Who says the outside shot is his achilles heel?

And since it's Monday, how about the top ten T-Willisms?

10. On Louisville's midseason winning streak: "I've realized that if we just keep winning games, eventually we'll win the national championship"

9. Explaining how he followed an 0-for-4 first half with an 8-for-16 second half against Massachusetts as a freshman: "Before, I was thinking about the scouting report and how they are a great shot-blocking team, and I was just trying to get the ball up there. But then I was like, 'Terrence,' -- I call myself Terrence; I don't call myself T-Will -- I was like, 'Terrence, you jump too high to be nervous about somebody else.' "

8. On the importance of then-senior David Padgett: "David Padgett is the t-shirt of this team.  You wouldn't go outside without your t-shirt on, and we don't go out on the court without David Padgett."

7. Celebrating the return of Juan Palacios and David Padgett from injuries last season: "You go out into a game in which you know you've got Tello and David playing, your swagger's a lot different. You walk different, you talk different, you talk to a girl different. … You know they're going to back you up. They're going to say, 'Yeah, he's a great guy.' "

6. Explaining why he didn't declare for the NBA draft after his junior season: "There are too many sharks in the water in this year's draft. Next year there's a lot of fish and seaweed. Hopefully, I can be one of those sharks next year."

5. Finding the silver lining in a groin strain: "It's a good thing, because I really like massages and now I'm getting massages all the time."

4. On trying to lead newcomers: "Talking to these freshman is like talking to a pond - just because the water moves doesn't mean it's listening."

3. On breaking out of a shooting slump with a big game from beyond the arc: "No I'm not surprised at how I shot today.  If it's two in the afternoon and it's dark outside, then I'd be surprised."

2. On how much the team feeds off of David Padgett: "How much do people eat off plates? We feed off him a lot because he's our point-center, our point-forward, our point-shooting guard. He's everything because he rebounds the ball, he passes the ball, he leads us. He could lead us out of the closet, lead us to the ocean. He's just our everything."

1. On coach Rick Pitino's powers of persuasion: "He's the type of man where, if a dog couldn't talk -- which a dog can't talk -- he would make a dog think it can talk. That dog would keep barking for a long time thinking it was talking."

Here's the statement that will run in the next issue of ESPN The Magazine:

ONE WE FORGOT : One, two, 19, 48. Who's counting? Not us. In debating how far Louisville would fall in our college basketball rankings (Split Takes, Nov. 16), we inadvertently let the reigning Big East champs slip away altogether. (We meant to sit them at 26.) We regret the omission but blame it on the Cards' (and their coach's) under-the-radar summer.

We better get a BCS bowl or something out of this.

ESPN The Magazine''s college basketball preview issue hit stores this week and caused quite a stir in the Derby City when it was discovered that the publication left the Louisville Cardinals out of its "Top 65" team rankings.

The Cards fiinished last season ranked first in both major polls and begin this season ranked 19th by the Associated Press and 23rd by the coaches.

When asked about the puzzling omission on Twitter, ESPN's Pat Forde responded that he was told it was a "glitch" and that Louisville was "meant to be No. 29."

Quick question: how in the hell does that happen?

You have more resources than anyone in the world of sports, more staff members than anyone in the world of sports and yet apparently it's still quite possible to completely screw up and mistakenly leave one of the biggest programs in college basketball out of your preseason rankings.

In ESPN's defense, it's not like Louisville basketball has been in the news much recently. No major storylines hanging over this team as it heads into the season. 

I guess we'll give you a break, since this is absolutely the first time you've ever screwed up.

When the Louisville basketball team open its season a week from tonight in St. Louis against Arkansas, it will be facing a Razorback team trying to make do without two starters and a trio of reserves. Head coach John Pelphrey announced the suspension of the five players, resulting from a variety of disciplinary issues, Wednesday afternoon.

Courtney Fortson, the team's leading returning scorer, and fellow starter Stefan Walsh have been suspended indefinitely. Reserve Marcus Britt, who appeared in all 30 games a year ago, will miss the team's first six games. Freshman Glenn Bryant has been suspended for two games while walk-on Nick Mason will not be allowed to play during the fall semester.

"We will continue to address disciplinary matters in a straight-forward manner and take action when players do not meet the expectations of conduct required of our student-athletes," Pelphrey said in a statement. "Our program remains committed to representing the University of Arkansas, individually and collectively, in an appropriate manner."

Fortson averaged 14.8 ppg and handed out 172 assists as a freshman a year ago. He was suspended, at least in part, for a crude comment he posted on Twitter after a woman accused three of his teammates of rape at an August fraternity party.

