WBB Set to Take on UConn -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Cards Face Huskies in Top-25 Battle

We've become accustomed to the nearly annual matchup between Louisville and UConn being a clash of two teams in the top-five or top-ten. Such is not the case this season, as the two are locked at 17/18 between the two rankings. Today's game is the first of a four-game home-and-home agreement between the two teams. 

Louisville is playing just its third road game of the season, having defeated Cincinnati in the opener and Ole Miss in Oxford a couple of weeks ago. This will also only be Louisville's second ranked opponent of the season, with Ole Miss being the first. The Huskies have won two ranked games in five attempts. Both wins, over Maryland and UNC, came at home, while two losses to NC State and Texas were on the road. The third loss, to UCLA, was in the Cayman Islands over Thanksgiving. 

UConn this season continues to be led by Paige Bueckers, who averages 20 points per game. The Huskies have three that average double figures, with Bueckers being joiened by Aaliyah Edwards (15.8) and Azzi Fudd (11). Fudd, however, has only appeared in two games. As a team, the Huskies are averaging 77.4 points per game, while allowing 65.6. Louisville has a similar number, scoring 78.5 points per game while allowing 57.1. UConn's competition has been a bit stiffer so far.

While the Cards trail the historical series rather badly (3-18), who doesn't? Louisville won the last matchup between the two teams, almost exactly two years ago. Despite the game being played in Uncasville, it was considered a neutral site, so Louisville has still yet to beat UConn on the road (0-6 all time). This year could see the Cards pull off that feat for the first time. 

Louisville and UConn will tip off at Noon. Today's game will be carried nationally on FOX, so tune into WDRB if you're local. Lisa Byington and Stephanie White will have the call. If you prefer the radio, you can keep up with Nick Curran and Cortnee Walton instead.

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

After having last week off, we're back today with a nearly full house. We don't get to talk about Louisville volleyball playing in the national championship game again, but we will cover their run in the tournament. We'll also talk about the latest wins for Louisville women's basketball and preview today's matchup a bit more. As always, 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

Anchor (podcast host): Link

Apple Podcasts: Link

Google Podcasts: Link

Overcast (free account required): Link

Pocket Casts (free account and app required): Link

RadioPublic: Link

Spotify: Link

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

WBB Gameday and a Wrap for Volleyball

UConn GameDay

"Jeff, meet Geno. Geno, meet Jeff!"

A Top 10 matchup in Connecticut today as the Cardinals get ready to take on the Connecticut Huskies.  The Hall of Fame Women's Showcase, which this game is a part of, is not on UConn's home floor, but it might as well be. Mohegan Sun Arena has served UConn well over the years. 

After a stumble to start the season, and a few early games where Louisville ended up in the win column, but definitely had some things to work on, the game plan is starting to come together for the Walz squad.

UConn has no "buckets" today

Today they'll be facing an injury depleted UConn team, with only eight players expected to be active today.  Notably, the Huskies are missing their lauded superstar Paige Bueckers, but also sidelined for UConn is another notable name in freshman guard Azzi Fudd, along with Nika Mühl, and Aubrey Griffin.

Even with those players out, UConn will still have the likes of Olivia Nelson-Ododa, Aaliyah Edwards, and Evina Westbrook.

The Cards season calling card seeming to be withering defense, and The Cardinal Couple Semi-Irregular Awards Committee is taking comments from interested parties about potentially raising the height requirement to be consider for the Attack Yorkie squad.  The proposal is to lift it to 5'7" to allow Mykasa Robinson, Chelsie Hall, and Hailey Van Lith to be eligible for the squad designation.  The squad is currently limited to players 5'6" and below. If the proposal gets out of committee discussion, we'll submit it to our Board of Chimps (along with nacho dip and Tostitos !)

Even without any currently official Attack Yorkies, UofL will be leaning on the lock down defense to set the tone of the game.  Increasing the tempo definitely works in the Card's favor.  When the opponent only has eight dressed players, fatigue can become a factor by the end of the game.  Geno Aurriema's teams typically have been well conditioned and haven't shown susceptibility to fatigue, but it's a weapon in the arsenal that you have to try to use.

The Huskies will be looking to try to take advantage of UofL's aggressive defense, playing off of defensive over commitments and using back cuts to try to get open looks at the basket.

