Louisville women's basketball. 20 minutes of perfection leads to 65-36 pounding of Pitt -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

CARDS HOLD PITT TO 19.2% SHOOTING IN 29-POINT WIN

Energy abounded (at least for one squad) in the KFC YUM! Center Sunday afternoon in front of 11641 fans as Louisville women's basketball rolled out to a 14-0 start and won their 24th. game of the season over the Pitt Panthers 65-36.

Myisha Hines-Allen led an early-game charge with nine of Louisville's first 11 points and when Briahanna Jackson nailed a three with 5:27 left in the first quarter it was 14-0.

On a Star Wars theme-day promotion, the Cards definitely had the force with them. 

Louisville led by the embarrassingly large total of 27-6 after the first period and then proceeded to hold Pitt to only four points in the second stanza to take a 42-10 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Not even Darth Vader could have helped the Panthers in the first twenty minutes of this one...the Cards shot 16 for 25 (64%) in the first half, led the rebounding battle 26-8 and held Pitt to 4-27 marksmanship (14.8%). Hines-Allen had recorded 17 of her game high 25 points by halftime and Jackson had 10 of her 12. 

Kathleen tells Deb about the double technical

If there was anything at all to be concerned about, it was Cortnee Walton leaving after just six minutes of play for the locker room and returning with her pinky on her non-shooting hand in a splint and heavily tape. Post-game comments by Jeff Walz indicated they thought she would be ready to go by the Cards first ACC game on Friday. 

After the onslaught, Walz began trying a multitude of different combinations in the final twenty minutes...Pitt did outscore Louisville in the third quarter 14-11...benefiting from a 7-12 free throw performance. The score was 53-24 and the Cards had Taja Cole, Sam Fuehring, Dakota Weatherford, Hines-Allen and Briahanna Jackson on the court. 

The squads mass-substituted again in the fourth period. Louisville using everyone but Walton and Pitt playing 11 players. Erin DeGrate had five points, along with Asia Durr in the final ten minutes and Louisville's Sam Fuehring picked up three fouls (one a technical) in the first minute of fourth quarter play. 

No Card saw more than 31 minutes of play (Mariya Moore) and the freshman got an impressive 76 of the 200 minutes available. Hines-Allen was a lights-out 11-14 from the floor with 13 rebounds as well...Jackson went 5-7 and DeGrate hit 4 of her 6 shots to finish with nine points in 15 minutes.

HOW DID F.R.E.D. DO? 

Fred Potvin from Pitt...
she had no points in 17 min.

The Cards only attempted 10 free throws...but hit eight of them for 80% and that's A-OK with us. Hines-Allen was a perfect three-for-three and Durr nailed both of hers. We'll award a capitol "F" for that performance.

Rebounds were strictly "no contest"...Louisville with a decided 43-31 edge, even with Walton limited to just six minutes. We proudly award a capitol "R" in this category and wonder how large the margin might have been if Walton had seen 20-25 minutes...

Easy Shots seemed to fall very smoothly in the first twenty minutes but dropped off (literally) in the final twenty. Even though the Cards won the points-in-the-paint battle 34-8, Louisville did miss eight of their 15 paint attempts in the final twenty so we'll withhold the awarding of an "E" in this category. 

Defense. You have to ask? 10-52 shooting for Pitt and 18 Panther turnovers tells the story here. The capitol "D" ...no doubt about it. 

WHAT WE LIKED

Hines-Allen Authority. "The reason she's so successful is that she takes good shots." -- Jeff Walz. Although the premise and effect seems simple enough, it takes a talented and smart player to affect it and some pretty savvy assist-makers to ignite it. 25 and 13 today for MHA. We think ACC Player of the Week again, right? 

Twenty minutes of perfection. What a fun first half it was. The Cards were running, rebounding, passing, scoring and playing defense. Pitt actually took two more shots in the first half that the Cards (27-25) but Louisville made 17 of theirs, Pitt four. You have to love that efficiency.

Defense! Defense! Defense! When you stop the opponent from scoring, it dramatically increases your chance to win. Louisville did that for 20 minutes very successfully and didn't really stink at it for the final twenty. 

