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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Montrezl Harrell scored 14 points to lead five Louisville players in double figures as the seventh-ranked Cardinals routed Missouri-Kansas City 90-62 on Wednesday night.
Facing first-year Kangaroos coach Kareem Richardson, Louisville reminded the former Cardinals assistant what he left behind to take the UMKC job. Though less dominant on offense than in last December's 99-47 victory over the Kangaroos, the Cardinals (7-1) controlled the game throughout and steadily pulled away in the second half.
They manhandled UMKC 44-24 in the paint, forced 20 turnovers that led to 29 points and outrebounded the Kangaroos 49-29, grabbing 22 on the offensive end.
Chane Behanan came off the bench to score 11 points and grab 11 rebounds. Chris Jones, Russ Smith and Luke Hancock each added 10 points and combined for five of Louisville's 10 3-pointers. The Cardinals shot 33 of 77 from the field (43 percent).
Nelson Kirksey and Martez Harrison had 14 points apiece for UMKC (1-6).
The Kangaroos shot 23 of 50 (46 percent) and were 5 of 17 from long range but were never in a game that matched Richardson against Louisville counterpart Rick Pitino, with whom he spent last season during the team's national championship run.
Though Pitino supported Richardson's desire to be a head coach, he also noted the huge challenge he faced in starting his career with a team that was 8-24 last season.
Compounding Richardson's task is blending in six freshmen and three transfers, two of whom must sit out this season due to NCAA rules. Things got even tougher for UMKC late in the first half when starting guard Aaron Washington injured his right knee going for a loose ball.
The senior went to the locker room at halftime on crutches with the knee wrapped in ice and did not return.
The Kangaroos were down 43-27 at that point, shooting a decent 46 percent from the field (11 of 24) and only four points shy of the Cardinals in the paint (18-14). That was the only area in which UMKC stayed close to the defending champions, who took a plodding approach in pulling away from a team they beat by 52 points here nearly a year ago.
Freshman guard Terry Rozier started in place of Smith, a senior, and quickly hit a 3-pointer to spark a Louisville outside game that UMKC couldn't match. The Cardinals shot 6 of 17 from long range in the first half while the Kangaroos missed all five attempts, helping provide a cushion that reached 23 late in the first half despite 15-of-39 shooting (39 percent).
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