Of active players, Christyn Williams is the highest point scorer, followed by Westbrook, and then Nelson-Ododa.  Williams, and particularly Westbrook, are threats from three point range, while Nelson-Ododa hasn't even attempted one all season.  UConn isn't much of a threat to the passing lanes, so if UofL can force some turnovers, that could lead to a fairly lopsided matchup.

The game is on ESPN (us Youtube TV folks will have to make other arrangements for this one) at 3:30pm and we'll have Eric Frede, Rebecca Lobo, and Andraya Carter on the call.

Angel tackles Geno for a loss of three...

An Open Letter to Volleyball

Dear 2021 UofL Volleyball squad,

Gwen Rucker

Becky Burke

Candyce Bingham

Janae Howard

Laura Terry

Monique Reid

Angel McCoughtry

Chauntise Wright

Keshia Hines

Dez Bird

These names may not mean all that much to you, but for longtime fans of UofL Women's Basketball, many of these names bring smiles to faces.  These fine women are thought of, almost with reverence, but certainly with gratitude to anyone that knows much of the past decade plus of history of the program.

You see, these are the members of the 2008-2009 basketball roster.  That team was the first UofL women's basketball team to advance to the Final Four.

These players are forever remembered, and thanked, for the major milestone that they achieved for the program.

I've heard Jeff Walz talk a number of times about how a successful program gets built.  He thanks Angel, and Mo, and Laura, and others for not only what they did on the court that season, but for how they helped build the program for the future.  He usually talks about hosting recruits, and points out that some of these players hosted recruits on campus for official visits, and some of those recruits end up becoming the core of the team several years down the road.  The impact of a special team is felt in a program many years down the road.

You all have taken this team from "Upset Queens" to the best team in the land in two years.  The future impact of that work will be felt far beyond two years.

Numerous people have posted open letters like this to you all.  Most have focused on your season this year being a breath of fresh air in a year filled with a lot of distractions and chaos at UofL.  They're...not wrong.  Your character, integrity, and spirit have shown through in a period that has been challenging at UofL, and frankly around the world as well.

But what I want you to know, particularly to the graduating seniors and super-seniors, is that, though this season is over, and some of you may not be putting on the jerseys anymore, you are still a part of this program, and you are still having an impact on the court.  Over the next four years when Alexis Finnvold, Hannah Sherman, Nina Moorer and others even farther in the future step out on that Taraflex at L&N FCU Arena, you are there alongside them, and when I and others are cheering for them, we're also still cheering for you.

Thank you for a season beyond words, and when you come back to visit and cheer, and I hope you do frequently, you have an open invitation to join me, for I would be honored to have any and all of you by my side, when the opponent calls a timeout.

C-A-R-D-S!

Jeff

Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

Due to the way the holidays fall on the calendar, the last CCRHP episode of the year was yesterday.  Case, Jared, Paulie, and myself were on the call.

We spent most of the hour wrapping the magical volleyball season and talking a bit about the bright future for the program.

We did preview a bit of the UConn basketball game today.  I expect basketball to be the core of the discussion for the next couple of months.

You can check out the replay on Youtube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aP4WkFqaPBI.

You can also listen to it on via your favorite podcast directory and app with some tweaks to the audio that Case always does so well with.  He posts it via anchor.fm, so you can catch it at: https://anchor.fm/cardinal-couple/episodes/Volleyball-Comes-Up-Short-Basketball-to-Face-UCONN-e1bt1cr or search for "Cardinal Couple" in whatever podcast source you use.

WBB In Top 10 in Polls-- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CARDS #9 AND #10 IN EARLY WBB POLLS

As Louisville women's basketball continues their westward jaunt Tuesday with a game against Cal Poly, I thought today might be a good day to take a look at the top 10 rankings in two polls -- the AB WBB Poll and the NCAA Committee Top 10. The USA Today Coaches Poll hasn't been released since pre-season -- you know how busy the coaches are these days, and, in this one, a lot of coaches assign their vote to an assistant or other staff member. 