THINGS THAT NEED WORK

Something afoul. With Fuehring fouling out and MHA gathering four we would have liked to see a little bit less of the whistle blowing on the home squad. 15 did come in the second half after the game had been long-decided, though, so we can't be too perturbed. 

Turnovers. Hines-Allen and Jackson with five each and the Cards actually committed 22 for the game. High risk, high reward maybe...some of the UofL fast breaks looked like Lamar Jackson trying to hit James Quick on a flanker bomb in double coverage...but when you're up that much, getting "cute" once in a while should be expected, we guess. 

MYISHA AND DEB CHAT IT UP POST GAME

Another blowout win for Louisville and in front of another large crowd that was absolutely loving the action. A great way to end the regular season and go into the ACC Tournament. Was it Louisville's best effort in ACC play this year? Debatable...but nevertheless an indication that the train is rolling with no engine malfunctions (knocking on wood that Cortnee will be OK). 

March Madness beckons and Louisville women's basketball looks ready to answer the call and be heard from.

Here's your ACC pairings. Feel free to enter our free contest here, in our comments section or by e-mail. Sonja promises to have her picks in the comments section by midnight (busy watching the Oscars currently...) I'll take a little longer to publish mine. $25 gift card if you get the most picks right out of the 14 games. 

        Wednesday, March 2

Game No. 1 – Seed No. 12 Pitt vs. Seed No. 13 North Carolina, 1 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 2 – Seed No. 10 Wake Forest vs. Seed No. 15 Clemson, 3:30 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 3 – Seed No. 11 Virginia Tech vs. Seed No. 14 Boston College, 6:30 p.m. (RSN)

Thursday, March 3

Game No. 4 – Seed No. 5 Miami vs. Winner of Game 1, 11 a.m. (RSN)
Game No. 5 – Seed No. 8 Duke vs. Seed No. 9 Virginia, 2 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 6 – Seed No. 7 Georgia Tech vs. Winner of Game 2, 6 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 7 – Seed No. 6 NC State vs. Winner of Game 3, 8 p.m. (RSN)

Friday, March 4

Game No. 8 – Seed No. 4 Florida State vs. Winner of Game 4, 11 a.m. (RSN)
Game No. 9 – Seed No. 1 Notre Dame vs. Winner of Game 5, 2 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 10 – Seed No. 2 Louisville vs. Winner of Game 6, 6 p.m. (RSN)
Game No. 11 – Seed No. 3 Syracuse vs. Winner of Game 7, 8 p.m. (RSN)

Saturday, March 5

Game No. 12 - ACC Semifinal No. 1, Noon (ESPNU)
Game No. 13 - ACC Semifinal No. 2, 2:30 p.m. (ESPNU)

Sunday, March 6

Game No. 14 - Championship Game, 12:30 p.m. (ESPN)

_______________________________________________ 


SOFTBALL SLUGS BACK FOR 6-3 WIN OVER KENT STATE. 

The 'hit and pitch' Cards ended the Red and Black Classic with a huge 6-3 win over Kent State Sunday afternoon at Ulmer Stadium. Megan Hensley (7-1) gets the win by pitching three scoreless innings of relief for Maryssa Becker.

Down 3-0 going into the bottom of the fifth, Louisville pieced together a walk, single, double, triple and sac fly to take a 4-3 advantage. They bolstered the advantage in the sixth when Hensley drilled a shot over the left-field fence that scored her and pinch runner Jordan McNary.

Louisville (10-4) hits the road next for a Wednesday double-header in Nashville against Lipscomb.

_________________________________________________


HEAR YE, HEAR YE! 

The Soundcloud rebroadcast of Saturday's CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR is at the link below.

LINK: THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR 2/27/16

Your Cardinal Couple ACC Pick 'em tournament entries can be left in the comments sections or e-mailed to cardinalcouple@twc.com

You have until Wednesday 1 p.m. to get your picks in. A $25 gift certificate to either Panera or Cracker Barrel awaits whoever gets the most games correct out of the 14. 

You can see Sonja's picks in the comments section.