"One thing I would say is with regards to Courtney, his is a little bit different," Pelphrey said. "He has come to me. He has a couple of personal issues he wants to try to handle and we’re going to try to do that with him. And we’re going to support him and try to get him better. His says indefinite suspension, this is not something we’re going to resolve over a weekend or whatever."

Arkansas is already dealing with the loss of sophomore forward Michael Sanchez, who is battling plantar fasciitis.

The Razorbacks will dress nine players against Louisville. One, Stephen Cox, is a member of the golf team and another, Brandon Mitchell, is a former football player.

1. West Virginia

The Mountaineers laid a huge egg in the NCAA Tournament against Dayton, but Bob Huggins’ third West Virginia squad is loaded. Da’Sean Butler may be the most underrated player in the country and Devin Ebanks is primed to breakout and become a full-fledged superstar.

2. Villanova

Losing Dante Cunningham is an enormous hit, but the sensational guard trio of Scottie Reynolds and the Coreys (Fisher and Stokes) return from last year’s Final Four squad and Jay Wright reeled in one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Don’t be surprised if the much-hyped Wildcats drop a game or two they shouldn’t before Reggie Redding returns to the team after Christmas.

3. Connecticut

A.J. Price is gone, but Kemba Walker should make a strong push for the title of "best point guard in the Big East" in his sophomore season. The bigger loss is in the post, where Jim Calhoun will be looking to replace Hasheem Thabeet’s defensive presence. How well freshman big man Alex Oriakhi adapts to the college game could determine whether or not the Huskies again challenge for the league title.

4. Cincinnati

This is higher than I’ve seen the Bearcats placed by anyone else, but I don’t think there’s a more complete starting five in the league. Cashmere Wright is healthy and ready to take much of the ball-handling duties away from Deonta Vaughn, Yancy Gates is one of the best big men in the league, and Lance Stephenson, the Big East’s most talented newcomer, has been cleared to play by the NCAA. The pressure is on Mick Cronin to win now.

5. Louisville

History has not been kind to college basketball teams trying to recover from losing two lottery picks, but the defending Big East regular season and tournament champions do return a strong nucleus from the squad that ended the ’09 regular season ranked No. 1 in the country. Samardo Samuels and Terrence Jennings will both demand significant attention in the post, but how well Pitino’s team shoots from the outside will likely determine its fate more times than not this year.

6. Georgetown

Though the nation kept waiting it for happen, the Hoyas were never able to click and get on track a season ago. Still, expectations to produce are again prevalent as John Thompson III returns multiple starters including reigning Big East Rookie of the Year Greg Monroe.

7. Notre Dame

Returning nearly everyone from a team that almost captured the ’08 regular season conference title, no squad disappointed more than the Fighting Irish a season ago. But preseason Player of the Year Luke Harangody is back and has more than enough talent around him to guide this team back into the NCAA Tournament. If Notre Dame doesn’t go dancing, Mike Brey could be spending the summer looking for a new job.

8. Seton Hall

The biggest wild card in the league, Seton Hall is loaded with talent at every position. Jeremy Hazell and Eugene Harvey are two of the most explosive offensive players in the Big East, and Bobby Gonzalez has brought in three big-time transfers who he hopes can transform the Pirates into legitimate contenders. You can justify picking this team to finish just about anywhere.

9. Pittsburgh

No coach has a tougher job this year than Jamie Dixon, who must find a way to replace the superstar trio of DeJuan Blair, Sam Young and LeVance Fields. Freshman Dante Taylor is the real deal, but some guys who have been role players up until this point in their Panther careers are going to have to step up significantly for Pitt to finish in the top half of this league.

10. Syracuse

No one knew how well the Orange were going to react to the not-so-surprising departure of Jonny Flynn and the extremely surprising departures of Paul Harris and Eric Devendorf. Dropping an exhibition game to a D-III school was not a solid start. Arizne Onuaku is a beast in the middle and Iowa State transfer Wesley Johnson is a legit NBA prospect, but without an established floor general, it’s hard to see turnovers and poor decisions not plaguing this group from season’s beginning to end.

11. Marquette

Lazar Hayward is a star and Mo Acker earned his stripes when Dominic James went down a year ago, but if Buzz Williams' talented group of newcomers doesn’t drastically overachieve then the Golden Eagles are going to struggle.

12. Providence

Despite the toxic mix of a bevy of seniors and a first-year head coach, Keno Davis’ first Providence squad was probably a single win over Louisville in the Big East tournament away from making the Big Dance. This year’s task might be even tougher for Davis, who has a talented backcourt duo in Sharaud Curry and Brian McKenzie but lost nearly all of his other production.

