CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDINAL COUPLE
We report on the joy and excitement of UofL women's sports here. Thanks for checking us out! Click the picture of Louie to hear the latest Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast!!

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Cards roll past Portland 95-48

.
GAME DAY REPORTS

-Louisville flies over Pilots by 47 points

-Volleyball sweeps Bearcats in three games

Balanced scoring for Cards in Sunday win

Louisville women's basketball had five players in double figures and scored 49 points off turnovers in a convincing 95-48 win over Portland Sunday afternoon in the KFC YUM! Center. Shoni Schimmel led all scorers with 16 points for the Cards, who go to 2-0 on the season.

Louisville assumed command of this one early and ripped out to a 15-2 lead in the first five and one half minutes of the first half against Portland. The Cards were in command 21-5 when Monique Reid entered the game with 12 minutes left and promptly scored the first time she touched the ball The Cards led by 22 in the first half...at 35-13 with 7:18 to go...after a Bria Smith basket and free throw and by 23 at the halftime buzzer...when Megan Deines hit a jumper to beat the horn.

Louisville held a 31-2 advantage in points off turnovers after 20 minutes and had 26 points in the paint. Walz played all 11 Cardinals available and all but Cortnee Walton scored in the firs half...Shoni leading the way with nine. 

The Cards steadily increased the lead during the second half...going up 54-28 after a Shoni layup with 18:19 left, 59-30 when Deines drained a three at the 15:59 mark and 71-34 after two Smith free throws and 11:27 left. With 11 minutes left, the starters were done for the day, except for Deines who returned briefly. Reid scored her final hoop to make it 79-37 with nine minutes left, a Sherrone Vails layup doubled the score at 84-42 with five minutes remaining on the clock and Walton closed out the Cardinal scoring
with 29 second to go...for the Cards biggest lead at 95-46.

Besides Shoni's 16 points, Bria Smith had 15, Sheronne Vails 13, Megan Deines 12, and Shawnta Dyer 10. Reid and Sara Hammond finished with 6 each, Shelby Harper and Nita Slaughter 5, Cortnee Walton 4 and Jude ended up with three.

No Cardinal played more than 23 minutes (Hammond and Jude) and everyone had at least 11 minutes
except for Mo...(why take a chance with the knee against Portland, right?) who saw 7 minutes.  

Louisville won the assist battle 15-13 (Shoni and Megan 4 each), led in rebounding 40-29 (Sara 9 and Nita 8) and went a spectacular 19-22 from the foul stripe.

FIVE THINGS WE LIKED

-- Thirteen turnovers. The team goal was to stay under 15. The Cards had 10 in the first half...so mission accomplished with just three in the final twenty minutes.

-- 19-22 free throw shooting. 86.4% which Walz will take any day. Shawnta Dyer perfect with 6-6, Bria Smith 5-5 and Sheronne Vails 5-6. Shelby Harper 3-4.

-- Second chance execution. It had been a concern of Walz's after the A&M game and the Cards responded with a 21-4 advantage in the stat. Both Vails and Hammond strong on the offensive boards.

-- No let up. Louisville increased the 23 point half-time lead to 47, even with the bench (if there is such a thing on this team this year) playing the final 11 of the 2nd. half.

-- Bria the thief. Led Louisville with six steals. Good confidence builder for her today...she also shot 5-8 from the field, including a couple of nice mid-range jumpers. 

FIVE THINGS TO WORK ON

-- The trifecta. Six players tried them, four hit them but 6-21 (28%) needs to get better. Shelby's 0-3 and Nita's 1-4 numbers from beyond the arc came during "garbage time"...but that's when they should be the easiest.

-- 40% shooting from the foe. 19-47 for 40.4%. It isn't a big stat to get all-worked up about...but take Annika Holopainen's 4-12 and Kari Luttingen's 3-10 out of the picture and it is a much higher accuracy.

-- Missed opportunities. Too many put-backs, layups and close-in opportunities not finding the mark. Louisville did shoot 47.9% for the game...but Hammond and Reid could have had at least six more points each by sinking "gimmies". 


-- Attendance. Disappointing to us....with only 6423 in attendance. We know this will pick up as the season progresses, but a Sunday afternoon game should bring in 10,000 +. Yes, I know...the men were playing at 4 p.m. and Volleyball played at the exact same time...but doesn't that create a great double header opportunity for Cardinal fans to experience the YUM? C'mon fans, get your bodies in the seats!

-- Defensive rebounding. Cards lose that battle 20-19. They also put up 73 shots, compared to 47 for Portland...but no one for Louisville had more than three defensive boards except Nita Slaughter. 