Link to a printable bracket: http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/pitt/sports/w-baskbl/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/ACCTournament.pdf

Good luck! 

paulie
xxxxx

Lacrosse, Softball win Saturday...WBB faces Pitt today -- SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

LACROSSE EDGES BY BOSTON COLLEGE IN OVERTIME

Hannah Koloski scored the walk-off goal with seven seconds left in overtime on a free position shot to defeat ACC foe Boston College 7-6 Saturday at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium. For the Lakeview, MN sophomore, it was a matter of performing what she practices every day: 

"On the eight meter, I do it every day. I just tried to calm down..I was a little nervous. Julia [Wood] was to my left, she said 'You got this, Hannah' So, I just took a moment, worked on my placement..where I was going to shoot and it turned out fine." 

It was Koloski's only score of the game...Boston College making a concentrated effort to shut down her and Kaylin Morissette throughout the contest and holding the Cards to a season-low eight points. Koloski had scored six goals earlier in the week against Vanderbilt...but this one came at the exact right time for her and her Lax teammates who go to 5-0 on the season and 1-0 in ACC play. 

It was a back-and-forth contest, Louisville grabbing an early 1-0 lead on a Kaylin Morissette unassisted score but Boston College scored three straight to lead 3-1 with ten minutes left in the first half. The Cards, with goals from Cortnee Daley and Kelly Gerding, tied the match with 4:39 to go...but BC returned the favor with a score at the 2:17 mark to take a 4-3 lead into the halftime tent. 


The opponents at Louisville Lacrosse Stadium spend the halftime break in a tent stationed in the southeast corner of the stadium.

After a reminder by head coach Kellie Young to follow the scout on Boston College, especially in terms of defensive pressure, the Cards tallied the first three scores of the final half when Morissette, Gerding and Stephanie McNamara all found the back of the net and held the 6-4 lead ten minutes into the action. 

BC would chip away at the advantage...tying the contest with 4:56 on the clock. They would have several attempts to score but key stops by goalie Brittany Read and McNamara sent the affair to a 3 minute overtime. BC suffered two yellow cards in the extra stanza, giving the Cards a plus two field advantage they ultimately took advantage of....Koloski giving Louisville their first win ever over the Eagles.  

Louisville Lacrosse steps out of conference Thursday to face #7 Northwestern at the LLS. 

__________________________________________________


SOFTBALL SWEEPS ON DAY TWO OF RED AND BLACK CLASSIC

Louisville Softball got a huge pitching effort from Maryssa Becker in the first game of the day against Cleveland St. and timely hitting in the follow up versus North Dakota St. to win both of their game and improve to 9-4 on the season.

CARDS 6 - CLEVELAND ST 0

Junior Maryssa Becker struck out 11 C.S.U. batters and scattered two hits in the complete game shutout for the Cards. 

This one was a scoreless contest until Louisville broke loose for four runs in the bottom of the fourth. The Cards had only one hit but two walks, two errors and a sacrifice fly served the Cards well. 

UofL would add a fifth run in the fifth when Nicole Pufahl doubled to center, stole third and came home on a Vikings error. The Cards completed the scoring in the sixth when Megan Hensley crushed her fourth home run of the year to left-center.

Becker (3-3) faced only 23 batters in the shut-out win....allowing no walks and suffering just one error from her teammates.

Coach Pearsall was pleased with the outcome:  

 "We did a good job against Cleveland St...Maryssa throwing a great game and us taking care of business by getting the offense going."


CARDS 4 - NORTH DAKOTA ST 3


Louisville put Hensley in the circle for the second game and the Ashland, KY did her best...this was another scoreless contest through three innings. The Bison burst through for two runs in the fourth and that lead held until the fifth...when the Cards got a two-RBI double from Becker (playing first base in the nightcap). 

UofL grabbed the lead in the sixth when pinch hitter Jenna Jordan smacked a double down the first base line...advancing Lillie Goetz to third. A single and sacrifice fly got both home. 

The Cards were faced with a potentially tying situation in the seventh when ND St. put runners on first and third with just one out. Head coach Sandy Pearsall brought Becker into finish the job and she put out the fire with a run-down, tag out at the plate for out two...and a weak ground-out to finish it. 

Pearsall was impressed with the effort in game two:

"We knew North Dakota State was going to be a very tough opponent and we would have to play a great game to beat them. I felt like what we did was stay in it, got a good pitching performance from Megan Hensley and our team took care of business when they had to."

