UofL Women's Basketball Mount Rushmore -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Today feels like a good day to stir the pot. There's no better way to create controversy than creating a debate topic that you know will have several different opinions. A topic that makes its rounds about once per season is "Who Should Be on Louisville Women's Basketball's Mount Rushmore?"

People take different approaches with their reasoning such as individual stats and success, overall team success at the time, fan favorites, and success that continued on post-graduation. Our only requirement is that the four names you pick must have played women's basketball at Louisville at some point in their life, so no Jeff Walz, Sam Purcell, Steph Norman, or beyond eligible.

Jared's Mount Rushmore

Angel McCoughtry (2005-2009): In four years played at Louisville, McCoughtry was the team leader in multiple statistical categories for three of them. She is Louisville's all-time leading scorer and rebounder. She helped the Cards get to their first ever Final Four, before falling in the title game. McCoughtry broke several single season and career records at Louisville during her career. Currently, McCoughtry is the only women's basketball player to have her jersey retired at Louisville.

Asia "AD" Durr (2015-2019): Another four year player at Louisville, AD became the go-to player almost from day one. They led the team in scoring for three seasons and is second in school history in total points. AD became one of the top three-point shooters not only at UofL but in the ACC and country during the back half of their career. They were a part of the Final Four team that made its way to Columbus after winning the ACC regular season and tournament titles. They won ACC Player of the Year multiple times.

Dana Evans (2017-2021): Evans' career came to a close during the COVID-19 pandemic but that didn't stop her from becoming a prolific scorer while also being tabbed as one of Louisville's best ever defenders. She became the first player to ever win ACC Sixth Player of the Year one season and follow it up with as ACC Player of the Year the next season. She won ACC POTY multiple times. She was a part of the Final Four team her freshman season.

Myisha Hines-Allen (2014-2018): Hines-Allen was a walking double-double in the back half of her career. She is one of the few to be a part of the 2000-point club and even fewer to break 1000 rebounds. Hines-Allen was named the ACC Tournament MVP after the Cards won the title en route to the school's third Final Four appearance. In her senior year, Hines-Allen set the Louisville single season rebounding record.

Honorable Mentions

Sara Hammond

Becky Burke

Mo Reid

Sam Fuehring

Cortnee Walton

Shoni Schimmel

Mykasa Robinson

Jazmine Jones

Asia Taylor

Jazz Covington

Does your Mount Rushmore look different? We'd be happy to hear yours! No answer is a wrong answer on this one.

We may talk about this on a future Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards in the WNBA -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Four Cards Currently on Active Rosters

We're a few weeks into the WNBA season and several former Louisville Cardinals are currently active for their respective teams. Here's how these players have fared.

Dana Evans, Chicago Sky

One of the more well-known graduates from Louisville, Evans has played a crucial role for her team. In 11 games played, Evans is averaging 27.8 minutes per game. She's posted strong numbers with 9.9 points per game, 1.5 rebounds per game, 3.9 assists per game, and 1.4 steals per game. The Sky are currently 4-7.

Liz Dixon, Phoenix Mercury

Dixon is another recent graduate from Louisville, having been with the program during the pandemic. So far, she has played a reserve role averaging 12.4 minutes per game. Dixon has contributed so far with 2.5 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, and 0.8 assists per game. The Mercury are currently 6-6.

Emily Engstler, Washington Mystics

Having played only one season with Louisville, Engstler is the only one on this list that did not play all or most of her career with the Cards. Engstler has moved around the league some and is now on her third team. Washington is slowly easing her into the normal rotation as she has averaged 6.9 minutes per game across seven games. She is averaging 1.9 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, and 0.7 assists per game. The Mystics are currently 1-12.

Myisha Hines-Allen, Washington Mystics

A veteran to the WNBA at this point, Hines-Allen has proven to be a reliable contributor during her career with Washington. She is seeing 17.7 minutes per game, right on par with her career. Hines-Allen is averaging 7.3 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.3 assists per game, and 0.7 steals per game.

There are several other former Cardinals who are free agents.

AD (formerly known as Asia Durr)- most recently with the Atlanta Dream.

Jazmine Jones- most recently with the Washington Mystics.

Arica Carter- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Phoenix Mercury.

Kiki Jefferson- most recently with the Minnesota Lynx.

Kianna Smith- most recently played overseas, most recent WNBA team is Connecticut Sun.