13. Rutgers

Mike Rosario was extremely impressive over the course of his freshman season and big men Greg Echenique and Hamady N’Diaye are both solid defensive presences, but Fred Hill needs at least one more big-time scorer for the Scarlet Knights to avoid the infamous "teen four" status in the Big East. The dismissal of Corey Chandler was a big blow.

14. St. John’s

Believe it or not, this is actually one of the deepest teams in the conference. The health of Anthony Mason Jr. is still a major concern, but there’s enough talent on this roster to pull a major upset or two.

15. South Florida

Dominique Jones is an elite scorer and Chris Howard is a terrific playmaker, but the Bulls still don’t have enough in their front court to really compete in a league like the Big East.

16. Depaul

Will Walker and Mac Koshwal are both good players, but they weren’t good enough to earn the Blue Demons a single conference win in the regular season last year and they won’t be good enough to vault Depaul out of last place in ’09-’10.

Player of the Year: Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

Rookie of the Year: Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati

Coach of the Year: Mick Cronin, Cincinnati

First Team

Luke Harangody, Notre Dame
Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati
Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia
Scottie Reynolds, Villanova
Kemba Walker, Connecticut

Second Team

Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
Lazar Hayward, Marquette
Greg Monroe, Georgetown
Devin Ebanks, West Virginia
Arizne Onuaku, Syracuse

Third Team

Samardo Samuels, Louisville
Dominique Jones, South Florida
Wesley Johnson, Syracuse
Yancy Gates, Cincinnati
Jerome Dyson, Connecticut

1. Parity

There was much debate throughout the course of last season over whether or not the Big East was stronger than it had ever been. The fact teams from the conference ultimately comprised half of the Elite Eight and Final Four fields would seem to bolster the case of the folks on the "yes" side of that argument, but when you have three squads with resumes strong enough to earn No. 1 seeds, it also means that a lot of teams in the bottom half of the league are piling up a lot of losses.

By and large, the teams that finished 1-8 a season ago have gotten worse and the teams that finished 9-16 have gotten better, which should make for a jumbled final league standings. Expect the difference between teams 6-11 to be razor thin, and the second day of the Big East tournament to be tremendous.

2. Rick Pitino

Little has gone well for Rick Pitino since his top-seeded Cardinals were bounced in the Elite Eight by Michigan State last March. He lost a pair of lottery picks to the NBA and his offseason was mired by a scandal that involved extortion, adultery and abortion. He’s talked about the matter being behind him and focusing on the upcoming season for the past two months or so, but expect the issue to be thrust back into the national spotlight if the Cardinals go through any significant struggles.

3. National Title Contenders

For all the praise that has been heaped upon the Big East since its expansion, the league hasn’t produced a national champion since Connecticut cut down the nets in 2004. The top-tier teams in the league have the talent to make a run, but it will be more of a surprise if the league isn’t again shut out in 2010.

4. Rebuilding

The Big East has lost a significant chunk of star power as all but two of the 11 players named to the first and second All-Conference teams a year ago have moved on. Perennial powerhouses Pitt, Syracuse and Louisville have been especially rocked by graduation and early defections. The door now appears to be open for teams like Cincinnati and Seton Hall to make their moves toward the top half of the standings.

5. The big, big Big East Tournament

The league has opted to stick with the 16-team tournament format for a second straight season after it was more exciting than anyone could have anticipated in its trial run. If another significant alteration to the tournament is going to take place, it will likely come after this season.

15 Best Non-Conference Games

1. Connecticut vs. Kentucky (Big East/SEC Challenge: Madison Square Garden) (12/9)
2. Louisville at Kentucky (1/2)
3. Connecticut vs. Texas (1/23)
4. West Virginia at Purdue (1/1)
5. West Virginia vs. Ohio State (1/23)
6. Duke at Georgetown (1/31)
7. Cincinnati at Xavier (12/13)
8. Connecticut at Michigan (1/17)
9. Georgetown vs. Butler (Jimmy V. Classic) (12/8)
10. UCLA at Notre Dame (12/19)
11. Washington vs. Georgetown (Wooden Classic) (12/12)
12. Florida vs. Syracuse (Big East/SEC Challenge) (12/9)
13. Villanova at Maryland (12/6)
14. Memphis at Syracuse (1/6)
15. Louisville at UNLV (11/28)

