Pitino, No. 11 Louisville hosts Eastern Kentucky (Dec 17, 2016)
Each season for 15 years, Louisville coach Rick Pitino has paid tribute to the life of his brother-in-law, Billy Minardi, with a basketball game.
Pitino welcomes back former Louisville video-assistant-turned-Eastern Kentucky head coach Dan McHale and his Colonels for a noon tip-off Saturday at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.
Pitino typically invites a coaching friend or former colleague back to town as a celebration of the spirit of Minardi, who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. McHale, now in his second season as Eastern Kentucky's head coach, knows the Minardi family well.
McHale also knows Saturday matchup against No. 11 Louisville (9-1) will be an extremely difficult test for the Colonels (6-5).
"We went back and forth with text messages this week," McHale said of his conversation with Pitino. "I told him I hope we give them a good show. And I also asked him as he was preparing for us, to let me know what he thinks about my team's strengths and weaknesses and what we have to work on before OVC (Ohio Valley Conference) play. I'll never stop learning from him. He's the best."
McHale said he learned a lot about how to run his program from Pitino.
"It's surreal to think about going back as a coach. He's the sole reason I came to the University of Kentucky -- to learn from him," McHale said. "Then going to Louisville to work for him from Day 1 was like being an intern on the ground floor of a Fortune 500 company. Just soaking everything up. He's had his hand on my career every step of the way, from Seton Hall with Kevin Willard, to Minnesota with his son, Richard, and now here.
"I have a lot of friends who are going to be there. And to be coaching back in Louisville where I started my coaching career is certainly special. I'm just glad it's a noon tip so I don't have to wait around all day for it."
Pitino hasn't taken it easy on his former assistants, owning a 40-10 overall record. Only Tubby Smith and Mick Cronin (each 5-7 vs. Pitino) have beaten their former boss. Pitino has a spotless record against Billy Donovan, Scott Davenport, Marvin Menzies, Kevin Willard, Steve Masiello, Richard Pitino, Kareem Richardson, Kevin Keatts, Ralph Willard and Reggie Theus.
If McHale is going to join Smith and Cronin, he'll need a big game from All-OVC forward Nick Mayo.
"He's likely going to win conference player of the year several times in a row," Pitino said of Mayo. "He's a guy who could start at most places in the ACC."
Mayo comes into Saturday's game averaging 19.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-9, 235-pound sophomore could be a tough test for Louisville's 6-9, 230-pound junior power forward Jaylen Johnson. Johnson started the season with several double-doubles, but since cooled off and is averaging 9.4 points and 8.2 rebounds.
Eastern Kentucky's backcourt of senior Isaac McGlone (10.1 ppg) and freshman Asante Gist (14.4 ppg) will be tested by Louisville's pressure defense. The Cardinals are among the national leaders in turnovers forced and are the top defense in the nation according to Ken Pomeroy's computer rankings.
"Coming off the floor Saturday with a smile on our faces is the plan and it would definitely be very sweet," Colonels grad assistant and former Louisville student manager Bobby DiRaimo added. "It will be tough to do. They are really good and I know they will be ready to play. But the guys are excited and it's going to be fun."
Louisville's has forced 160 turnovers in 10 games and foes are shooting just 36.0 percent against the Cardinals including 28.3 percent from 3-point range. Interestingly enough, Eastern Kentucky's top 3-point threat is Dillon Avare, a former Louisville walk-on who transferred last summer.
"Coach P was really happy for me. ... I didn't get to play a lot at Louisville, so to be able to play more and be able to impact the team in a different way and being on the court with the guys has been fun," Avare said. "It would be awesome to be able to shoot against the Cardinals like I did at Ball State. If someone scores on a player at Louisville two times in a row, coach P goes off. So it would be pretty cool to be on the other side of that exchange."
As for Louisville, the Cardinals are led by sophomore guard Donovan Mitchell's 11.4 points per game following by junior guard Quentin Snider's 10.8. Sophomore wing Deng Adel is averaging 10.0 points and 4.8 rebounds.
The Cardinals have won 52 of their last 53 non-conference home games at the KFC Yum! Center spanning the last seven seasons. Louisville also has won its last 16 straight home games against non-conference opponents.