Kylee Shook- most recently with the New York Liberty.

Sam Fuehring- currently playing overseas, most recent WNBA team is Washington Mystics.

With just 12 teams in the WNBA, trying to maintain a career playing in the states is a tall task. With the expansion to 14 teams next season, we hope to see more former Cards playing in the pros. The 2025 expansion teams will be located in Toronto and Golden State (San Francisco).

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

Jared

Cards and Irish Face in Rivalry Game -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Louisville and Notre Dame to Air on ESPN

Louisville defeats Notre Dame in the ACC Tournament

When you think of rivalries for Louisville women's basketball a few might come to mind. Of course, Kentucky is always at the top of the list. Perhaps UConn or NC State makes the list. But Notre Dame is one that is probably right up there near UK. Jeff Walz vs Muffet McGraw only amplified the rivalry, even with the latter retired and Niele Ivey taking the reins.

Louisville and Notre Dame will tip off with an early 6:00pm game and it will be aired on ESPN, the flagship of all sports channels.

#15 Louisville is fresh off a loss at a top-three NC State on Monday night. The Cards still sit at 19-4 this season with an 8-2 ACC mark. Their conference record puts them half a game behind 9-2 Virginia Tech.

#12 Notre Dame (AP Poll) is 17-4 on the year and 7-3 in the ACC. They have won three straight and are fresh off a 25-point victory over Pitt. Also in that stretch was a 17-point win at UConn. 

Even without Olivia Miles, the Irish have been a tough team that can make a run for the ACC title. Freshman Hannah Hidalgo has made a strong case for ACC Freshman of the Year by averaging 24.8 points per game, 6.4 rebounds per game, and 5.1 steals per game. Notre Dame also returned Sonia Citron (16.9 ppg, .397 three-point shooting, .913 free throw shooting) and Maddy Westbeld (13.9 ppg, 9.2 rpg). This Irish team loves to score, averaging 83.1 points per game.

Notre Dame leads the all-time series 18-13. In their most recent match-up, Louisville defeated 1-seed Notre Dame 64-38 in the ACC Tournament. Some other exciting games between the Cards and Irish are below.

Louisville 86, Notre Dame 64 (02/27/2022)- Louisville raced out to a 31-3 first quarter lead and even pushed that lead to 42 points in the second quarter.

Louisville 74, Notre Dame 72 (03/04/2018)- Her name is Asia Durr. After the Cards hit free throws down the stretch to hang on to defeat Notre Dame in the ACC Championship, Jeff Walz politely reminded Muffet McGraw that "that other player" is named Asia Durr after Durr won ACC Player of the Year over Arike Ogunbowale.

Louisville 100, Notre Dame 67 (01/11/2018)- Everything went right for Louisville as they blew out the Irish at home in front of 12,600 fans. AD hit a buzzer beater to close out the third quarter as icing on the cake. Not bad for a top-five match-up.

The great AD

Daryl and I will be in attendance for this one. She'll have the write up in the Friday Cardinal Couple.

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Asia Durr and Other WNBA News -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Asia Durr Traded to Atlanta Dream

Louisville women's basketball alum and former #2 pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft... Asia Durr... will call a new team their home. The New York Liberty have traded Asia Durr to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for forward Megan Walker and the draft rights to Raquel Carrara, who was the second overall pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft.

AD, an Atlanta native, will have a bit of a homecoming and reunion by playing in front of family and childhood friends.

AD has been through a lot in the last couple of years after suffering serious setbacks from COVID-19. After sitting out for two full seasons, AD took the court this season and averaged 7.0 minutes and 1.4 points per game.

Recently, AD came out as non-binary and uses they/them pronouns. Instead of going by Asia or Durr, the former Cardinal now prefers to go by AD. Out of respect for their wishes, we will refer to one of our favorite Cards by their preferred pronouns and name.

Other WNBA News

Besides AD, three other former Cards are currently active in the WNBA.

Myisha Hines-Allen continues to be a staple with the Washington Mystics. Hines-Allen is averaging 6.0 ppg and 4.4 rpg on 19.0 minutes per game.

Emily Engslter has made a name for herself as a rookie with the Indiana Fever. Engstler is averaging 6.8 ppg and 7.0 rpg on 20.7 minutes per game.

Dana Evans is in her sophomore campaign with the Chicago Sky. Evans made the highlight reel recently with a buzzer beater shot from a little beyond half court. In 18.3 minutes per game this year, she is averaging 8.9 points per game and 2.6 assists per game.

