Louisville 77, Houston 62

[February 06, 2014]  HOUSTON — No. 10 Louisville 77, Houston 62: Russ Smith recorded 17 points and six assists as the Cardinals defeated the Cougars to remain unbeaten on the road in American Athletic Conference play.

Montrezl Harrell and Luke Hancock each scored 15 points as Louisville (19-4, 8-2 AAC) improved to 19-0 against unranked opponents and 5-0 away from home in the league. Chris Jones added 14 points and five steals for the Cardinals, who shot 55.6 percent from the field.

TaShawn Thomas and Jherrod Stiggers registered 14 points apiece to lead Houston (11-12, 3-7), which lost its fifth consecutive contest. Danuel House chipped in with 11 points and Thomas added a game-high eight rebounds for the Cougars, who made only 13-of-23 free throws.

Smith drained a pair of 3-pointers to highlight an 17-3 run that turned a tied game into a comfortable lead for Louisville in the first half. The Cardinals made 16-of-23 from the field and 6-of-10 from behind the 3-point arc in the opening 20 minutes to lead by as many as 21 before settling for a 45-26 edge at intermission.

Louisville pushed its lead to 23 quickly in the second half before Houston battled back within 57-46 with under 10 minutes left after a 3-pointer by Stiggers. The Cougars pulled to within 62-53 before Jones drained a 3-pointer and foul-line jumper back-to-back and the Cardinals had the cushion they needed.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Louisville F Wayne Blackshear, who recorded a career-high 23 points against Houston three weeks ago, missed the game due to a concussion. … It was Guy V. Lewis Night at Houston as the Cougars honored their former coach, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013. … The Cardinals lead the all-time series 15-5, including 10 victories in the last 11 meetings — two this season.

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.