Louisville will face a trapping defense similar to its own in the season opener on Friday, and the Cardinals players will have had more than enough time to literally measure up their opponents.
How to watch Louisville vs. Minnesota: TV schedule and how to watch online
Rick Pitino and son Richard will square off against one another in Puerto Rico.
David Manning-USA TODAY Sports
Coach Rick Pitino's No. 8 Cardinals shared a charter flight with the Minnesota Golden Gophers en route to the teams' Armed Forces Classic showdown in Puerto Rico, which will take place in a hangar at U.S. air base Borinquen.
The Gophers, who are coached by Pitino's son, 32-year-old Richard, should have enough familiarity with Louisville to make it a solid first test for the Cardinals. Though Louisville lost point guard Russ Smith and forward Luke Hancock from last season, it returns more than enough talent.
Forward Montrezl Harrell enters the season as one of the best players in the nation and a preseason All-American who could be an NBA lottery pick next summer. The power forward averaged 14 points, eight rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in 2013-14 and will be flanked in the starting lineup by shot-blocker Mangok Mathiang and the backcourt duo of Terry Rozier and Chris Jones.
Minnesota isn't short on talent itself. Two of the Gophers' double-digit scorers from a year ago, seniors Andre Hollins and Deandre Mathieu, reside in the backcourt and should give Rozier and Jones a dose of their own pressing style of defense. Meanwhile, all 240 pounds of center Elliott Eliason will give Louisville a challenge inside.
This is more than a chance for the Golden Gophers to gain experience and more than an opportunity for them to upset a top-10 team. A year after winning the NIT, they can use a national television appearance to continue building momentum both on the court on in terms of national perception -- no matter the outcome. Minnesota, after all, will need all the nonconference experience it can get before hitting Big Ten play, which is reasonably expected to be one of the toughest conferences in the nation.
At the very least, one member of the Pitino family will gain bragging rights by the end of the showdown.
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Online stream: WatchESPN
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