Future Cards Succeeding; Triple Crown Contention - SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Kentucky Girls Win Game 1

Last night was a big night for Louisville signees, as Kentucky took down Indiana in both the girls and boys high school all star games. The boys team won by 11 after a less than stellar performance from Romeo Langford, who led the Indiana team in scoring with 17 points, despite shooting only 6-16 from the field and 0-6 from three. Indiana's star for the girls, Amy Dilk (Indiana's Miss Basketball and Michigan signee), scored a game high 25 points, but it wasn't enough as the Kentucky girls went on to win 92-87. 

Mykasa Robinson was the leading scorer for the Kentucky team and was named the game MVP. She scored 14 and pulled down 5 rebounds in 20 minutes of action. 12 of her 14 points came from the free thrown line, where she was 12-14 on the night. For a team that has struggled from the free throw line in some key situations, Louisville will welcome a high percentage free throw shooter like that.

Seygan Robins also performed well last night. She scored 8 points and led all players with 7 assists in the game. We knew Robins could perform this way, and her performance last night should be in line with how she'll be asked to play for Louisville, so to see her do well against top competition is encouraging. Also encouraging is the fact that she put together a 7 assist game in a situation where the players are not familiar with one another. If Robins can make connections like that in such a short amount of time, she should be fun to watch develop when given ample practice time with her teammates.

The final former Cardinal participating in this event is Molly Lockhart. Lockhart finished with 9 points, but no one wants to tell me how many rebounds. Two other players on the Kentucky team finished with double-doubles, and I feel like there can't have been that many rebounds to go around. However, Lockhart will enter a crowded post room at UofL and will have plenty of time to develop her game and strength against the upperclassmen. 

The two teams play again this evening at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, and we'll see how our future Cards perform on the road.

Justify Favorite for Triple Crown

Justify will face a different challenge today as he pursues the Triple Crown with a win at the Belmont Stakes. Justify will start on the rail, after coming out of Gate 7 in both the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. His speed should give him the ability to get out of the ugly starting spot, but anything can happen when stuck in an uncomfortable position. After his runs at the Derby and Preakness, he still hasn't found himself in a major trailing position, but a bad start on an inside gate could prove to be an entirely different race for him. Also working against him, if you're the superstitious type, is that Justify and Mike Smith will be wearing alternate silks for this race, due to the ownership agreement. Call me crazy, but I'd rather see my horse and jockey in the same colors when running like this. Finally, the weather for today's race looks... clear. Unlike the Derby and Preakness, in which Justify proved he could run in slop, good track conditions would give contenders their best chance at knocking off the heavy favorite (4/5 morning line, 6/5 at writing). I've got personal reasons to root against a new Triple Crown winner (my silks print that Lindsay made me will be outdated), but Justify is an exciting horse to watch and has made history so far. If anyone looks set to be the first winner since American Pharoah in 2015, it's Justify.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour

As Jared mentioned yesterday, he'll be out for the CCRH this week, with Mike Gilpatrick standing in for him. The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour returns to the airwaves at 11 AM on WCHQ, and we'll do our best to overcome the true onset of summer. We'll talk recent UofL news, some basketball, and take on whatever quiz Paulie has cooked up for us today. Tune into 100.9 FM or the WCHQ App, website, or Facebook page to join in on the fun.

Until next time, Go Cards!

-CH-