FINAL ANALYSIS

This is the type of game that is so fun to attend. Cards scoring in bunches, great defensive plays and smiles on the players' faces. Remember, Louisville only beat Portland by 19 last year...so the improvement is obvious for Jeff Walz's team. No player combinations seemed to bog the team down this afternoon and Shoni put on one of her classic shows...so a good time was had by all. Her no-look flip-back for two off a missed Bria Smith shot was jaw-dropping and the three-pointer showed up for her today. Louisville won't win the rest of them by 47 this year and the distribution of minutes probably won't be as equal the rest of the season...so it was a "good time had by all" (except Portland...) and a great early Sunday afternoon..

Stat to note: The Cards guards (Deines, Smith, Shoni, Jude, Shelby, Nita) shot 21-42 for 50%. Take out Nita's 2-9 effort and Shelby's 1-4 and they are 18-29...which is 62%.

Post Game Walz

Jeff's comments following the win. Coach discuss layups, Vails, turnovers, Mo and playing time. LINK BELOW

Post game comments




<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Louisville Volleyball sweeps Cincinnati in three sets...wins BIG EAST regular season title

Lola Arslanbekova and Gwen Rucker with 23 kills between them and the Cards end the regular season with a 25-18, 25-15, 26-24 sweep of the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Thanks to Marquette's three set sweep of Notre Dame Sunday afternoon (25-16, 25-17, 25-22), the VolleyCards are the BIG EAST regular season champs.

The Cards jumped out to a 15-10 lead in the first set and led by Lola's eight kills, took the game with .484 hitting. Louisville withstood a U.C. run that cut the Cardinal lead to 22-17 and took three of the final four points to go up 1-0 in the match.

Anne Kordes' crew broke a 9-9 tie in the second set with a 6-0 run and outscored Cincy 10-5 the rest of the way to win by ten. Tanya Lukeyanenko delivering five kills and Emily Juhl adding four for the hot-hitting Cards.

UC made a battle of it in the final game, leading 10-6 early on. They also overcame a 17-14 Cardinal lead to take the lead at 21-20. The Cards got to match point at 24-21, but the Bearcats tied it with three straight points. Successive kills by Lola and Brooke Mattingly gave the Cards a narrow two-point victory, though...and the match.

The Cards will have the #1 seed in the BIG EAST tournament that begins in Milwaukee this Friday. Louisville ends the regular season 25-3 and 14-1 in the BIG EAST.

Louisville will face St. John's first in quarterfinal action on Friday at 2:30 p.m. in the BIG EAST Tournament. The game will be shown on ESPNU. Louisville defeated St. John's at Queens, NY earlier in the regular season 3-2.
.
..
...

26 comments:

  1. Great win today and everyone looked good. Noticed Mo with ice on her knee at the end. All OK there?

    Curtis Franklin

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Coach Walz just mentioned it was sore. More concern about Portland's little, feisty point guard Alexis Byrd...who left hobbling with 9:25 remaining in the first half and never returned.

      Paulie

      Delete
  2. Lots to like today albeit against an overmatched opponent. Hammond played great at both ends. Yes, she missed a couple layups but she ran the floor, had active hands and feet on defense, and threw a couple great passes. Shoni took good shots and cut down on the "watch me try this one" turnovers that drive me nuts. And Deines can really play - the more I see of her the more I think she'll be a big contributor all season.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Megan is very solid. Not to be hard on Asia but if Megan continues to rebound well from the win/guard position I don't think we will be seeing much of her especially with Mo & Tia at full strength. Megan is light years ahead of Burke.

      Delete
  3. Look for Volleyball to get a #10 ranking tomorrow.

    #10 Minnesota dropped two matches...to unranked Michigan and also to unranked Michigan State...so they'll be dropping quite a bit, but only need to drop a single spot for us to get that Top 10 ranking.

    What a great day to be a Cardinal fan.

    --
    Jeff

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Does it look like we will host first round of NCAAs?

      Delete
    2. Yes, I'd say it looks quite likely at this point.

      We'll find out on the 25th, but I would expect to be playing at the KFC Yum! Center for the 1st and 2nd rounds.

      As mentioned earlier, I'd expect our regional to be set up in West Lafayette.

      I'd also say that at this point, the possibility of 1st round matchups of Louisville vs Morehead, and Kentucky vs Western Kentucky is quite possible. Wouldn't that be a fun environment all around. Morehead would have to win the OVC to make it, but they're 16-0 in conference, and the next best team in the conference is 12-4, so I'd say its a good bet that they'll get through their tournament unscatched...which, of course, also means they would be the team we'd be playing on the 23rd.

      Interesting times.
      --
      Jeff

      Delete
    3. We are a host site and will host the first two rounds if we make the tournament.

      Delete
    4. Mike D and I were referring (I believe, I was anyway), to first and second rounds of the volleyball tournament, which are not pre-selected sites.

      Yes, we are for sure hosting the first and second rounds of the NCAA women's basketball tournament in March, but we won't know for sure about volleyball until November 25th, when the Volleyball Selection Show happens.

