UNCASVILLE, Conn. Doug Harvey Jersey . -- Louisvilles 21st straight win wasnt what Rick Pitino would have liked it to be. Chris Jones scored 15 points and Montrezl Harrell added 14 points and 12 rebounds to lead the No. 3 Cardinals to a 71-57 victory over Fairfield on Saturday in the Hall of Fame Tipoff Tournament. But the Cardinals (5-0) committed 26 fouls and turned the ball over 14 times against the Stags (1-4). "Tonight we were just flat in every phase of the game," Pitino said. "We were flat offensively with only nine assists. Our two point guards turned it over eight times, which they havent been doing. We didnt do the little things necessary to exploit the weaknesses of Fairfield. We were late to the glass a lot. A lot of things were disturbing but well go ahead." Maurice Barrow paced Fairfield (1-4) with 14 points and Marcus Gilbert chipped in with 11. Louisville, which has three national titles, will be looking for its 27th title in a regular-season tournament when it faces No. 24 North Carolina in Sundays championship game. The Tar Heels beat Richmond, 82-72 in Saturdays first semifinal. "This wasnt a close game," Pitino said. "Youre going to see close (Sunday). Thats if we dont get blown out. If we play this way tomorrow, it wont even be a game. I think their size is going to give us a little trouble. They do a lot of good things defensively and theyre long. They offensive rebound very well." The Stags stayed with the Cardinals for much of the first half and led 11-9 midway through it. But Louisville went on a 28-12 run to close the half and led by as many as 21 after the break. Louisville, which was playing its first game away from home this season, got a balanced scoring effort. Wayne Blackshear had 11 points and Russ Smith added 10 points and seven rebounds. Luke Han****, who has been recovering from a strained left Achilles, had nine points in 17 minutes, and was 7 of 7 from the foul line. This was the Cardinals first game away from home this season, and Han**** said the energy just wasnt there. "Weve had every game in front of big crowds at the Yum! Center," he said. "They had a lot more fans. We just didnt come out with enough energy. Weve got to come next time right from the start, especially against Carolina." The teams combined for 53 fouls in what was far from a crisp contest. Louisville, which came in averaging just six turnovers, the best in the nation, had eight before halftime. Fairfield used a full-court press to rattle the Cardinals vaunted guards. Jones and Smith each gave the ball away four times But Pitinos press was also effective, forcing Fairfield into 19 turnovers. Neither team shot well. Louisville, which came in making almost 50 per cent of its attempts from the field, hit just 38 per cent and the Cardinals were just 2 of 14 from 3-point range. Fairfield fared just as poorly, hitting on just 34 per cent, while going 5 of 15 from behind the arc. The Stags led 9-4 early. A jumper by Harrell tied the game at 11 and started the run that put the Cardinals in control. Han****s layup off a Fairfield miss gave Louisville a 37-23 halftime lead. Another shot by Harrell gave Louisville its first 20-point lead at 49-28, with 12 minutes left. Fairfield cut the deficit back to 51-36, but could not get closer than 14. It was 59-40 when Harrell picked up his fourth foul and 62-43 when Smith picked up his fourth. But by then, the game had been decided. "Right now Im just locked in on getting my rebounds up," Harrell said. "At halftime I only had two rebounds and I felt, with my mindset, Im a double digit rebounder every night. I went back out after halftime and said thats got to be changed." Jones took charge down the stretch. He had all but two of his points in the second half. Fairfield has lost four in a row. The Stags were picked to finish sixth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference preseason coaches poll. "We grew up a bit today, and we got some confidence," said Fairfield coach Sydney Johnson. "For Fairfield University, to be on this national stage, and let people know that weve got some good young kids in our program, its a thrill." This was the first meeting between the two programs. Louisville is now 156-37 in non-conference games under Pitino. Fairfield fell to 0-50 all-time against ranked opponents, dating back to the 1949-50 season. Doug Harvey Canadiens Jersey . -- Dwyane Wade was a late scratch from the Miami Heats starting lineup against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night because of nerve irritation in his left foot, leaving his status for the All-Star game in doubt. Dale Weise Canadiens Jersey . Wedge will manage the final three games of this season against Oakland before the Mariners begin a search for a new manager. "Its got to the point where its painfully obvious to me that I just wasnt going to be able to move forward with this organization," Wedge said before Fridays game.NEW ORLEANS -- Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson says doctors want him to rest for about two months before they determine whether he needs neck surgery to repair a herniated disk. Anderson said he is now nearly pain-free with the help of medication, and is optimistic about his long-term future in the NBA. However, he is unsure whether he will be able to play again this season, his sixth. "Obviously, I want to get back as soon as possible, but this is something that if I got hit again, it could be more than just career ending. I want to be careful about it," Anderson said, speaking publicly Monday night about his injury for the first time since it occurred in a collision with Bostons Gerald Wallace on Jan. 3. "Were going to find out pretty soon how its healing and depending on if its healing (on its own), then well just keep going with that. But if not, well do the surgery." Before his injury, the 6-foot-10 Anderson had been New Orleans leading scorer, averaging 19.8 points through 22 games. Anderson, 25, said doctors told him that if he needs surgery, the procedure would be similar to the one Peyton Manning had before the NFL quarterbacks prolific return to pro football two seasons ago. Andrei Markov Jersey. . "Thats kind of the person they over and over talk about," Anderson said of Manning, who set single-season NFL records for yards passing and touchdowns in 2013 and will play in the AFC championship this Sunday. "Hes having a pretty good recovery, Id say." Anderson, who was taken off the court in traction after the injury, said he never lost feeling in any extremities, but initially had "terrible" nerve pain shooting from his elbows to his fingers, making it difficult to do something as simple as scratch his own nose. Anderson said he bears no ill will toward Wallace, who was running hard to cover Darius Miller when he collided with Anderson from behind, sending Anderson straight to the floor. "Hes a great guy," Anderson said. "He would never intentionally hurt somebody or me. It was a normal play in the game. He just got me in the right place." Anderson said he wont be travelling with the team in the near future but is looking forward to offering whatever leadership he can from the bench and locker room during home games, as he did Monday night against San Antonio. cheap nfl jerseyscheap jerseys ' ' '