In the AP Poll, we find the Cards ranked #10. Here's the rundown, as of Week 2: 

1) South Carolina

2) UConn

3) Maryland

4) Indiana

5) NC State

6) Baylor

7) Stanford

8) Iowa

9) Oregon

10) LOUISVILLE 

Here's the way the NCAA Top 10 Committee sees it: 

1) UConn

2) Stanford

3) Texas A&M

4) South Carolina

5) NC State

6) Maryland

7) Arizona

8) Baylor

9) LOUISVILLE

10) UCLA

The difference between the two polls is striking. Despite being ranked higher in the NCAA Poll, Louisville will watch both closely, as Oregon went 1-1 over the last two days, beating Oklahoma but falling to South Carolina...and Baylor took a loss against Maryland. Hopefully, the pollsters will just look at Louisville's eight point win over Washington and not explore that the Cards had a 16 point lead shrink to three in the fourth quarter on Saturday. The Cards could move up in both polls because of the losses by teams ranked higher than them.

Despite a loss to South Carolina, NC State is still #5 in both polls. That raises an eyebrow. And Arizona, ho handed Louisville their lone loss so far, made the NCAA Committee Top 10 at #7, but is unranked in the AP Top 10. Another bit of a surprise is Texas A&M checking in at #3 in the NCAA Committee Poll but not making the AP Top 10. The Aggies are 4-0...

Iowa makes the AP Poll at #8, but is not in the NCAA Poll. The biggest discrepancy is South Carolina at #1 in the AP and #4 in the NCAA Committee Poll. 

Looking at it by conference breakdown...in the AP, three Big 10 schools are ranked, the ACC and PAC 12 have two schools each and the Big East, SEC and Big 12 one school each

In the NCAA Committee Poll, the PAC 12 has three schools, ACC and SEC two schools, Big East, Big 10 and Big 12 one member each. 

THE PAULIE POLL

My poll is a combination of what I, Sonja, the nice lady at the Gas N Go, my pizza delivery guy, two squirrels scurrying about my back yard and a disinterested phone solicitor who called me this morning when I was doing the article. Hoo, boy !!!

I give you my Paulie Poll Rankings: 

1) South Carolina (5-0)

2) U Conn (3-0) 

3) Maryland (6-0) 

4) Indiana (4-0)

5) NC State (4-1) 

6) Iowa (4-0) 

7) Arizona (4-0)

8) LOUISVILLE (3-1) 

9) Stanford (3-1) 

10) Baylor 3-1

Let's point out  a couple of things. Iowa is on COVID pause. South Carolina and UConn meet today in the Battle 4 Atlantis on Paradise Island, Bahamas  The AP delayed their weekly poll a day to consider the outcome of this one. It'll be on ESPN at noon. 

Louisville returns to the court Tuesday against Cal Poly. Jared will get you ready for that one in Tuesday's Cardinal Couple. 

paulie

   

 

CARDS WBB vs. UCONN in Hall of Fame WBB event. -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 CARDS VS HUSKIES ON DEC. 19th AT MOHEGAN SUN 

(NOTE:  FRIDAYS WITH DARYL will have to wait until next week, as I got a text message this morning from her -- outlining her "sunup to past sundown" work day Thursday and the same for today. The good thing about Cardinal Couple is that we cover for each other when things come up. So, I head to the plate as a pinch-hitter this morning to bring you the Friday write-up. As fate would have it, we have women's basketball news this Friday -- a rarity in late May. Batter up !) 

--paulie-- 

GENO AND JEFF:  ROUND 19

Jeff Walz and Geno Auriemma have faced each other 18 times since Jeff Walz took over the Cardinals program in the 2007-08 season. They renew the rivalry for the 2021-22 season after the game was cancelled in 2020-21 because of the pandemic. Geno is one of the few active  college women's basketball coaches out there in NCAA DI women's hoops that has a winning record over Walz. Why ruin a perfectly good Friday by re-hashing the entire series, let's just say that the Cards and Huskies are 1-1 in the last two meetings. 

The two will square off again in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Showcase this year at the Mohegan Sun Arena, in Uncasville CT. on Dec. 19th. The matchup is one of two games that day in the facility -- Baylor (minus Mulkey) will face Michigan, who is headed up by Kim Barnes Arico. 

Walz speaks of the event: 

"We are extremely excited to play UConn in the 2021 Women's Showcase at Mohegan Sun Arena. Our experience at Mohegan Sun last year was first class and it's an honor to participate in this Hall of Fame event. After being unable to play UConn last season as we had hoped, we are thrilled we are able to continue our rivalry." 

