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News Nuggets, 02.18.05
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Cards escape Milwaukee with win after Marquette collapse

MILWAUKEE — When the Louisville Cardinals found themselves down by 11 points to Marquette with 5:38 left, they didn't think of turning to their prolific offense to bail them out of another upset.

``We had to win this game with defense, not offense,'' Cardinals coach Rick Pitino said after Francisco Garcia's 3-pointer with 2.6 seconds left capped a 14-0 run that gave Louisville a 64-61 win Thursday night.

The Cardinals clamped down on the Golden Eagles, who turned the ball over once and missed three free throws, three 3-pointers, a jumper and two layups on their final nine possessions.

``We just kept digging in on defense,'' said Garcia, who scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half, helping the 12th-ranked Cardinals avoid their second loss in three games.

Travis Diener's 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the rim.

``You couldn't ask for a better shot, I just missed it, missed it bad. It was the story of my night,'' said Diener, who also clanked two layups off the rim in the final minutes, finishing 2-for-16 from the floor in what the senior called his worst collegiate performance.

``They played good defense and we missed some layups. I missed some layups. I'm supposedly the best player on the floor. I should be able to make layups.''

The collapse in the closing minutes was a turnabout from Marquette's good fortune in its previous game, when Diener and company overcame a 7-point deficit in the final two minutes of regulation last Saturday at East Carolina and went on to prevail in overtime 71-69.

Against the visiting Cardinals, the Golden Eagles tried to run the shot clock down in the final 5 minutes, and they ended up with hurried shots instead of good looks.

``It's feast or famine sometimes when you do that,'' Pitino said.

After Louisville (22-4, 10-2 Conference USA) tied it at 61, Garcia turned over the ball to Todd Townsend with 47 seconds left.

Joe Chapman missed a hurried 3-pointer just before the shot clock went off and Ellis Myles grabbed the rebound for Louisville with 13 seconds left.

The Cardinals didn't call timeout, setting up a screen that left Garcia open for a 3-pointer.

``I was looking to create, but if they gave me the green light, I was going to shoot,'' he said.

After two timeouts, Diener got the ball just past midcourt and had an off-balance shot at overtime, but it banged off the rim.

Steve Novak's 14 points led Marquette (17-8, 5-7), which was in prime position to secure a confidence-building upset against a team that handed the Golden Eagles their worst loss ever — 99-52 last month when Diener was sidelined by a foot injury.

Marquette seemingly had the game in hand after Diener sank two of three free throws and then fed Novak for a 3-pointer on the break that gave Marquette a 61-50 lead.

The Cardinals scored seven straight points, then Larry O'Bannon, who scored 15, was fouled by Chapman with 1:37 left. As he sank his first foul shot, Ryan Amoroso shoved Otis George to the floor, drawing a foul himself.

After O'Bannon sank his second shot, George stepped up and sank two of his own, tying it at 61.

``That call at the end of the game on the push-off was costly, (but) it was the right call,'' said Marquette coach Tom Crean, who looked at the tape right when he got into the locker room.

``Let's face it, the momentum swing at the end with the free throws is what made this a game.''

But it was his team's close call that left Crean with at least some solace.

``The best thing about tonight is our team realized that the game down in Louisville was a complete aberration,'' he said.

Former coach charged with conning Louisville

WICHITA, KS — Federal prosecutors last week filed another charge against former Barton County Community College men's basketball coach Ryan Wolf.

In a superseding grand jury indictment, Wolf is accused of defrauding the University of Louisville, by making it appear that former Barton County player Nouha Diakite was eligible to play for an NCAA Division I school when he wasn't.

Wolf now faces 37 charges of fraud, theft and embezzlement relating to his actions while coaching and teaching at Barton County.

If convicted, he also faces a 38th count requiring him to pay back $89,615 of federal works funds awarded to his former players for work they allegedly did not do. His trial date has been set for April 5, and a pretrial motions hearing is scheduled for March 28.

Wolf pleaded innocent to all counts against him Jan. 6, but has yet to enter a plea to the new charge.

According to the indictment, Wolf provided the Barton County registrar's office with a certificate that falsely indicated Diakite had earned the equivalent of a high school diploma. That document allowed Diakite, who earned an associate of general studies degree, to graduate from BCCC and become eligible to play basketball at Louisville.

The charge is similar to a previous accusation that Wolf supplied a certificate indicating that former Barton County player Eric Washington, who played for San Jose State, had earned the equivalent of a high school diploma, when he had no such degree.

Students at Barton County must earn a high school diploma or the equivalent of one to graduate but can enroll in classes or meet eligibility requirements to compete in junior college athletics without one.

Diakite played at Barton County from 2001 to 2003 before moving to play at Louisville. He played 19 games last season for Louisville before leaving the team in early March 2004 to pursue a professional basketball career in France, according to the university.

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News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from Associated Press and other sources. Copyright 2005 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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