Angel McCoughtry started the year with the Minnesota Lynx before agreeing to a contract buyout after two games. Currently a free agent, it is unsure if McCoughtry plans to retire after battling injuries late in her career.

Kianna Smith, Kylee Shook, and Jazmine Jones are all currently listed as free agents.

We hope to see some of our other Cards on WNBA rosters soon!

Happy Thursday and Go Cards!

Jared

Catching Up With WNBA Cards -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

FOUR CARDS CURRENTLY IN WNBA

As we roll into June, the WNBA starts to heat up in action and it's a good time to take a look at how the four Cards WBB former greats are doing in the "the W". 

The four currently donning WNBA uniforms are Asia "AD" Durr (New York), Emily Engstler (Indiana) Dana Evans (Chicago) and Myisha Hines-Allen (Washington). It's interesting to note that all four play in the Eastern Division of the WNBA . 

ASIA "A.D." DURR

Asia began her WNBA time in 2019 with the Liberty, but was sidelined for two seasons with COVID before returning this season. She's a guard on the Liberty roster, who are 1-7 so far this season. Durr has played in seven games so far, as a back=up guard, and averages about 8.3 minutes a contest. As of 5/31, she's scored nine points in those seven games (1.3 a contest). 

One has to feel that once she gets back in rhythm after the two-year layoff because of COVID, her minutes and scoring will go up. She did average 9.7 ppg a game in her rookie season and almost 27 points a game. We all remember how she could take over a game at Louisville and she and Sabrina Ionescu have the potential to be a young, dynamic and high scoring duo for a New York team that hasn't shown much this season

EMILY ENGSTLER. 

The rookie has done some impressive things with the Indiana Fever, and Jeff Walz told us she would (in the WNBA) shortly after she arrived in Louisville for her final collegiate season. She's averaging 7.4 points and 7.3 rebounds for a Fever team that is 3-7 on the season. Engstler sees about 20 minutes a game for the Fever and had 13 points and nine rebounds in the Indiana win over L.A. 

You could tell she was all about te hard work when she got to Louisville and that desire and toughness goes a long way in "the W". We see her being a league fixture for many years in the bigs. 

 

MYISHA HINES-ALLEN

Going into her 5th season in the league, Myisha has proven to be a hard-nosed, rebound grabbing and point-scoring forward for the Washington Mystics. She's averaging 5.9 ppg and 4.6 rebounds a game for the 6-3 Mystics this season and sees about 18 minutes a game. 

Maybe her numbers were a little higher when Elena Della Donne was out, but Myisha has always been a team player, willing to do whatever her team needed her to do, and never taking a play or minute off when on the court.

That 2017-18 Louisville WBB squad with Asia, Myisha and Dana all on the roster is probably my favorite of all time -- 36-3 overall, a Final Four Trip to Columbus, and ACC Regular Season and Tournament champs. Myisha was the enforcer and the heart of that squad and I still believe to this day that McCowan fouled Myisha at the end of regulation. 

DANA EVANS

In her second season in the WNBA, Dana Evans has become a very solid and contributing  guard for the Chicago Sky (4-3}. She sees 20.3 ppg a night for the Sky and averages 9.7 points per game. 

Dana has that incredible three-point range and somehow finds her way to the basket against much taller players in the league, Evans has no fear when it comes to taking on a tough guarding assignment, either, and compliments well with the Sky's guards Vandersloot and Quigley. 

I can see Dana playing a long time in the league and being a success. 

Last night in WNBA action, three of the four mentioned above were in action. The Fever vs Mystics had Hines-Allen get two points, three assists and six rebounds in 15 minutes -- Engstler saw 24 minutes for Indiana and had six points, six boards and three assists.. Washington won 87-75.

For Chicago, Dana Evans played 10 minutes, and had six points, an assist and a rebound in the Sky's 73-70 win over the visiting Phoenix Mercury

Here's also hoping Jaz Jones and Angel McCoughtry find their way back to the WNBA. They're too excellent players that would be a benefit to a lot of rosters out there. We also hope Kylee Shook returns after her year's hiatus. 

paulie

Softball Struggles at Notre Dame -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Softball

Sam Booe pitching in relief

A number of Louisvillians make it a point to get out of Louisville for Derby Day, and Softball is no exception.  The squad went north to 20th ranked Notre Dame, and dropped a pair of games, 5-0, and 5-1.