As you may remember, Doug Bruno gallantly offered his DePaul Blue Demon as a replacement for UConn against the Cards last year and the Cards looked most impressive in a record-setting 116-75 win in just their third game of the season. I hope "Dougie" at least got a Jerry Garcia tie out of the sacrifice. 

So, let's take a look ahead at the match-up and the possibilities that might exist. On the Cards side, they'll be in their first "AD" (after Dana) season and one would expect they'd already have a few games already under their belt before this match-up. They add a strong nucleus of Payton Verhulst, Sydni Schetnan, Emily Engstler and Chelsie Hall to a squad that'll have Kianna Smith, Liz Dixon, Hailey Van Lith, Ahlana Smith, Olivia Cochran, Kasa Robinson. Norika Konno, Merissah Russell and Ramani Parker returning. A squad that went 26-4 (14-2 in the ACC) before running into eventual champion Stanford in the "Great Eight" of the NCAA Tournament

Over on the Huskies side of the court, Geno brings in frosh standouts Saylor Poffenbarger, Carolina Ducharme, Azzi Fudd and Amarie DeBerr -- along with grad-transfer Dora Juhasz to join a lineup that returns Aaliyah Edwards, Paige Bueckers, Christyn Williams, Olivia Nelson-Odoba, Aubrey Griffin, Evina Westbrook and more. The Huskies went 28-2 in the 2020-21 season, before getting upset by Arizona in the NCAA Final Four. 

What say you, Geno? 

"We're always excited to have the opportunity to play at Mohegan Sun. The Basketball Hall of Fame has put together another exciting Women's Showcase this season. Our fans didn't have the opportunity to see this team in person last season, so I think it will a great experience for them and the players." 

It's noticeable that Geno didn't mention who the Huskies were playing. The first salvo has been fired across the bow...

We'll give Geno a little leeway, though, he has been busy blasting the transfer portal. 

Obviously, it is way too early to predict just where the Cards and Huskies will be ranked when the game comes around. It's also a Sunday game in the middle of college bowl season and pro football, so it'll be interesting to see what time it is played and which network will pick up the double-header. No info on tickets yet, but, we have about six months yet -- so let's let the cake bake a bit first before we get the folks and plates out, right? 

Nevertheless, it's another sign that things are slowly starting to return to pre-COVID normalcy in women's college basketball. Let's hope the trajectory stays uplifting and promising. 

Have a fun Friday!

paulie

Louisville women's basketball -- Cards fall to UConn 80-73 -- Softball, Lacrosse and Tennis results -- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

LATE SURGE FALLS SHORT IN LOSS TO HUSKIES

It is always hard to write about the last Louisville women's basketball game of the season and it hasn't gotten any easier over the years. It means the Cards have lost. Lost the game, lost the chance to gain a national championship.  The season is over and that a group of seniors have played their last in the Louisville uniforms. 

For the Cards, it was an afternoon where they seldom enjoyed a lead, made a huge run at the end to climb with two with 26 seconds to go but ultimately saw the Huskies go 5-6 from the free throw line to close out the scoring and end the 2018-19 season end for UofL at 32-4. The fourth-most wins in the history of the program but two games short of where they wanted to be.

Losing does suck...to use a term Coach Walz and many others have. Losing to UConn makes it even more "sucky" and, once again, thanks to the NCAA for making it quite easy, convenient and possible for the Huskies to have the advantage in location ,crowd attendance and game-time scheduling.  


This one was a game of runs. The Huskies started out on a 7-0  one to begin the game. Louisville came back with a 9-0 run to take a 16-12 edge and UConn put together a 10-0 run to grab a 22-16 advantage.  All in the first quarter. Connecticut would go on a 11-3 second quarter run in the first five minutes of the second quarter to take a 33-23 lead -- buoyed by the 4-4 three-point shooting of Megan Walker -- then, it was Louisville's turn and a 6-0 run had UofL back within four at 33-29. Arica Carter busted a 8-2 half-ending Connecticut run with a three as the clock ticked down to 17 seconds to make it 41-34 -- your halftime score.

This was a position the Cards were unaccustomed to.  Trailing at the half. The normal early blowout of a foe didn't happen. Asia Durr was struggling to find her shot. The Cards were just 3 for 11 from three-point range and UConn was 9 for 16 from the deep. 

Score. Stop. Score.  The simple but relevant halftime directive from Walz was Louisville's objective in the second half. It kept the Cards hanging around in the third frame and got them within four at 57-53 with a 4-0 run in the final 45 seconds after a Durr steal and layup and Dana Evans steal and layup.

