Hoosiers To Face Louisville Cardinals

January 30, 2003

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The No. 19/20 (AP/Coaches) Indiana Hoosiers (14-5, 4-3) step outside Big Ten Conference action this Saturday when they visit No. 8/8 Louisville at 1 p.m. at Freedom Hall. The game will be televised by CBS (Verne Lundquist, Billy Packer and producer Bob Dekas) and can also be heard on the statewide Indiana Radio Network (Don Fischer, Todd Leary and Joe Smith).

This is the third stop in a four-game Indiana road trip that includes visits to two of the top 15 programs in the Jan. 26 collegerpi. com poll (No. 4 Louisville and No. 15 Purdue). Big Ten preseason favorite Michigan State handed the Hoosiers their third straight road loss with a 61-54 setback on Jan. 28 in East Lansing.

Like many college basketball teams, Indiana has battled some significant injuries. Freshman Bracey Wright missed four games (Jan. 15 Northwestern through Jan. 25 at Purdue) with a pinched nerve in his lower back. In addition, junior swingman A.J. Moye sat out the Michigan State game due to an upper respiratory infection.

Indiana will need to be at full strength to battle a Louisville club that is second in the nation in scoring margin (+18.9).

 Indiana has enjoyed increased scoring output from its bench over the last five games. From Jan. 15 through Jan. 28 Hoosier reserves are averaging 19 points. In the previous five game stretch (Dec. 28 through Jan. 11), the IU bench was averaging just eight points per game.

 For the second straight year, Indiana is playing a non-league game during the month of February. On Feb. 9, 2002, IU stepped outside the Big Ten schedule to defeat Louisville, 77-62.
When IU defeated the Cardinals last season, it marked the first time since Feb. 1, 1971 (Indiana 113, Northern Illinois 112) that the Hoosiers played a non-league game in February.

 Senior guard Tom Coverdale is Indiana's ironman. On Jan. 28 at Michigan State, he made his 45th consecutive start and played in the 100th game of his career. He has scored in double figures in seven of his last nine games and has made his last 10 free throws.

 Despite not starting for the first time this season, junior center George Leach came off the bench with 14 points at Michigan State. He has scored in double figures in two of his last three games and has made 10 of his last 15 attempts from the floor.

Download the PDF of the Louisville Game Notes
Download the PDF of the Louisville Player Notes
Download the PDF of Indiana's Up-to-Date Statistics

Indiana University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Tom Coverdale

Tom Coverdale

Tom Coverdale

Tom Coverdale

George Leach

George Leach

George Leach

George Leach

George Leach

A.J. Moye

A.J. Moye

A.J. Moye

A.J. Moye

Bracey Wright

Bracey Wright

Bracey Wright

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