After inclement weather prevented play on Friday, the Cards and Irish made yesterday a double-header and will finish the three game series today.

In the first game, Taylor Roby started in the circle and pitched four innings and started the fifth inning before getting relief from Sam Booe.

Korbe Otis drawing the walk

Notre Dame played some small ball and took advantage of some fielding errors to get a pair across the plate in the 3rd inning.  A similar story in the 4th with the run getting around the field almost completely on mistakes by the UofL squad in the field.

Roby would be finished for the game, though not quite for the day, after a inning opening solo shot by Notre Dame.  As mentioned, Booe came in as relief at this point, and despite giving up a pair of walks in the inning prevented anything further.

Carmyn Greenwood at bat (that's a "7"
not a "1")

The Irish would finish their five runs in the game in the 6th inning, again with mostly small ball.

In the later game, the Cards would get a run across in the first inning, but that would be it.  It started out with Korbe Otis drawing a walk, getting to third on Taylor Roby's single, and scoring on Kendall Smith's ground out to first base.

Notre Dame would tie it up in the bottom of the second and then the scoring would go quiet until the bottom of the 5th.  More small ball and mistakes in the field would get another across the plate for the Irish.

Taja Felder in mid-hover-pitch

Taja Felder would get a couple of outs early in the 6th inning, but with a runner on 2nd and two outs the Irish would score a trio on a couple of singles and a fielding error.  It would be enough enough to sit Felder and let Roby enter to finish the final out of the game.

The Cards and Notre Dame will finish out their regular season schedule with the 2pm game on ACC Network.

Ally Alexander at shortstop

Special thanks to Ryan Greenwood for again supplying us with some away game photos, a special treat for us here at Cardinal Couple.  He's not just out there cheering his daughters, Carmyn and Cassady on, he also slings a pretty impressive DSLR.

WNBA

The WNBA has gotten their season underway with two days of games.  I'll be heading up to Indianapolis today with the family to watch the Fever's home opener against the Sparks.  We were, of course, originally expecting...hoping?...to see a trio of former Cards in this matchup, but WNBA roster sizes being what they are, we won't have the opportunity to watch Kianna Smith or Jaz Jones.  It's a shame, but it will be good to get a chance to see Emily Engstler play in a professional game.

Engstler played 16 minutes in the season opener against the Mystics, grabbed nine rebounds, stole a couple, and scored four.  On the Mystics side of the ball, another former Card, Myisha Hines-Allen scored nine, pulled down six rebounds, and had a trio of assists.

As we look around the rest of the WNBA at other Cardinal Alumnae, Angel McCoughtry is still recovering from another knee injury with the Lynx, but AD (Asia Durr) is back on the court, at least for limited minutes.  She played six minutes with the Liberty yesterday, but had no stat entries.

Dana Evans up in Chicago, is the big success of the weekend so far.  The Sky would go down to defeat in overtime, but Evans was only barely edged out by Emma Meesseman for the most time on the court for the Sky, but she would lead the team in scoring with 24 during her 35 minutes.  A pair of threes, 4-5 from the charity stripe, five assists, and four steals made for a very nice stat line indeed for Evans as she shows why she has earned that starting shooting guard position.

On tap for today, the Fever game that I'll be at with family at 3pm, you can find this one on Amazon Prime, on the Fever's page on Facebook, and Spectrum SportsNet apparently.  And then at 8pm, the Mystics and the Lynx will be on ESPN2.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

The CCRHP was silent yesterday as the crew took the day off to celebrate Derby.  I must admit my level of "horse race junky", as Case put it yesterday, is, "Why do we have to interrupt this nice party to watch a horserace?"  I did have a good friend there that had Rich Strike across the board as one of her bets, so that's a nice bit of payout for her.

We'll be back next week with more joy and excitement about UofL women's sports!

Softball sweeps Syracuse - - She's Back ! -- LAX @ Niagara Today -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

SOFTBALL DOWNS SYRACUSE 3-2

Louisville Softball got the sweep in the weekend series against Syracuse, gaining 3-2 win Sunday at Ulmer. 

The Cards wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning. Carmyn Greenwood drew a walk and advanced her way around the bases -- to eventually score on a Kendall Smith single. She scored the second run of the inning for Louisville on a Dylann Cravens single. 

