The Associated Press

LOUISVILLE - Just three days into practices, Louisville coach Rick Pitino is making bold statements about the Cardinals.

"This is my best team I've had here at U of L in terms of size, talent, depth," Louisville's fourth-year coach said Tuesday. "We've been counterfeit the last three years. Now, we have low-post players, we have some size. That doesn't mean we're going to be better, but we're not counterfeit.

"I don't think we're any better than the top 30 teams in the country, but I don't think the top 30 are any better than us either."

The Cardinals have plenty back from a 20-10 team that won 16 consecutive games during one stretch last season. Leading scorer Francisco Garcia, guards Taquan Dean and Larry O'Bannon, and forwards Otis George and Ellis Myles form an experienced core. Colombian big man Juan Palacios and Las Vegas prep star Lorrenzo Wade headline a strong quartet of newcomers.

"You don't want to be too young, nor do you want to be void of young players," Pitino said.

Pitino expects Garcia, a junior, to jump to the NBA after this season. The 6-foot-7 Garcia averaged 16 points a game last season.

The Cardinals are scheduled to open the season against Iowa in the Maui Invitational on Nov. 22.

NORTH CAROLINA: Guard Rashad McCants and Tar Heels coach Roy Williams held a news conference Tuesday to explain comments McCants made to a local TV station last week.

In an interview that aired Friday night, McCants compared playing college basketball to being in jail. He also said he considered his time in the program to be his job.

"It's to get up and go to school, get here and lift weights and play basketball," McCants said in the interview. "That's my 9-to-5. As my uncle said, I'm in jail right now. ...

"But once you get out of jail, you're free. So I'm just in my sentence and I'm doing my time."

He said Tuesday he meant to give an example of how regimented his life is with the Tar Heels. As he told Williams when explaining the comments, he couldn't go anywhere during fall break like many of his classmates.

"I do feel like there is a lot of things that are required for us to do," McCants said. "But this is what I love to do, and I want to make it my job someday."

STANFORD: Point guard Chris Hernandez is sidelined with an ankle injury and has yet to practice with the defending Pac-10 champion Cardinal. Hernandez, a junior, sprained his right ankle two weeks ago. He averaged 10.0 points and 4.3 assists last season.

INDIANA: Indianapolis Arlington senior point guard Deonta Vaughn has committed to play at IU. He averaged 18 points, 4.5 assists and four steals as Arlington went 19-4 last season. The 5-foot-11 Vaughn said he also could play shooting guard.

NCAA TOURNAMENT: Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage will become chairman of the selection committee in 2005-06. He will succeed Iowa athletic director Bob Bowlsby, the committee chairman last year and this year, the NCAA said.