WBB Final Four -- Other News and Schedules -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

WBB Faces Mississippi State

Nationwide Arena Seating Chart

Paulie gave a great preview of Mississippi State in yesterday's article.  The Bulldogs will be one of the toughest tasks UofL has faced all season as they are a well-rounded team.  Against Oregon State, UofL was able to shut down Marie Gulich and from there halted the Beavers' NCAA run.  During the Sweet Sixteen, Louisville was tasked with stopping Brittany McPhee and Dijonai Carrington, which they did for the most part, but did not have to worry about scoring threats from the rest of the players on the floor.  Mississippi State has five players on the court at all times that can do it all instead of relying on just one or two players.

Mississippi State ranks high on several categories on the year: 82 points per game (10th), 56.1 points allowed (15th), 25.9 scoring margin (3rd), 39.5% on three-pointers (6th), 10.6 turnovers (3rd fewest), 541 made free throws (5th).

Louisville's success in the Lexington Regional came from limiting turnovers and stepping up their defense.  Against Oregon State, Louisville committed a school record and tied an NCAA record with three turnovers, all by Asia Durr.  They held Oregon State to a season-low 43 points while giving up 59 against Stanford including hold the Cardinal to 14 or fewer in the final three quarters.

Jeff Walz and his wife, Lauren

Just like the game against Stanford this is the first meeting between Louisville and their next foe.

Paulie and I will be in attendance at the game.  Mr. Cardinal Couple will be somewhere along media row giving you live updates on the game.  I also expect him to have some quirky question that will send Jeff Walz on a tangent during the post-game press conference.  I will be somewhere in the arena taking pictures.  Only the big media will be in the boxes on the court taking photos while all of the smaller sites have a location behind section 115 to post up.  You all will get treated to pics from a different angle than my normal spot so let's hope for the best!

The 7:00 tip-off is set to be shown of ESPN2.  If you cannot get to a tv to watch I highly encourage you to tune into the radio to hear Nick Curran and AJ continue their excellent coverage of the game like they have done all season.  For Twitter, follow Paulie (@cardinalcouple) for his tweets and sly comments during the game.


Asia Durr named to WBCA All-American Team 

Asia Durr was one of ten players named to the WBCA Coaches All-American team yesterday afternoon. Myisha Hines-Allen was named to the Honorable Mention list. She's the second Cardinal ever to be named to the squad. Angel McCoughtry made the team three times during her career at Louisville. 

Durr joins these players on the team: 

Name	Institution	Year	Position
Kalani Brown	Baylor	Junior	Center
Asia Durr	Louisville	Junior	Guard
Sabrina Ionescu	Oregon	Sophomore	Guard
Teaira McCowan	Mississippi State	Junior	Center
Kelsey Mitchell	Ohio State	Senior	Guard
Arike Ogunbowale	Notre Dame	Junior	Guard
Katie Lou Samuelson	Connecticut	Junior	Guard/Forward
Victoria Vivians	Mississippi State	Senior	Guard
Gabby Williams	Connecticut	Senior	Forward
A'ja Wilson	South Carolina	Senior	Forward

For Myisha, A bit of sadness that she, too, did not make the ten-team roster. Here's the Honorable Mention list:  

Name	Institution	Year	Position
Kristine Anigwe	California	Junior	Forward, Center
Ariel Atkins	Texas	Senior	Guard
Jill Barta	Gonzaga	Junior	Forward
Kenisha Bell	Minnesota	Junior	Guard
Monique Billings	UCLA	Senior	Forward
Allazia Blockton	Marquette	Junior	Guard
Lexie Brown	Duke	Senior	Guard
Tyra Buss	Indiana	Senior	Guard
Jordin Canada	UCLA	Senior	Guard
Chennedy Carter	Texas A&M	Freshman	Guard
Kaila Charles	Maryland	Sophomore	Guard
Napheesa Collier	Connecticut	Junior	Forward
Lauren Cox	Baylor	Sophomore	Forward
Sophie Cunningham	Missouri	Junior	Guard
G'mrice Davis	Fordham	Senior	Forward
Katelynn Flaherty	Michigan	Senior	Guard
Loryn Goodwin	Oklahoma State	Senior	Guard
Rebecca Greenwell	Duke	Senior	Guard
Marie Gulich	Oregon State	Senior	Center
Megan Gustafson	Iowa	Junior	Center
Tyasha Harris	South Carolina	Sophomore	Guard
Ruthy Hebard	Oregon	Sophomore	Forward
Myisha Hines-Allen	Louisville	Senior	Forward
Maria Jespersen	South Florida	Senior	Forward
Kitija Laksa	South Florida	Junior	Guard
Marina Mabrey	Notre Dame	Junior	Guard
Stephanie Mavunga	Ohio State	Senior	Forward
Brooke McCarty	Texas	Senior	Guard
Brittany McPhee	Stanford	Senior	Guard
Jaime Nared	Tennessee	Senior	Forward
Kia Nurse	Connecticut	Senior	Guard
Caliya Robinson	Georgia	Junior	Guard
Mercedes Russell	Tennessee	Senior	Center
Tyler Scaife	Rutgers	Senior	Guard
Jessica Shepard	Notre Dame	Junior	Forward
Azura Stevens	Connecticut	Junior	Forward
Shakayla Thomas	Florida State	Senior	Forward
Hallie Thome	Michigan	Junior	Center
Carlie Wagner	Minnesota	Senior	Guard
Kristy Wallace	Baylor	Senior	Guard
Morgan William	Mississippi State	Senior	Guard
Imani Wright	Florida State	Senior	Guard

Swimming Claims Four ACC Awards

Mallory Comerford claimed the Female Swimmer of the Year after claiming her second straight NCAA title.  Mariia Astashkina won Female Freshman of the Year after a strong rookie season.  Nicolas Albiero won Male Freshman of the Year after winning gold at the ACC Championships.  Arthur Albiero won Female Swimming Coach of the Year after leading the women's swim and dive team to a school record fifth place finish at the NCAA Championships.  Things look bright over at the Ralph Wright Natatorium.  Our in-house champion is a rising senior and will give it her all in her final season while Astashkina and little Albiero are both freshmen.  Coach Albiero has no plans of leaving Louisville for a long time so expect even greater results next season.

Softball Hosts NC State

A slumping Louisville softball team is in need of some wins this weekend when the Wolfpack visits Ulmer Stadium.  The Cards sit at 22-10 on the season and are 2-4 in conference play.  NC State is 19-13 and is 3-5 in ACC play.

Danielle Watson, the freshman stud, is third in the conference with 13 wins.  Her 2.11 ERA is a team-best and opponents' batting averages sit under .200 when Watson is in the circle.

Caitlin Ferguson holds the highest batting average on the team at .392 and her 31 RBI's also lead the team.  Sidney Melton and Celene Funke have a combined 18 stolen bases on the year.

The Cards have a doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m., with the series finale on Saturday at noon.  Admission is free.

Dani Busboom Kelly and Amanda Green Join Ranks of European Tour

Last week Molly Sauer was named to the US Collegiate National Team Tour in China.  Yesterday the European Team Tour was announced.  Amanda Green is on the active roster and will be coached by a familiar face.  Dani Busboom Kelly will take on the role as the head coach for the European Tour crew.  The tour will be July 4-15.  Specific locations have not been announced.

To those traveling to Columbus for the Final Four please be aware of the rush hour traffic in Cincinnati and Columbus. Drive safely in the expected rain and we hope to see you there!

Jared