Louisville 79, Long Beach State 66

[recap] [box score]

So much of this game was decided by fouls.

In the first half, T.J. Robinson picked up a quick two. The 49ers are not deep, and when one of their four perimeter/wing players goes out, their first sub off the bench is freshman point guard Mike Caffey. Caffey has had an okay first few college games as a role player, but he was not ready for the speed and pressure of the Louisville defense. His entrance into the lineup also requires that Casper Ware -- the team's best scorer, ballhandler, and playmaker -- play off the ball more, because Caffey can't.

Caffey's struggles and the ball being out of Ware's hands allowed Louisville to build a double-digit first-half lead, even as their point guard, Peyton Siva, sat on the bench with two fouls. The Cardinals are a lot deeper than the 49ers and can handle foul trouble to one of their players, even with some of the injuries they've suffered.

In the second half, though, Louisville found itself with foul problems of its own.