Big Monday Schedule

January 4 – Pittsburgh at Cincinnati
January 11 – Villanova at Louisville
January 18 – Syracuse at Notre Dame
January 25 – Georgetown at Syracuse
February 1 – Connecticut at Louisville
February 8 – Villanova at West Virginia
February 15 – Connecticut at Villanova
February 22 – West Virginia at Connecticut
March 1 – Georgetown at West Virginia

Top 15 Guards

1. Scottie Reynolds, Villanova
2. Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati
3. Kemba Walker, Connecticut
4. Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
5. Dominique Jones, South Florida
6. Jerome Dyson, Connecticut
7. Sharaud Curry, Providence
8. Mike Rosario, Rutgers
9. Eugene Harvey, Seton Hall
10. Corey Stokes, Villanova
11. Tory Jackson, Notre Dame
12. Jerry Smith, Louisville
13. Corey Fisher, Villanova
14. Will Walker, Depaul
15. Edgar Sosa, Louisville

Top 15 Forwards

1. Luke Harangody, Notre Dame
2. Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia
3. Lazar Hayward, Marquette’
4. Devin Ebanks, West Virginia
5. Greg Monroe, Georgetown
6. Arizne Onuaku, Syracuse
7. Yancy Gates, Cincinnati
8. Samardo Samuels, Louisville
9. Wesley Johnson, Syracuse
10. Stanley Robinson, Connecticut
11. Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati
12. Greg Echenique, Rutgers
13. Mac Koshwal, Depaul
14. Anthony Mason Jr., St. John’s
15. Dante Taylor, Pittsburgh

Top 10 Freshmen

1. Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati
2. Dante Taylor, Pittsburgh
3. Alex Oriakhi, Connecticut
4. Mouphtaou Yarou, Villanova
5. Peyton Siva, Louisville
6. Dominic Cheek, Villanova
7. Maalik Wayns, Villanova
8. Hollis Thompson, Georgetown
9. Junior Cadougan, Marquette
10. Jamal Coombs-McDaniel, Connecticut

Top 5 Rebounders

1. Luke Harangody, Notre Dame
2. Mac Koshwal, Depaul
3. Greg Echenique, Rutgers
4. Lazar Hayward, Marquette
5. Arizne Onuaku, Syracuse

Top 10 Shooters

1. Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
2. Andy Rautins, Syracuse
3. Corey Stokes, Villanova
4. Jerry Smith, Louisville
5. Casey Mitchell, West Virginia
6. Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh
7. Taylor King, Villanova
8. Preston Knowles, Louisville
9. Sharaud Curry, Providence
10. Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati

Top 5 On-Ball Defenders

1. Jerome Dyson, Connecticut
2. Preston Knowles, Louisville
3. Kemba Walker, Connecticut
4. Paris Horne, St. John’s
5. Eugene Harvey, Seton Hall

Top 5 Shot-Blockers

1. Hamady N’Diaye, Rutgers
2. Greg Echenique, Rutgers
3. Terrence Jennings, Louisville
4. John Garcia, Seton Hall
5. Arizne Onuaku, Syracuse

Top 5 Passers

1. Tory Jackson, Notre Dame
2. Eugene Harvey, Seton Hall
3. Chris Howard, South Florida
4. Chris Wright, Georgetown
5. Reggie Redding, Villanova

Top 10 Impact Transfers

1. Wesley Johnson, Syracuse (Iowa State)
2. Herb Pope, Seton Hall (New Mexico State)
3. Ben Hansbrough, Notre Dame (Mississippi State)
4. Keon Lawrence, Seton Hall (Missouri)
5. Taylor King, Villanova (Duke)
6. Ibrahima Thomas, Cincinnati (Oklahoma)
7. Chase Adams, Pittsburgh (Centenary)
8. Jonathan Mitchell, Rutgers (Florida)
9. Anthony Crater, South Florida (Ohio State)
10. Jeff Robinson, Seton Hall (Memphis)

Former Louisville great Reece Gaines was selected by the Bakersfield Jam with the 13th pick in the second round of tonight's NBA Developmental League draft. In the 2003 NBA Draft, Gaines was selected by the Orlando Magic with the 15th overall pick. I'm guessing this is a rare feat.

Perrin (PERRIN!) Johnson also heard his name called when the Springfield Armor took him in the sixth round.

Best of luck to both in their continued efforts to make money playing a game.

And now, because I can...

To be perfectly honest, I've been fairly pessimistic about the upcoming basketball season since the '08-'09 squad went down to Michigan State. Not "football program" pessimistic, just "I think we may be taking more of a step back than some people think" pessimistic. There's the loss of two lottery picks, the offseason Pitino scandal and a tough Big East from top-to-bottom to deal with. I think lowered expectations are understandable.

