Box Score
Post Game Audio
ROSEMONT, Ill. - Juan Palacios scored 21 points and Louisville pulled away from DePaul on Saturday afternoon for a 59-50 victory, their second road win in a row.
The Blue Demons had trimmed a 43-33 deficit to 43-42 with 6:17 to play, but DePaul missed four consecutive free throws and the Cardinals (13-6, 3-2 Big East) came away with the win.
Palacios scored 15 of his points in the first half. Terrance Williams was 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the closing minutes and finished with 11 points. Wilson Chandler led DePaul (12-8, 3-3 Big East) with 19 points.
As DePaul struggled to get anything going on offense, Louisville took a 41-31 lead thanks to a 9-0 run. The Blue Demons went more than six minutes without a field goal until center Keith Butler's tip-in reduced Louisville's lead to 43-35 with 9:31 to play.
The lead dipped to 43-42 when Sammy Mejia stole the ball at midcourt and found Draelon Burns breaking toward the basket. Burns made the layup and converted the three-point play with 6:17 on the clock.
Missed free throws allowed Louisville to keep its slim lead. Burns missed the front end of two one-and-bonus situations over the next minute, and Mejia missed both free throws of a double bonus.
The Cardinals got off to a rough start, missing 11 of their first 13 shots, which allowed DePaul to take a 13-5 lead. Palacios, who hadn't taken a shot at that point, went on to score 10 consecutive points for Louisville, including two 3-pointers, to trim DePaul's lead to 17-15 with 8:55 remaining in the half.
Louisville took its first lead on freshman guard Edgar Sosa's three-pointer, putting the Cardinals up 20-19 with 4:30 remaining. Chandler, who led DePaul with 10 first-half points, scored the final basket of the half to level the score at 26-26. Sophomore guard Andre McGee, who missed Louisville's past three games because of a strained quadriceps tendon, came off the bench to score seven second-half points.
Game Notes
DePaul (12-8, 3-3)
Wilson Chandler’s team-high 19 points mark his 18th double-figure scoring effort this season and his 10th game leading the Blue Demons in points… Chandler also grabbed 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season… Keith Butler tied his season-high eight points and grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds… the Blue Demons shot a season-low .500 (9-18) from the free throw line… DePaul outrebounded Louisville 41-38, the Blue Demons are now 9-3 when grabbing more rebounds than their opponent… DePaul now trails 31-21 in the all-time series and has lost the last three in the series.
Louisville (13-6, 3-2)
Louisville held an 11-5 margin in points off turnovers… the Cardinals opened the second half with a 13-5 scoring run over the first eight minutes after the break… in the first half, 21 of Louisville’s 33 field goal attempts were from beyond the arc… Juan Palacios scored a season-high 21 points and shot 8-10 from the field, including a 3-4 effort from behind the three-point line… Palacios went a perfect 6-6 from the field in the first half for 15 of the Cardinals’ 26 points before the break… Louisville remains undefeated this season when making more than seven three-point field goals… the Cardinals now lead the all-time series 31-21 and is now on a three-game winning streak over the Blue Demons while Coach Rick Pitino is now 6-2 against DePaul.