The Cards play again today at 2:30 p.m. with a rematch against the Kent State Golden Flashes. 

__________________________________________________


WBB and Pitt today at 12:30 

THE UofL coaching staff  should dress like this today...who gets
the Wookie costume? 

This one, the Cards regular season home final, starts a little earlier than usual...on "Star Wars Day"in the KFC YUM! Center. 

Some surprises are promised...fans are encouraged to dress up for the game and prizes and giveaways are on the agenda.

I'll probably go as R2D2, Sonja as Princess Leah and we're encouraging WorldWide to portray Jabba the Hut. 

What would be a major surprise would be Louisville losing today to the Panthers. Pitt (12-16, 4-11) looks to be destined to play on opening day of the ACC tournament, losing to Georgia Tech 66-60 in their last game. The Cards romped UofP 84-61 back on Feb.11th at the Peterson Event Center. 

__________________________________________________


FROM THE SOUNDCLOUD...

Our latest CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR radio show on WCHQ 100.9 FM will be available at the Crescent Hill website sometime today.

LINK: FEB 27th broadcast of The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour


We had a fun show discussing Louisville Lacrosse, Softball and women's basketball and had sound clips from Lacrosse head coach Kellie Young and midfielder Cortnee Daley.

Paulie also went on a rant about the questionable move concerning the NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT First and Second Rounds in Louisville and the Louisville Athletic Department offering advanced tickets to selected men's basketball season ticket holders 72 hours before women's basketball season ticket holders can purchase them (beginning Monday). 

I've already caught flak about that...believe me...but what's fair is fair and this move was simply shady and unfair to those who are women's basketball season ticket holders. Even if it does come down to a priority point assignment scenario...WBB fans got kicked in the crotch. 

paulie
xxxxx 

Softball Splits on Home Opening Day

Cleveland State

The afternoon didn't really start well for the Softball Cards when, with two outs, Cleveland State bounced a ball off the scoreboard at Ulmer, bringing home the two runners on base to end the first inning with a 3-0 score.  But the Cardinal pitching, with freshman Megan Hensley in the circle, and defense stiffened up in the chilly weather and held the Vikings to four innings of 3-up, 3-down play.

Sandy Pearsall's squad did get the win, 9-5, in the end, but not without a little bit of drama getting there.

The defense didn't exactly get out of the gate right away, and the offense had a bit of a sluggish start as well.  Jordan McNary got a lead-off walk in the 1st and then advanced to 2nd on a Nicole Pufahl ground-out.  She used her speed to make it home on a Megan Hensley single up the middle, but that was all the Cards would get on the scoreboard until the 4th inning.

In the 4th, Lillie Goetz got on as the lead-off with a single, Brittany Sims caused a fielder's choice and also got on with Goetz advancing to 2nd.  Jenna Jordan was hit by a pitch, pushing everyone around and loading up the bases and from there the Cards played some small ball.  Sidney Melton created a fielder's choice, which led to Jordan being out going to second, while Sims claimed 3rd, and Goetz scored.  Sidney Melton promptly stole 2nd, then Jordan McNary sacrificed to get Melton to 3rd and Sims around to home.  The Cards would get no more, but that tied the game up at the end of the 4th inning.

The scoring continued in the 5th for UofL, however, with Maryssa Becker drawing a lead-off walk and then being replaced on the base paths by the quicker Jessica Adell.  Megan Hensley reached on an error by the 1st baseman and Adell made it to 2nd safely.  Mo Hart, who had a fine day overall, was credited with a single up the middle, and the advance to 2nd on an error.  This also got Hensley to 3rd and Adell finished the round trip to the Cards up for good.  A passed ball let Hensley sneak home, while Hart got around to 3rd, and things were looking shiny for the Cards indeed with no outs.  Alas, nothing else came from it with three straight outs recorded to get the Vikings out of the pinch.

The 6th inning wasn't a 3-up, 3-down for Cleveland State, but it might as well have been.  A lone single doesn't get much done.

