So if you weren't a Cardinal fan...We look back at...David Watson sounds off...

.
WEDNESDAY with CARDINAL COUPLE: 

-And if you weren't a UofL fan....

-WE look back at...

-David Watson sends summer greetings!

We were engaged in conversation at the 4th of July (actually the 3rd of July) cookout we attended. The crowd was mixed....almost 50/50 UofL vs. UK...but long time friends here and no hostilities involved....other than the usual friendly banter about the schools, the teams and the players. Call it what you will...but Paul and Larry were unstoppable as a team on bean bag toss (cornhole) when they were throwing on the UofL boards with UofL beanbags. The UK boards were set up later when the crowd grew and the "champs"  couldn't win a game. I suspect Calipari or Joker Phillips were hiding in the hedges laughing and practicing voodoo on the guys...but I have no proof.

The subject of team support rolled around and Tim brought up the question.

"If you weren't a UofL fan or a UK fan...who would you support?"

Ernie (who is a UK fan but proudly supports UofL football) tackled the question first.

Ernie prefers UK but is an avid UofL football fan.

"I'd go with the Cardinals. I cheer for UofL unless they're playing UK. My wife and one of my sons are UofL fans. But, when we were kids...my Dad was a UK fan and I guess that's why I like them better. He converted to UofL later on...I'm sure football tailgating out at the old Cardinal Stadium had a lot to do with that...but I still prefer UK."

Can you picture Paul in a blue shirt and hat with Cat logo?

Kenny (another BIG BLUE backer) chimed in next:

"Probably go with Tennessee. I just like the SEC. Kentucky and Tennessee have had some great rivalries over the years in basketball."

Paul followed:

This guy converted Paul to the Cardinals

"You all know me...I'm Cardinal red...but it wasn't always that way. I grew up listening to UK basketball on the radio with my Dad. I remember Cawood (Ledford) calling games when Pat Riley, Cotton Nash and the Rupp's Runts were playing. Cawood's pre and post game interviews with (Adolph) Rupp. It wasn't until junior high school that I started following UofL...my buddy Stu was a big UofL fan and this guy named Denny Crum showed up to coach the Cards. He was brash, had charisma and the Cards were an exciting team. If there were no UofL...I'd probably still be a UK fan...but I do like Notre Dame and Virginia Tech." 

How about you? If there were no Cardinals...what team would you back? We've set up a poll on the infamous "left side of the board" with nine other options and a "other" option. Let us know...

**********************************************************************************

Tuesday, January 4th. was a raw and blustery evening. #18 St. John's was in town to face the Lady Cards at the KFC YUM! Center. The first five minutes of the contest saw the leads exchange...a Becky Burke three-pointer put Louisville up 8-7...but St. John's came back and led 13-12 at the 12:48 mark. Keyed by a Tia Gibbs 3...the Cards regained the lead at 15-13 and would stretch it out to 19-13 on a Monique Reid jumper with 10:30 left in the first half. St. John's found a run of their own, though and cut it to 19-17. It was the closest they would get the rest of the game, though...as Louisville controlled the remainder of the half and took a 36-27 lead into the locker room. Burke had 13 first half points, with three for five shooting beyond the arc, and Tia Gibbs and Monique Reid combined for 15 points. Shoni Schimmel was having an off night early...1-8 from the floor.

Shoni's late free throws helped seal the win over
the Red Storm.

The Red Storm came out as a tropical depression in the second half and hit just two of their first nine shots. Louisville bumped the advantage to 45-33 and the crowd in the downtown arena was on their feet and loud. St. John's made a brief rally and cut the margin to 50-41 before Schimmel wowed the crowd with a deep three to stifle the comeback. Tia Gibbs was on fire in the second half along with Monique Reid and the Louisville lead grew to 69-58 with just a little over three minutes remaining. The Red Storm weren't conceding, though and Nadirah McKenith scored to cut the Cardinal lead to 71-65...capping a 7-2 Red Storm run...with 1:50 left on the clock. They would keep it close...A Eugenia McPherson three made it 75-70 with 53 seconds remaining. The Cards knew they would need to convert on the free throw line the remainder of the game and did just that...Schimmel hitting four attempts from the charity stripe and UofL making seven free throws down the stretch to pull away with a 84-73 win

Five UofL players accounted for 80 of the Cardinals' points...Monique Reid led the way with 24, followed by 21 for Becky Burke, 18 for Tia Gibbs, 11 out of Shoni Schimmel and 6 for Keisha Hines. The Cards were now 2-0 in the BIG EAST and had conquered their third top 25 opponent of the season...

In the post game press conference, Jeff Walz talked about "toughness" and the Cards had shown plenty of it on a night where the "Storm" failed to materialize in the "Ville." 

***************************************************************************************************************

DAVID WATSON is a special contributor to CARDINAL COUPLE. He catches us up on his summer...

Nat King Cole sang a song years ago called "The Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer" and the title fits for me as we roll out of the 4th of July weekend and head into the "dog days" of 2011. Ever wonder how that term."dog days" got started? It refers to the the "dog star" or Sirius-which rises and sets with the sun during July and August. The ancient Romans thought that it added extra heat to the earth. They also thought that feeding Christians to the lions was a lot of fun. Go figure.

David believes in improving
fairway lies. On those rare
occasions he actually hits a ball
there...

My pre "dog days" have been spent chasing a little while ball and coaching little league baseball. I'm not very good at either this year and double bogeys and double digit defeats are causing me troubled dreams and constant mutterings to myself. I'm identifying with the University of Tennessee fans these days.

I like this time of year. Even though UofL sports are inactive, I like the prolonged daylight, warm weather and soft summer nights on my back porch deck-listening to the Cincinnati Reds or Chicago Cubs on the radio and nursing a few beers or Makers on the rocks. Hearing my oldest daughter talk about her day working at the "big box store". I even like cutting grass and watering my flowers. I'm not a big fan of thunderstorms, though.

I hope your summer is going well. Before we know it, Jeff Walz will be in Canada, Rick Pitino will be in the tropics and Charlie Strong will be prowling the sidelines. All three are probably better golfers than me. I have no doubt they're better coaches. I'm going to devote the next couple of weeks attempting to talk Brett Farve out of making another comeback. Good luck there, right?

(The "Mercy Rule"in sports was created with David's coaching abilities in mind.
.