BOZICH | Miami 80, Louisville 53; What's left to say? Payne says blame him | Sports

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) —This time the shots were going in for the University of Louisville men’s basketball team.

Two of the first three. Five of the first eight. Seven of the first 14 against the Miami Hurricanes.

That’s a blueprint for winning basketball, right?

Not this season.

Not with this Cardinals’ team. Not when Louisville turned the ball over five times in the first five minutes and 19 times over the full 40 minutes. Not when Miami took advantage of persistent cracks in the Louisville defense to make 50% of its shots.

Not when other issues that have tormented the Cardinals during this winless season also showed up — the inconsistent rebounding, forced shots, too much dribbling, more turnovers and the lack of understanding and executing a functional defensive plan.

That was the formula for the Cardinals’ eighth consecutive loss and first in the Atlantic Coast Conference. They were beaten, 80-53, by the Hurricanes at the KFC Yum! Center Saturday afternoon.

At 0-8, Louisville sits with California, Central Connecticut and Green Bay as the four winless Division I teams. Monmouth left the group by defeating Manhattan Sunday.

Kenny Payne, the Cards' rookie coach, said to blame him.

Payne stayed with his team in the locker room more than 30 minutes after the game before he emerged to answer questions from the media. Once, twice, three times, Payne said the blame for the Cards' historically miserable start belongs with him.

"I'm gonna take the blame for it," Payne said. "They haven't been able to get what I'm trying to see. They don't see themselves the way that I see them.

"And I'll just be honest on the way I see them. I don't see us as the most talented team. And for me, there was only one way for us to win. And that's to play with real desperation, real fight, real determination. inch by inch, yard by yard in every aspect of the game."

Asked why he did not sign more players out of the transfer portal, considering Louisville's lack of talent and depth at guard, Payne said that he and his staff pursued at least five guys -- and all five signed with other schools.

Usually the primary reason was a legitimate concern that Louisville was staring at an NCAA probation that would result in a post-season ban. The ban did not come, but neither did help from the portal. The NCAA ruled in early November long after recruits and transfers made their decisions.

"Well, two days ago or yesterday, a guy called (connected to some) players that had no idea what the ruling of the NCAA was," Payne said. "He still thought, like most people, that we were probably gonna get the death penalty.

"So, again, there was a period where this program, competitors people were saying, ‘Why would you ever go to Louisville? They’re not gonna be able to play college basketball.’ That hurt.

“For whatever reason, we didn't get the kids. The timing of it was bad. The ruling came at a time where it didn't allow us to really get the kids even though we targeted some kids and they’re at other places having success. They couldn't see and I can't be upset at them because nobody knew what the ruling was going to be."

On his post-game radio show, Payne also said that he tried to convince former U of L players who transferred out of the program last spring to stay. But Payne said they told him they needed to leave to heal from their dismal experience here last season.

At this point, Louisville needs to pick one quality and work on it. Defending with energy. Blocking out. Keeping opposing dribblers out of the paint. Something.

After losing their first three games by 1 point, Louisville has lost its last five by an average of nearly 28 points. That can't keep happening. An announced crowd of 11,811 Sunday was likely several thousand less than that number.

Jae’Lyn Withers led Louisville with a dozen points while Brandon Huntley-Hatfield had 10 points and eight rebounds.

The Cards led for less than 90 seconds while losing by at least 19 points for the fifth consecutive game. They missed 8 of 15 layups and averaged 0.726 points per possession.

Fan did donate 572 teddy bears for children at the University of Louisville Hospital.

Payne made a lineup change, putting forward Sydney Curry back in his first five. But Curry did little, failing to attempt a shot while grabbing two rebounds in 11 minutes.

Payne also gave Fabio Basili, his freshman point guard, seven minutes of playing time in the first half. Basili went 0-for-4 with a turnover and four rebounds in 15 minutes. There are no quick fixes on this roster.

The offense appeared marginally better. Key word: Marginally.

Improvement is difficult to credit when a team turns the ball over 11 times in 20 minutes and the opposing team scores 17 points off those turnovers.

In a season packed with bizarre stats, this one has to make the list: Louisville missed 15 shots in the first half and had one offensive rebound. That rebound was credited to the team, not to an individual who actually went and snatched it.

Louisville has six days to regroup, reorganize and reboot. The Cardinals visit Florida State Saturday. The Seminoles are also struggling, losers in nine of their first 10 games, although only lost by 5 points at Virginia Saturday.

"You think about one day at a time and trying not to live in the past and dwell on what's been happening," U of L guard Mike James said. "Focus on a new day and really just realizing it's not going to storm forever."