In the Cards half of the frame, however, things got going again on offense.  With 1 out, Jordan McNary drew another walk, then got to second on a Nicole Pufahl single.  Maryssa Becker was credited with a single, but got to 3rd on an error which brought McNary and Pufahl home.  Megan Hensley went yard, putting another couple on the scoreboard for herself and Becker.  After a pitching change by Cleveland State, Mo Hart got a single, but nothing else was to develop.

The Vikings would get two more in the 7th, but it wasn't enough and UofL claimed a big W for the home opener.

Kent State

The Cards had to face another fake state before the day would be over, though.

Less recap in this one, because, well, it was pretty ugly.  The Cards did have some success on the offensive side of things, but pitching failed us a bit in this one.

A few highlights were to be found.  The 1st started out with a Jordan McNary single to center field, she wouldn't be on base long, though as Nicole Pufahl came up right after and plopped one beyond the fence in left field.

Kent State got on the board in the 3rd with a 3-run shot to right center...they seemed to be targeting the scoreboard...that put them on top.  UofL would get back to square that inning with a Brittany Sims sacrifice that scored Jessica Adell who was in running for Mo Hart, who I did say was having a pretty good day.

The Golden Flashes put a whopping six on the board in the 4th and UofL was chasing taillights the rest of the way despite a 4 run inning to followup.  Megan Hensley took the reigns in the pitching circle starting with the 5th inning, but it wouldn't change the Cards' results all that much.

Then we get to the sixth inning...you'll want to skip this paragraph if you have a sensitive stomach...I'll keep it brief.  Kent State lead off with a home run, picked up a couple of outs, and then queued up another pair of solo round-trips (one of which would also hit the scoreboard).

UofL would get one back when Mo Hart scored after reaching on another solidly hit single.  Maryssa Becker returned to the circle, but the hits just kept on coming for Kent State, and by hits, I actually mean home runs.  OK, only one really, but it did hit the scoreboard again.

The Cards would get one more in the bottom of the 7th, but it was too little, too late at that point, with Kent State taking the game 13-9.

Softball has three more games this weekend, with a rematch against Cleveland State at 1pm(ish) tomorrow, and North Dakota State slated for a 3pm start.  There is an 11am game, and as always with Softball, when there's an earlier game, start times are...flexible.  The Cards will have another shot at Kent State on Sunday at 3pm...again with the "ish".  While it was downright chilly for these game, the forecast for the Saturday games looks pretty nice, maybe a bit of a nip in the air, while Sunday looks to be downright fantastic.

Also in action on Saturday, Lacrosse has a noon start to start conference play against Boston College.  This one is on ESPN3. And don't forget The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour this morning on WCHQ 100.9 FM and streaming at www.crescenthillradio.com

JMcA
--

Are you kidding me? SPECIAL REPORT

MEN BASKETBALL SEASON TICKET HOLDERS GET PRIORITY OVER WOMEN FOR NCAA WBB 1ST AND 2ND GAMES

What in the wide world of sports is going on here?

I get a call from a buddy of mine this afternoon. He has gotten an email from UofL offering him a chance to buy ADVANCED 1st and 2nd round tickets at the KFC YUM Center for the NCAA women's basketball tournament. He has men's season tickets.

Women's season ticket holders WON'T get this e-mail until MONDAY

No, I am not kidding.

Seriously, UofL? 72 hours after the men's team ticket holders?

Be outraged. E-mail everyone you know about this travesty. Definitely let Coach Walz know how you feel about it.

Jeff@gocards.com

This is,  simply and crudely put....Bullshit 

Is this some kind of olive branch being extended to the pissed off fans that are suffering because of UofL'S self-imposed sanctions? 

This is deporable. 

And, has football got their hand in this? Remember, those one son suites are for sale, kiddies.

Louisville women's basketball's season ticket fan base has been punched in the gut. Don't passively shrug your shoulders and wring your hands.

Be mad. Let the University, Walz and your fellow fans know that this stinks.

Shame on you, UofL athletic department.

Paulie 
Xxxxx

Louisville women's basketball wallops Miami 79-50 -- Friday CARDINAL COUPLE

TWO HUGE RUNS SEND CARDS SOARING OVER THE HURRICANES.