      Sorry for the confusion.

      Delete
  4. Megan looks light years ahead of Burke already, imo. I am worried about the tourney in Mexico more than anything. 3 games in 3 straight day. Gonzaga will be a very tough game if we get past UCF and they get past MSU. We can't afford more than 1 loss in that stretch. Shoni is not in good shape right now and probably wont be able to play 30+ minutes in 3 straight days

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't underestimate the power (and girth) of Shoni. I'd be surprised if any of the Lady Cards log 90+ minutes in the three games in Mexico. Still very early in the season and the Cards are still looking at player combinations. Everyone talks about how she always looks tired and overweight...I must be watching a different game than the rest of you. Don't see it.

      As an aside....Shoni now has 996 points in her career.

      Paulie

      Paulie

      Delete
  5. And can anyone with CARDSTV confirm that you can watch replay of the games with a subscription?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Both games so far have audio available but no video. Texas A M game was broadcase on television so no video by Cards TV. Unsure of situation with Portland but it only indiates audio as available.

      Delete
    2. I was able to watch video of the Portland game on CARDSTV yesterday live.

      Delete
  6. My own observations--
    Becky was a better three point shooter than Megan is (right now), but Megan is better at everything else, rebounding, passing, defensively, ball handling, and with some more games (especially tough games) under her belt, will be a factor this year. Just has that look and attitude that basketball was meant for her. Not sure how her minutes will affect Asia's, they bring different things to the table.
    Bria hitting the mid-range jumper consistently will only add to the Cards firepower.
    I was already a fan of Jude's last year, I saw that she could become a solid point guard, and she has not proven me wrong. Passes are not as flashy as Shoni's, but just as effective. Wish she would take more three's, she can shoot them, and well. Saw some you tube clips of her and Shoni together in high school, and it took me awhile to realize that it was two different girls bombing away.
    This year's team is miles away from last year's at this time, all our freshmen were forced into action and it is showing up now. All seem a lot more comfortable in the offensive and defensive schemes. Seems like the only thing we're missing is that 6'5" dominant inside player.
    I'm personally gonna like watching this team progress over the season, I think we're top 10 good now and can be top 5 good by season's end, no question. Especially if you factor in a healthy Asia and Tia.

    Two highlights from yesterday, Shoni's behind the head flip shot (and Coach Walz's reaction to it-priceless!)& Courtnee Walton's steal and length of the court layup after!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shoni's reaction to it was pretty priceless also. She ran back down court chuckling and said something to Shawnta Dyer that got her laughing as well.

      Paulie

      Delete
  7. Also, congrats to UL Volleyball! Hoping for a deep tourney run!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Austin Peay v U of L available for free on OVC streaming video site.
    It might take some tinkering to sign on but this is what appears to occur.
    You must open a free account.
    Andrew responded from the OVC help area that the Austin Peay game is streamed free for those who have signed up for the site.

    Go to the OVC digital network at

    http://www.ovcdigitalnetwork.com/showcase/#back

    This site has an area on the top right which allows you to click “connect your accounts”.

    It will connect you to a sign in or register page.

    Register for your free account.

    Then go back to

    http://www.ovcdigitalnetwork.com/showcase/#back

    and scroll for the UL game.
    Hopefully this works and we can watch the game streamed for free.
    It appears that the game starts at 7:00 central time and 8:00 EDT.
    Sandy W.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Saw we r recruiting small pg for this class thought monny filled that spot?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Monny and Janelle Cannon quality guards. You can never have enough point guards, though. Rememeber 2010?

      Paulie

      Delete
  10. When will Monny be eligible to play?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Next fall with the rest of the class signing this wk.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Watching the Indiana v. Murray State WBB game on line right now. Interesting in the fact that we recruited IU center Quaneisha McCurdy and Coach Cameron Newbauer's little sister is a guard on IU team. IU up by six at the half. Lady Cards would murder either of these...

    Paulie

    ReplyDelete
  13. I was speaking about breedlove who was at game fri supposedly

    ReplyDelete
  14. Breedlove just committed to Louisville, per her twitter account. She will arrive on campus next year and have 3 years of eligibility left.

    Monny is available as of next year, and Janelle Cannon will come in as a junior next year.

    Remember, Shoni is best suited for the 2 spot...she has played point out f necessity. This gives us more options at the point.
    Jenny

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow - Jude Schimmel, Monny, Cannon and now Breedlove. Someone's going to be disappointed with her PT at the point guard spot next couple of years.

      Delete

Please leave your comments here. We ask you be respectful of other posts, no matter how ridiculous they may seem to you. After all, it is CARDINAL COUPLE.

Any attempts to advertise a product or other website here in the comments section without the prior consent of CARDINAL COUPLE will result in a bill rendered for advertising services and possible legal action. We're serious. No more bots.

Now, have your take...