Volleyball, WBB Set for Matchups Out West -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Volleyball Takes on #7 Stanford

Following their unfortunate loss to Pittsburgh Wednesday night, Louisville will be hoping to maintain their chance at a share of the ACC Championship. Louisville can share the title with a win today if Pittsburgh loses. The downside of their game coming on the west coast, though, is that the fate of the championship may already be determined. Pitt and GT will get underway at 1PM, meaning the match (and the title race) may very well be over before first serve in Palo Alto. 

At any rate, today's match against Stanford is still critical for Louisville's postseason fate. The Cards will certainly drop from the top-three during tomorrow's selection show, but a second win, this time on the road, over the 7th-ranked Cardinal, should be enough to keep Louisville in the top-four, which would guarantee them as a host throughout the tournament. If the Cards can beat Stanford again, they'll sit at 26-4, with all four losses coming to the three teams ranked (presumably) 1, 2, and 3. They'd have wins over their direct competition for the 4-seed (Creighton and Wisconsin). However, a Stanford win could just as easily see them jump the Jays and Badgers to steal that region host position. 

Louisville will be looking to do the same thing to Stanford that Pitt did on Wednesday. Louisville was desperately looking for payback at home after a tough loss to Pitt on the road earlier this season. The situation will be the same for Stanford. Louisville swept the match in the Yum! Center earlier this season in what was an upset at the time. Louisville made the fight at Pitt a lot tougher, but that could go either way. The 5-setter in Pittsburgh could have motivated Louisville to be more encouraged about a payback win at home. On the flip side, getting embarrassed on the road on national TV could be enough for Stanford to be ready to return the favor. 

Stanford sits at 24-4 on the season and is 16-3 in conference. While a Louisville win would keep them alive for a title or put them alone in second, a Stanford win would send Louisville into a three-way tie for second place with the Cardinal and the Mustangs of SMU (assuming they beat NC State tonight). Stanford's one non-conference loss was common with Louisville's: a sweep at the hands of Nebraska. Maples Pavilion has been a tough place to play this year. Stanford is unbeaten at home, with non-conference wins over #6 Texas (3-0) and #11 UK (3-1) and a sweep of #16 Georgia Tech earlier this month. Barring a shocker against Miami where Stanford lost in five sets, this match would be between a pair of 17-2 ACC teams. Granted, Stanford only had to play Pitt one time, but you play the schedule you have. 

Louisville and Stanford will get underway at 4PM on ACC Network Extra. 

Basketball Faces Colorado

After escaping Orlando last weekend with a victory over USF, Louisville WBB remains on the road following their brief Thanksgiving break with a game against the Colorado Buffaloes. The Buffs currently sit at 6-1 on the season, with their lone loss coming on the road to Boise State. Don't let the record fool you, though. Colorado's wins are over Colorado Mines, Wyoming, Northern Colorado, Nevada, Southern, Utah State (hi Josie!), and Utah Tech. Not the most imposing schedule so far. 

Colorado was picked to finish 9th in the Big 12 this season, and they are currently tied for 5th, though the rankings are based entirely on overall schedule as no one has played a conference game yet. The league is fairly even so far, with 15 of the 16 teams being over .500 so far. Houston was picked to finish last, and they currently sit at 2-5, so that looks to have been a good call. 

Colorado didn't have much on their side in the preseason award category for the Big 12, but Tabitha Betson was named the Preseason Freshman of the Year. Betson is a 6'-2" forward from Melbourne, Australia, so she and Isla Juffersmans likely have some familiarity from playing against and with each other over the years. To date, Betson has played in every game, averaging 16.4 minutes and picking up three starts. She has scored 4.9 points per game while shooting 5-15 from three and 9-21 from two. She has gone to the line just twice, but she averages 4.1 rebounds per game as well. 

Betson is behind Jade Masogayo and Lior Garzon on the depth chart, and those are two players Louisville will need to be aware of. They lead the Buffs in scoring, with 11.9 and 13.6 ppg, respectively. Masogayo is averaging 4.6 rebounds per game and has added 18 assists, seven steals, and five blocks. She can be prone to fouls, though, averaging nearly three per game. Garzon is listed as a forward, but she can shoot as well. She's 34-76 on the season, including 12-39 from beyond the arc. Colorado's leading rebounder, though, isn't Masogayo. Instead, it's another player Juffermans will be familiar with: Sara-Rose Smith. Smith also attended the Centre of Excellence, like Juffermans, but their paths won't be quite as intertwined given the age gap - Smith is a 5th year senior. Smith is listed as a guard on the roster, but she has some height at 6'-1". She's averaging 6.6 rebounds per game to go with her 8.6 points.

As a team, Colorado is averaging 72 points a night, while giving up 58.3. Their sole loss was a clunker offensively, as they fell 50-47 to the Broncos. CU shoots the ball pretty well, averaging better than 43% from the floor and nearly 32% from three. They make 6.6 threes per game, but their opponents happen to make more (7.0). They're outrebounding opponents by nearly 10 per game (9.6), but I've already pointed out the fairly weak schedule. Where Louisville could make hay is on turnovers. Colorado averages 18.3 assists per game on 26.9 made baskets, which isn't bad, but they only have a 1.1 assist-to-turnover ratio as they're turning it over 16.4 times. Louisville take serious advantage there. 

After Sunday's victory despite themselves, Louisville should be looking to get back to their style of basketball. I hoped last week's game would be their chance to show a complete game, but perhaps it will come today. Tipoff is at 3PM and the game will be on ESPN+.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll have four on the call today, as only Jared is braving the frigid weather and the Sea of Blue in Commonwealth. Paulie, Jeff, Daryl, and I will talk basketball, volleyball, and whatever else comes to mind. There has been plenty of good and not-so-good to get us through the hour. You can check out the live stream of the show by going to the Cardinal Couple YouTube page and clicking on the live video. Jeff usually creates that about an hour before the show, which officially starts at 11 AM Eastern. If the live time doesn't work for you, there are plenty of playback options, so be sure to check out whichever is best for you!

Cardinal Couple YouTube: Link

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Apple Podcasts: Link

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RadioPublic: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case