No one could blame the UofL players if it seemed like a home-court advantage Thursday night in Coral Gables, FL against the Miami Hurricanes. The UofL men's team, who plays Miami Saturday, and a large contingent of Briahanna Jackson's family and friends were on hand to witness a 29-point demolition of the 'Canes to push Louisville to 14-1 in the ACC.

The Cards actually trailed UM early...when it seemed neither team could find the basket with a GPS device...until Mariya Moore buried a three that was the start of a 7-0 run. Miami would lead one more time at 11-10 before UofL closed the period on a 8-2 run with two scores from Jackson, a Cortnee Walton jumper and two Myisha Hines-Allen free throws. Louisville led 18-13 after ten minutes and Jackson had seven of the Cardinals points. 

As it turned out...Louisville was just getting warmed up. Jeff Walz put four freshmen and Arica Carter on the court to begin the second period...Asia Durr hitting a jumper at the 8:40 mark to make it 20-15 Cards...and Taja Cole connecting to make it 22-19.

Then, the Hurricanes ran out of wind.

UofL went on a 20-2 run over the final 7:14...Durr hitting a driving left-handed layup at the half-time buzzer to make it 40-21 Louisville. Defense and rebounding were the catalysts for the scoring....Miami was 1-11 on their final shots of the half and six Cards scored in the spurt. Louisville held a 27-14 rebounding edge and HInes-Allen and Jackson had 11 points each for UofL. 

Miami would have one last, fleeting moment of glory...scoring the first five points of the third quarter. Here came Air Raid Louisville again, though...a 21-0 run four the next six minutes...that included two Moore threes and a Jackson jumper that set the tally at 63-27 with a minute left in the third stanza. Louisville led 64-30 after three and Hines Allen had 15 points...including a sizzling 9-10 from the foul line.

LOUISVILLE MBB was on hand for the game
(Photo by KK) 

At the 8:21 mark of the final period Walz turned the floor over to freshmen Brianna Jones, Taja Cole, Sam Fuehring, Erin DeGrate and attack Yorkie sophomore Dakota Weatherford. The score was 71-33. 

DeGrate scored six of the Cards final eight points and the second squad battled Miami's starters the rest of the way to get the 79-51 win. 

HOW DID FRED DO? 

Free throws were 18-28 and that's below our standard of 70%. It should be noted again that Hines-Allen was 9 for 10 from the line and DeGrate and Fuehring were a combined 5 for 11. We can't award the letter "F" here for overall effort...but we'll surreptitiously try to sneak it to Myisha...

Rebounding ended up a landslide Cardinal victory 53-28. No Card hit for double figures...but all 11 players who saw action had at least one. Capitol "R" easily here. Repeat and apply again....and again.

Easy Shots doesn't get a letter here, even though Louisville had 32 points in the paint. MHA was 3-12 for the game and Carter 1-6. 22 second chance points is nice, though. 

Defense was spectacular Thursday night. The Cards forced 18 turnovers, had five steals and held Motley and Thomas to 21 points. Capitol "D"...embellished, underscored and highlighted. Miami scored 51 points....20+ under their average. 

WHAT WE LIKED

A great day for B.J. It was great to see her hustle, scoring and overall play return to form. When she's rocking, it helps the Cards present another different and additional challenge for an opponent to overcome. Miami looked shell-shocked at the end of the first half. B.J. seemed quite happy.

Spurtability. The term is attributed to basketball star-turned-announcer Clark Kellogg and Louisville had two great spurts against the Canes. Louisville could have won this game by 50 but Walz shifted into neutral and let the second squad battle Miami's starters.

Beating a top 20-ranked team. Always good for the RPI, the tournament seeding and especially when it is in their gym.

WHAT NEEDS WORK

After a nice win like this one, it's hard to come up with much. We'll just go with free throws and struggling early.

All things considered, a big-time win against an opponent that scared me and plenty of other people. What a difference in this team from the first time the Cards were in Florida this season. 

The train rolls on. Gathering steam, speed and momentum. 

__________________________________________________


BATTER UP! 

Don't forget...the Red and Black Classic gets underway today for Louisville softball at 1 p.m.

Yes, today's action will probably be a little chilly but the rest of the weekend looks pretty good. The Cards (6-3) face Cleveland State in the opener and Kent State after that. 

