Ohio State Buckeyes 55 Louisville Cardinals 64

Louisville will be a terror on the boards, especially on offense

The Louisville Cardinals are a straight up big team in the middle. They have enough size to constantly fluster opponents on the glass all season long, especially when it comes to put-backs on offense. To let Louisville get the ball deep in the paint on offense is nearly tantamount to conceding two points on the spot. If they miss the shot, one of their big men will most likely get a rebound and tip it back in.

Starters Wayne Blackshear, Montrezl Harrell and Chinanu Onuaku all have an intimidating mix of both size and agility, pulling down rebounds seemingly at will. What’s more, the Cardinals have tons of depth on their bench as far as size is concerned, getting quality minutes from 7’0″ freshman Anas Mahmoud and 6’10” sophomore Mangok Mathiang.

Don’t look to the Cardinals’ bench for much offense

Sure, they have plenty of size and can spell their starting big men for some quality minutes, but Louisville’s bench scored just 6 points tonight. That’s not to say that the Cardinals’ bench played poorly. Instead, it’s more a reflection on Louisville’s starters and their offensive prowess.

Look to Louisville’s bench for more defensive purposes, helping keep the momentum in Louisville’s favor while pulling down some rebounds. They will also be vital in creating open shots for the Cardinals’ more prolific scorers, such as the game’s leading scorer Blackshear.

Louisville’s size and athleticism will help them combat the zone

Ohio State threw a pretty stout zone at the Cardinals tonight, but Louisville was constantly moving off the ball and creating open looks down low. A lot of that credit goes to the Cardinals’ big men. When your frontcourt is as agile as Louisville’s, it’s hard to effectively take away those inside shots on a constant basis – they will outwork and wear down opposing defenses all season long. The constant motion of Louisville’s offense – jockeying for position and moving without the ball – is what created so many of those open shots down low.

The Cardinals shot well above their 24% season average from beyond the arc tonight, going 10-for-29 for 34.5%. The combination of that perimeter shooting – once it starts to settle down – with Louisville’s post game and size in the middle will effectively render the zone useless as league play gets underway. As it looks right now, a man-to-man defense won’t much slow down Louisville, either.