcourt in the second half, and got lots of help from Quentin Snider, who orchestrated the offense patiently once again, and set up his teammates repeatedly. The Q also showed a nice touch with a mid-range jumper.

But let’s not forget Raymond Spalding. He was an absolute pleasant surprise. As active as U of L fans have seen all year. One writer described the former Trinity High player as “electric.” I completely agree.

Spalding made his first seven shots coming off the bench in the first half. More than that, he provided an early spark with timely deflections, offensive rebounds, a couple of blocked shots, several steals, and a deft shooting touch with his jump shot. His final line: 18 points (8-10 FG), 12 rebounds, four steals, two blocks in 31 minutes. The combination of Chinanu Onuaku and Spalding is a fantastic tandem. Both big men have very quick hands and feet for their size. Both are underrated passers, too.

It was great to see the return of The Boom for Louisville. A team that definitely deserves to be in the Top 25. Possibly Top Ten…

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