Oh....take me out to the ballpark...


paulie
xxxxx

Louisville Women's Basketball -- Cards could have stormy night against Canes -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

#17 MIAMI POSES TOUGH CHALLENGE FOR UOFL WBB

The team ran into Fat Joe at dinner last night. Hopefully.
Louisville will feast again tonight. 

When the #10 Louisville Cardinals WBB squad takes on the Miami Hurricanes at 7 p.m. tonight in the BankUnited Center in Miami, FL...there probably won't be time for beach-combing, beach balls or basking in the sun. The Canes (22-5, 10-4) pose the toughest test Louisville has faced in the ACC since Notre Dame snuck out of the KFC YUM! Center back on Feb. 7th. with a 66-61 win. 

Miami attacks opponents in waves and has won four out of their last five...losing only to Notre Dame by 21 on Vaentine's Day in South Bend. The Canes really don't have any "bad" losses on their resume...an out-of-conference loss early in the season to #4 Baylor and conference losses at Virginia and to Syracuse and Florida State in Coral Gables. 

The "U" can come at you in many directions. Adrienne Motley is the ACC's fourth leading scorer with 15.9 ppg. Jessica Thomas is a whirling-dervish guard who adds 11.6 a contest, leads Miami in assists and has a "say what?" 1.8 turnover ratio. Emese Hof touched Virginia Tech for 15 in the most recent Canes outing. Keyona Hayes shoots 56.3% from the floor and Laura Cornelius bombs in 46% of her three-point attempts. Erykah Davenport adds strength on the boards and Michelle Woods is an experienced and talented red-shirt senior guard. 

UM head coach Katie Meier...what are you trying to
tell us? 

How do the Cards turn these Hurricanes into stalled weather fronts? We're never shy about giving you our opinions on things like that...so we'll give you five things we'd like to see Jeff Walz's team do tonight....besides sending Paulie a round-trip, first class ticket to fly down there and watch it live...

. Battle on the boards. Louisville has achieved their successes this season when Walton is winning the offensive rebound battles and the Cards are holding their own when the opponent misses shots. Louisville has a 37.8 to 31.5 edge in total rebounding over opponent this season. Losing the rebounding battle tonight could put an "L" on the Cards record. Myisha Hines-Allen needs double-digit grabs. 

. Let "threedom" ring. Miami holds opponents to 30% three-point shooting. The Cards shoot 33% from beyond the arc. We'd like to see the Cards better that stat tonight. They'll need " Three Moore" to be accurate, Asia Durr to knock back a few and anything Carter, B.J. and Cole can contribute will aid the cause. 

. Avoid the lapses. The Cards have had chances to deliver knockout punches to several opponents lately. They were successful in fourth quarter "pullaways" against Virginia, South Florida and Pitt. They couldn't shake their most recent opponent...Boston College. UofL needs to own the final ten minutes of this one tonight and consistency and avoiding the mental lapses are jobs one and two. 

. Get your "guards" up. Simply put, Louisville needs to get decent production tonight from the conglomerate of Carter, Jackson, Duur, Cole and Weatherford. It doesn't necessarily need to be scoring...but defense, passing, rebounding and assists are areas they'll need to be successful in if the shots aren't falling. UM's Thomas and Motley are one of the toughest guard combos the Cards will have faced this season. They need to be stifled. 

. MHA...come to play! Myisha Hines-Allen, the reigning ACC WBB Player of the Week, has been 'en fuego' the last several weeks for the Cards. That needs to continue tonight. Avoiding the early fouls that send her to the bench and connecting on that silky-smooth mid-range jumper are the keys to her productivity. The spirit and emotion is always there for the 'Jersey Flash'...let's hope the numbers are also tonight. 


Batten down the hatches and get out the ponchos....two strong systems collide in south Florida tonight in a encounter that could have significant implications on the seeding for the ACC Tournament. ESPN 3 has the feed for the game...we'll start out there but won't hesitate to go to Matt and AJ on 790 Cards Radio during the breaks, halftime or if the audio commentary is lacking. We can hope for...but probably won't get...some closeness and reasonable synchronicity between radio and internet feeds.  

We'll be back with the recap later tonight. 

paulie
xxxxx