Louisville head coach Rick Pitino said his 12th ranked Cardinals didn’t want to take 25th ranked Marquette lightly.
AUDIO: Rick Pitino says they didn’t want to take Marquette lightly :15
Based on their performance, it would appear the players listened. Russ Smith scored 18 points and Louisville shot 52% from the field, running away from the Golden Eagles
70-51.
The Cardinals finished 27 of 52 from the field after an 0-for-8 start and held the Golden Eagles to 36% shooting (19 of 53). They also grabbed the rebound battle 38-26.
Vander Blue had 17 points and Trent Lockett 16 for the Golden Eagles, who have dropped two of their last four games.
The Golden Eagles fell back into a tie with Syracuse atop the Big East standings at 6-2. They’re 15-5 overall.
Next up for Marquette, a trip to South Florida on Wednesday.
