LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Ryan Conwell scored 14 of his 19 points in the first half, Kasean Pryor returned to the court for the first time since he tore his ACL nearly a year ago, and No. 11 Louisville cruised past Jackson State 106-70 on Thursday night.
Mikel Brown Jr. had 18 points and the star freshman guard added nine assists for Louisville, which shot 52.2% from the field in scoring more than 100 points for the second straight game.
Louisville (2-0) played without J’Vonne Hadley, the lone returning starter from last season’s squad, who’s in the concussion protocol.
Pryor received a loud ovation as he came in with 16:27 left in the first half. The 6-foot-10 senior, who played just seven games last season before tearing the ACL in his left knee in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship on Nov. 29 against Oklahoma, scored six points on 3-of-8 shooting in 16 minutes.
The Cardinals outrebounded the Tigers 49-29, including a career-best 10 rebounds from Khani Rooths, who also scored 16 points. Sananda Fru contributed 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
The Tigers (2-0), who are playing ranked teams in four of their first five games, were led by Daeshun Ruffin with 22 points. Jayme Mitchell Jr. added 20 points and Dorian McMillian scored 18.
The Cardinals outscored the Tigers 19-2 over a stretch of 5:44 early in the first half to take a 21-6 lead with 12:56 left.
Before the game, the Cardinals held a moment of silence for those who died Tuesday when a UPS cargo plane crashed shortly after taking off from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. At least 13 people were killed in the disaster.
Up next
Jackson State plays at Louisiana Tech on Nov. 15.
Louisville hosts its archrival, No. 9 Kentucky, on Tuesday.
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Steve Bittenbender, The Associated Press