Taylor Roby drew the start in the circle for the Cards and Syracuse countered with a couple of runs in the top of the second on a single, Louisville fielding miscue and a two RBI single with two outs. 

The Cards pushed the go-ahead run across in the home half of the fourth when Cravens reached on a infield single and advanced to second on a Vanessa Miller single. Cravens got to third on a fielders choice and scored UofL's third run on a wild pitch by Syracuse pitcher  Kara Oliver. And, that concluded the scoring for the contest. 

Taylor Roby got the win to go to 13-6, going the distance and allowing just five hits over seven innings. The victory improved Louisville's record to 24-17 and 8-7 in the ACC. The Cards jumped to sixth place in the conference standings...percentage points ahead of Georgia Tech, who has a 11-10 conference mark. 

Louisville returns to action on the weekend when they'll head to 2/3 Virginia Tech for a three-game series. The Hokies are 15-2 in conference play and 32-6 overall. 

ASIA DURR RETURNS TO COURT

It's been a long time coming, but when WNBA training camps open starting today...a familiar face in the league will be back in action. 

WNBA, welcome back Asia Durr.  You know the New York Liberty have to be excitied about her return. Just the thought of her and Sabrina Ionescu at guards will probably make a lot of other WNBA teams a bit worried. 

For Asia, the return has been a long one. Struck with COVID, it was a two-year battle with the virus, and some wondered if she'd ever see the court again. 

Durr lost 32 pounds during the struggle with COVID and had days where she basically was not able to do anything but just lay in bed. 

AD, welcome back! So happy you are able to play again and tear'em up. !!!

LAX FACES NIAGARA TODAY

Louisville Lacrosse squad will try and get back on the winning track...stepping outside ACC play with a noon contest at Niagara today.

It'll be on ESPN+ and the Cards face a Purple Eagles squad that are 9-5 and 5-1 in the MAAC. 

The Cards will look to Hannah Morris and Nicole Perroni as two of their main goal-scoring threats for offense. The two had 11 of UofL's 13 goals in the loss to Syracuse Saturday. 

Louisville takes a 6-9 record into the match. The Cards will return home to face Notre Dame in the regular season finale Saturday. 

PARTIAL CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR PODCAST

Here's the link for (PART OF) Saturday's Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast.  Jeff, Jared and I spent an enjoyable hour discussing several UofL WOMEN'S athletics and the hour seemed to just fly by ! You get about 40 minutes of it. 

I have no idea what happened to the final 30 minutes of the broadcast...assuming it wasn't on his Easter dinner plate, maybe Jeff can find it.

Peter Sellers and his character -- Inspector Clouseau-- would have probably been  called in, but, sadly, he's unavailable. 

LINK: CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR PODCAST 4/16/22

paulie

Spring Has Sprung - Sunday Cardinal Couple

Spring Has Sprung

(we await days like this...)

Well, we may be forecast for snow today, but at least in college sports calendar, spring has arrived.  Consequently the schedule is, all of a sudden, jam packed with events.

Let's start with a round-up of yesterday's action.

Track and Field

The schedule shows track and field split between the Husky Classic in Seattle, and The Tiger Paw Invitation at Clemson, but I don't find any evidence of any Louisville participation in Seattle, so we'll focus on Clemson.

We've had our eye on a few Track and Field athletes this season.  Gabriela Leon has gotten a lot of attention in the pole vault, and finished in third place, clearing a height of 4.34 meters (14' 2.75").  Emily Scott, former volleyballer, finished 22nd in the High Jump, but with a personal best of 1.67m cleared.  The best Louisville finish was Styliana Ioannidou, who finished 10th by clearing the next height, 1.72 meters (5' 7.75").

Softball

The next event to get underway was further south in Boca Raton, FL.  The Softballers wrapped up their opening weekend with the toughest opponent of the weekend in Ohio State.

The Buckeyes scored consistently throughout most of the game putting run up on the scoreboard in each of innings two through six.  Chardonnay Harris started in the circle, replaced by Gabby Holloway in the 3rd.

After Ohio State finished their at-bats in the top of the 6th, the score stood at 8-0, and the Cards were in danger of being run-ruled.  Needing to put at least a run on the board to keep the game going into the 7th inning, instead they put up two, and did so in a dramatic way.  After Taylor Roby drew a walk K. Smith...no not Kianna, Kendall...lifted Mr. Spalding over the left center fence, also scoring Mia Forsythe, who had entered to run for Roby

.