While reading into any November game, especially an exhibition, is foolish, Wednesday night was the biggest shot of optimism for me since that loss in Indy last March.

Louisville was never really tested by a Bellarmine team that played pretty well and will challenge for the Division-II national title. The Cards shot well, defended well and cut down on a lot of the mistakes they'd made a week earlier against Georgetown. Overall, this was the most solid exhibition performance from a U of L team in recent memory.

It's safe to say that Peyton Siva again stole the show...

It's impossible to replace the excitement that T-Will brought to the Hall, but the kid is certainly trying.

Bellarmine simply didn't have anyone who could guard him. There was a string of about three minutes where it looked like he was playing a basketball video game against the computer with the difficulty set at "Beginner." Siva would make a simple move and blow past his man, take a couple more dribbles and have an uncontested lay-up or an easy pass to make.

He's insanely quick, he's insanely athletic, he's got terrific vision and apparently an extraordinary attitude.

Again, by the time he leaves Peyton Siva will have become one of the most beloved Louisville basketball players of all-time.

On a team loaded with good shooters who lack the ability to create their own shot, Preston Knowles' ability to knock down the contested jumper with the same ease as when he's left all alone may be the single most valuable skill any player on this team possesses.

PK was advertised as a streaky shooter coming out of high school, a characteristic I thought would stick with him throughout his collegiate career. Not quite sure how it happened, but suddenly he's one of the biggest outside threats in the Big East.

He also plays defense.. and does cool re-enactments of Peyton Siva dunks for his teammates.

With all of the attention Peyton Siva has received today, it should be noted that it may have been Edgar Sosa who played the better all-around game. He hit several shots early to set the tone, finished with a team-high four assists and did a good job of covering Bellarmine's outside threats.

Solid move by Pitino to call off the press and go strictly man against the Knights. Matching up for 40 minutes against a smaller team with several terrific outside shooters was a big test for a pretty young Louisville team playing its second exhibition game. Even though Justin Benedetti and Braydon Hobbs both got several really good looks from beyond the arc, the Cards still handled a difficult task very well.

Really surprised that Kuric didn't get the start and even more surprised that he played so sparingly, but it's a safe bet that the five starters on Wednesday will be the same five being introduced before the game come late February/early March. I know Pitino's mad at Jennings, and I agree that he doesn't appear all that much improved from a year ago, but that combination may have more potential than any other quintet on the roster.

I really think Jerry likes faking defenders out and making them jump more than he likes scoring points. It's the only explanation.

"Run This Town" was a solid improvement for the pregame video. Still, the highlight choices need to be re-edited as the year goes on. I'm looking at you, unnecessary Kuric dunk at the end of the Arizona game.

This was the most impressive performance Jared Swopshire has put forth yet. He snagged some contested rebounds, made a couple of big hustle plays and also scored off some nice moves with the ball.

Here comes the putter throw...wait a minute, maybe this is a new Jared Swopshire.

He also looks like he might be trying to grow his fro back out, which, I have to tell you, I'm completely in favor of.

Reggie Delk also stepped up and had a nice game. I don't think there's a player on the roster whose '09-'10 season is more difficult to predict.

Pitino had the following to say about freshman Mike Marra's shooting struggles:

"He's a very nervous young man, he's from a prep school league where the largest crowd he's played in front of was probably 300 or 400 people. We've got to get him some exposure."

You'd think that if you had the balls to sport those tatoos in public every day not much else would phase you, but who knows. Keep shooting, Mike.

A ladybird messed up during the second routine.

I'm not going to stand for this, girls. How badly do you really want that 877th straight national title?

Rakeem Buckles is a mixture of Otis George and Juan Palacios. This, coupled with the fact that his name is Rock Buckles, has made making him my new best friend the lone goal in my life.

Stephen Van Treese has really taken Pitino's "just rebound" philosophy to heart. He snagged an offensive board right around the rim and did not even think about going up with it. His skill set might be limited, but he's a very big boy and he can be a contributor if he develops a little bit.

Chris Smith: I applaud your outfit.

Dating back to last season I've correctly picked four straight winners in the Kentucky Lottery race thing. What's up, Vegas?

Not sure why but I really, really wanted Chris Brickley to score. The three seconds after he missed that jumper were the most upset I was all night.

The Cardinal Bird jumped on the platform by the railing right behind me and it scared the absolute shit out of me.

Ready for Arkansas.

Jumpin' Alvin Simms is ready.

GO CARDS