Cards, Pitino put all-out pressure on Austin Peay

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -- Rick Pitino had everything in place, as always -- his neat, dark suit, his perfectly styled hair and his patented full-court press.

Pitino returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1997 and did it in style, this time guiding Louisville over flustered Austin Peay 86-64 Friday night in the first round of the East Regional.

"I love March Madness," Pitino said. "So many good memories go through your mind. I just the love the whole atmosphere. It's so much fun to watch all of it."

While Luke Whitehead had 20 points and 11 rebounds and star Reece Gaines scored 18, Pitino clearly was the biggest attraction for the fourth-seeded Cardinals (25-6). The Louisville coach stomped his foot, clapped his hands, called out picks and shouted at the officials the entire game.

Pitino also slapped on all-court pressure, as planned, and that was the difference. Fully aware 13th-seeded Austin Peay could be sloppy with the ball, he waited until midway through the first half to start trapping and startle the Governors.

Ahead 20-19, the Cardinals put on the press and the results were immediate -- they stole the ball three straight times and turned each one into a basket during a 10-0 run.

"We just turned up the pressure defensively," Gaines said. "We knew they weren't good at handling pressure. We just got them winded and played hard during that stretch."

While Cardinals defenders wildly waved their arms and scrambled to double-team, the Governors (23-8) lost their composure. After Gaines fed Alhaji Mohammed for a dunk, Austin Peay was forced to call a timeout when it couldn't inbound, prompting Anthony Davis to yell at his teammates and slam the ball down in frustration.

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"We're not a real young team, but this was the first time we've been here and we lost our poise," Austin Peay coach Dave Loos said.

The Conference USA tournament champion Cardinals advanced to meet 12th-seeded Butler, a 47-46 upset winner over Mississippi State.

Pitino became the fourth coach to take four teams to the NCAA tournament, joining Lefty Driesell, Jim Harrick and Eddie Sutton. Pitino previously made it with Boston University, Providence and Kentucky, taking the Wildcats to three Final Fours and the 1996 national title.

Pitino spent 3½ seasons coaching the Boston Celtics after leaving Kentucky, then moved to Louisville and went to the NIT last year. He became the first coach other than Denny Crum to lead Louisville to a first-round win in the NCAAs since Bernard Hickman in 1961.

Josh Lewis scored 20 points and Adrian Henning had 17 for Austin Peay, the Ohio Valley Conference tournament champions. Austin Peay was lost behind the 3-point line, shooting only 2-for-21.

"When we get into that pace and can't hit our 3s, it can get ugly," Loos said, ``and it got ugly tonight."

The Governors were hoping to repeat their performance from the 1987 tournament, when they upset third-seeded Illinois 68-67 on the same floor at the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center. That year, by the way, they lost their next game in overtime to a Providence team coached by Pitino.

Down 45-33 at halftime, Austin Peay closed to 49-40 but never seriously threatened to make a run.

Whitehead kept the Cardinals in control with 12 points and nine rebounds after the break, and the pressure defense did its part. Louisville stole the ball 12 times and forced 18 turnovers.

"Everyone just played hard and we tried to make sure we didn't get upset," Whitehead said. "That's what makes this tournament so exciting -- upsets. We just didn't want to make it more exciting than it already was."