(Cards freshman Sam Booe)

Sam Booe, not from New Egypt, New Jersey...that was the Soles, Kayla and Jamie...but from New Palestine, Indiana, entered the circle for the Cards in the top of the 7th.  She got herself into a bit of a jam with runners on 2nd and 3rd, but dealt her way out of it by getting the next batter to watch a third strike.

Again, the Cards had their backs to the wall with OSU leading 8-2 in the bottom of the 7th.  Freshman Maddi Grant singled down the left field line, advanced to second on Dylann Craven's walk.  Jenna Servi, not known for power batting, singled out to right field, advancing both runners and chased the OSU pitcher in the process.  Easton Lotus singled up the middle, scoring Grant.  Some gutsy base running during Carmyn Greenwood's at-bat scored Cravens on a wild pitch, with the runners also advancing.  Taylor Roby entered at designated hitter to draw a walk and top off the bases again.  A sacrifice fly scored Servi and advanced Smith to finish out the scoring for the Cards.  Alas, the three scores, while an exciting late run, weren't enough to catch up to the Buckeyes and the game was final at 8-5.

(This Sam Bowie should not be confused with
Cards freshman softball star Sam Booe.)

UofL takes their first loss on the season, but I think most will accept coming out of opening weekend with a 4-1 record.  Particularly when, of the names listed in the above recounts, Grant, Craven, Lotus, and Booe are all true freshmen.

The season opening trip to the south continues next week in Gainesville, where the Cards will face Villanova twice, Florida A&M, Florida, and a non-conference game against Duke.

Tennis

The Tennis squad had their mid-day match against Butler cancelled, but did play the evening match against Saint Louis.

Louisville swept the doubles courts to get their first point of the match, and then evenly split with the Billikens on the singles courts.

The last two courts to finish both went to three sets, with Saint Louisville winning on court two coming from behind after Louisville's Chelsea Sawyer won the first set on the court and moving St. Louis into a tie with the Cards.  Tyra Richardson was Louisville's contestant on court six, the last to finish.  She started off with a 6-2 win in the first set, lost 6-7 in second, and earned the victory for herself and the team in the 3rd set, 6-1.

Tennis is back in action next Saturday with more regional and local play.  They'll welcome Austin Peay in the Bass-Rudd at noon, and cross-town rival Bellarmine will drive up Eastern Parkway for a 5pm start.

Lacrosse

Scott Teeter and the Lacrosse squad had a nice day of seeing some sights in the Denver area in Colorado yesterday, and will be in action today against Denver.

Denver has proven to be a good opponent for the Cards, with the series currently slanting to Denver's favor with five wins over the Cards and three wins for UofL.  Four of those wins for Denver have been the most recent matchups with UofL, so the Cards will be looking to break their losing streak to the Broncos.

Denver is a good team, picked as the pre-season favorite in the Big East...yes, really, they play in the Big East, and no it doesn't make geographical sense to me either.

The first draw will be at 1 pm EST (1pm Mountain Standard Time), and there does appear to be video available from Denver at:

https://denverpioneers.com/watch/?Live=632&type=Live

Basketball

Asia Durr is in town and expected to make an appearance at today's basketball game against Notre Dame.

The Irish are 19-5 overall and 10-3 in conference.  Their non-conference slate was nothing to write home about, though a loss to Georgia lifts some eyebrows.  A win early in the conference season against UNC brought some interest, but as UNC has faded slightly over the season, it doesn't quite have the luster we thought it might at the time.  A two point loss at Boston College and a three point win over NC State highlights the struggle of predicting ACC games.

Notre Dame is coming off a 1-1 Florida trip, taking a five point loss to a surprisingly mediocre Florida State, and a 16 point win over Miami on Thursday.

Freshman phenom Olivia Miles is the points leader on the team, averaging almost 14 per game.  Stanford transfer Maya Dodson is next with 12.7 before we get to a familiar name in Maddy Westbeld, then another true freshman in Sonia Citron.  It wouldn't be Notre Dame without a Mabrey on the team, Dara is the current Mabrey, averaging just over 10pts per game.

Dodson is a 6'3" post that is no threat at all from distance but all of the other top scorers have to be guarded out on the perimeter.  A solid free-throw shooting team, the Hack-a-Shaq strategy won't work too well, here.  They would earn an "F" on the FRED report from us with over 74% from the line.

The Irish do better than their opponents on all of the "right side" stats.

