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PrintLOUISVILLE, Ky. (KT) -- Kenny Payne doesn't have to worry about convincing his players that Bellarmine, just two years removed from Division II, can beat his Louisville basketball team in its season opener Wednesday (9 p.m., ACCN) in the KFC Yum! Center.
Lenoir-Rhyne took care of that for him by handing the Cardinals a stunning 57-47 loss in an exhibition on Oct. 30.
"I think that was addressed when Everick's (Sullvan) team came in here and beat us," Payne said Tuesday afternoon. "I don't have to address it. We now know 100 percent we can lose to anybody, regardless if it's Division II or whatever. If there is a bright spot to losing an exhibition game, it's that."
U of L came close to losing to another D-II team when it escaped with an 80-73 win in a game it led by two points going into the final 30 seconds. Bellarmine is better than either of those two teams, and maybe better than several others on the Cards' nonconference schedule.
Is it fair to say this is not an ideal opener for you in your official debut as Louisville's coach, Kenny?
"Not at all ideal, not at all," he said. "Bellarmine is a tough game to start the year out, a very good team, well-coached, an excellent passing team, sets great screens, 14-15 passes before a shot. I mean the ball is moving. They run their stuff over and over and over again and wait for you to make a mistake. Then when you do, they burn you. We have to be alert."
Bellarmine, coached by 1978 UofL graduate and former Cardinal assistant Scott Davenport, made history last season by becoming the first team in history to win its conference tournament (the ASUN) then not receive the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament because of the 4-year transitional period to D-I.
However, the Knights lost three starters off that 20-13 team and have been picked to finish in the middle of the ASUN standings.
Bellarmine's top returning players are 6-3 guard Juston Betz, a grad student, and 6-8 sophomore forward Curt Hopf. Betz was voted ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and also averaged 7.0 points and 7.1 rebounds. Hopf averaged 7.0 points and 4.2 rebounds and was named the ASUN Freshman of the Year. The Knights' top returning scorer is 6-5 senior guard Alex Pfriem, who started 16 games a year ago but missed the last month of the season with an injury. He still isn't at full strength and isn't expected to play Wednesday.
Bellarmine won its only exhibition, defeating Centre College 71-34. Joining Betz and Hopf in the starting lineup were seniors Garrett Tipton (6-4) and Bash Wieland (6-6) along with true freshman Peter Suder (6-5).
Bellarmine certainly won't be intimidated by U of L's reputation or the Yum! Center environment, having played three top 10 teams on the road last year in Purdue, UCLA and Gonzaga, along with top 25 West Virginia.
Louisville's standouts in its two exhibition games have been redshirt junior forward Jae'Lyn Withers, who averaged 18.5 points and 9.5 rebounds; and senior guard El Ellis, who scored 28 points against Chaminade.
Payne, 55, said he couldn't predict how he will feel in his first game as a head coach after serving 18 years of apprenticeship as an assistant at Oregon, Kentucky and the New York Knicks.
"It's hard for me to say how I'll feel," he said. "My emotions will probably be all over the board. What's really important is that I put a good product on the court and I get guys to buy into team. Let's make Louisville proud, let's start getting this program back to where it needs to be."