Louisville has been improving on the offensive side of the ball throughout the season, and they'll need to continue that trend.  We've seen some later season lapses on defense, which was so vaunted early in the season, so some clean-up there would certainly help as well.

The tip for today's game is at 2pm and is on the flagship of the Connecticut fleet, ESPN.  Today's game will be a celebration of Black Culture as part of the observation of Black History Month, and the program will honor Von Macklin.  Macklin was a star center for the Cards from 1974-76 at 5'9".  She has been active in the Louisville and Jefferson County education fabric, serving as a high school basketball coach, as well as in school administration.  Macklin served more recently as the girls Athletics Director for JCPS.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

(Jeff drives Daryl, Case and Jared to the secret
Cardinal Couple headquarters where Paulie awaits.)

It was busy on the CCRHP yesterday.  We covered multiple sports as spring sports get underway, and we had all five participants involved Saturday. Jared, Paulie, Case, Daryl and me. 

Basketball, including plenty of snark about last minute cancellations, Softball and more, with plenty of fun.

You can check out the Youtube link at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHdrURQlVyw

or you can listen to Case's lightly edited version (just tweaks to audio, no content is lost) at it's podcast home on anchor.fm at:

https://anchor.fm/cardinal-couple

JMcA

Sunday Cardinal Couple

 WNBA

Sundays are "Cards in the Pros" days it seems in the summer.  Today is no different.  The big crazy news stories like changes to NIL rules always happen during the week, but summer weekends means Pro play and we want to keep you up to date with what our former Cards are doing.

We start with the WNBA.  The New York Liberty put it to the Atlanta Dream yesterday.  A close first half, but the Liberty drew out to a good lead in the second.  101-78 was the final.  You might think the team was bolstered by the attendance of Asia Durr, who was in the stands for this one.  Durr is out for the second consecutive season dealing with the lingering effects of Covid.  After the win, pretty much the whole Liberty squad came over to embrace Durr and catch up, showing how much they miss her presence on the squad.

Kylee Shook continues in the starting lineup with the Liberty.  She played about 27 and a half minutes yesterday, got six field goals, and did a great job cleaning the boards on the defensive side, getting 11.  Also chalk her up for a blocked shot and an assist.

Jazmine Jones makes the most of her bench time, entertaining the WNBA crowds and the camera crews, but she is also getting some decent playing time as well.  We all know some of Jaz's contributions don't show up on the stat sheet, but she put some numbers in a few columns yesterday.  In almost 18 minutes of playes, she did get a field goal, a free throw, a couple of rebounds and a couple of assists.

The Dream will be looking for revenge when these teams meet again Tuesday again in Hotlanta at 7pm.  You can catch this one streaming on ESPN3.

Dana Evans is in Connecticut with the Chicago Sky team.  They'll be playing the Suns at 2pm today.  No easy viewing options for this one, unfortunately.

NWSL

The hometown Racing Louisville FC club were on the road yesterday, playing the Chicago Red Stars.  Chicago may be The Windy City, but it was rain that delayed the start of the game yesterday.

Emina Ekic played 26 minutes in this one, but it was after all the scoring was finished for the game.  Racing won this one by a convincing 3-0 score.  Ebony Salmon justifying her late arrival to the squad got it started in the 38th minute.  Yuki Nagasato got her first goal in lavender in the 56th, and Savannah McCaskill finished the trio of goals in the 62nd.

By the way, if you're a fan of Jazmine Jones in part because of her antics on and off the court, you should check out Yuki Nagasato.  She's got all the spirit and playfulness of Jones and has contributed tremendously to the success of this Racing team.

Gaby Vincent is the other Card in the Pros with the NWSL, playing for Kansas City.  The stats are incomplete for this game, and I didn't get to watch it live, but Gaby did see the field. We don't have info on how long she played as the minutes played column of the stat sheet is blank.  Vincent did get a shot, but it wasn't on-frame.

Kansas City will play again on Friday at 7pm, and Racing Louisville FC will take the field Saturday at 7:30pm.  Both will be streamed on Paramount+.

CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR PODCAST

Speaking of professionals.  The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast is definitely not.  Jared, Paulie, and I were on the call this week.  Daryl and Case missed out on a fun mascot quiz, but the recent developments in Name, Image, and Likeness rules, regulations, and yes... even court cases, dominated most of the discussion in this one.

Check it out below.

JMcA