Louisville had momentum. UConn's Katie Lou Samuelson was on the bench with four fouls and one had to love Louisville's chances in the final 10 minutes. Cardnation had hope rekindled and it was shaping up to be one heck of a final quarter.

Back and forth that fourth quarter went. 

64-57 Huskies at the 6:21 mark. Louisville comes back to make it 64-61 after a couple of Durr baskets. Samuelson re-enters and nailed two threes to push UConn to a 74-63 lead and 1:47 on the clock, in the game. These were two heavyweight fighters, standing toe-to-toe in the center of the ring, slugging it out -- giving each other their best shots.

Just when it looked like UConn had Louisville down for the ten count...the Cards fire back with a 10-1 run over the next 1:24 and it's 75-73 UConn after a Carter layup. 26 seconds on the clock. A memorable, incredible rally. A chance, where there wasn't much hope of one a few minutes earlier.  

I'd like to tell you that UofL kept that momentum flowing and regained the lead and took the win. but it would be a cruel April Fool's prank on you if I did, though. 

The Huskies hit the forced free throws and advance to Tampa. 80-73. All five Husky starters in double figures and those starters accounting for all of UConn's 80 points. Katie Lou leading all with 29 points. 

Durr recovering nicely in the final twenty to end with 21 points and nine rebounds. Sam Fuehring having another strong NCAA performance with 15 points and seven grabs. Jazmine Jones providing countless sparks and tallying 10 points and six assists. 

I have to wonder a bit about Kylee Shook seeing no second half court time, but, I've never professed to have any coaching skills and the UConn post weren't stay-at-home-in-the-post types...like the Cards previous two opponents. Could she have helped the Cards 0-4 three-point shooting in the fourth quarter? 

This Louisville squad, these Louisville seniors will live in my -- and I'm sure your -- memory for a very long time. Here's hoping Asia, Arica and Sam go one to compete in the WNBA. To go on and have happy and productive lives and come back to visit the campus often. They leave behind a squad that has promise and a lot of potential excitement for the 2019-2020 season. You can't keep them forever and what these seniors and this unit accomplished here in their time was incredible, record-setting and so much fun to watch and cover. 

Three incredible players, from three different places in the nation and portraying three different personalities came here to help form and lead a nucleus that won't be forgotten anytime soon.  Going into less-than-favorable conditions as a #1 seed in basically the #2 seed's home turf, they fought with their teammates until the clock stopped them from playing. These seniors pass on that competitive spirit, that drive and desire to the underclassmen -- who exhibited a lot of the same this year. 

We can only thank them for what they did, what they brought and how they thrilled us -- as we say....not good-bye... but "we'll see you further on down the road". 

The greatest test of courage is to bear defeat without losing heart. My heart remains with Louisville women's basketball. How about yours? 


THE FRED REPORT

Fred Willard says, "Turn the TV off, I don't want to see
anymore of this." 

FREE THROWS -- They weren't a strong point for the Cards Sunday. 11-17 equals 64.7% and the vast majority (10) were up to Asia. UConn got 20 attempts and made 16. You know the rules, you shoot less than 70%, we can't award a letter.

REBOUNDING -- 42-36 in favor of the Huskies, but UofL did win the offensive boards 12-11. Asia and Sam corralling almost half the Cards grabs. Another case where if you don't win the battle, you don't get a letter 

EFFORT/EXECUTION -- Louisville never quit fighting, despite the rough edges and periods of less-than-perfect execution stages. They had only five turnovers. After the slow shooting start in the first, they shot 23-49 (47%) in the final thirty minutes. we normally see numbers like these equated with a "W" for the Cards. It wasn't a "W", though...so we'll award just a small "e". 

DEFENSE.  The Cards allowed the second-highest point total of the season -- Notre Dame had 82 in their win over UofL -- but Louisville did force 13 turnovers and had nine steals. The killer was the Huskies 14-26 (53.8%) three-point proficiency. I will give the Cards credit for tightening the game up late but can't award a letter after a loss. 

FINAL FRED TALLY OF THE YEAR:   _-_-e-_

So, we shed a few tears and move along. A season to remember. So many fond memories of the 36 games. Three wonderful seniors and the promise of a very talented and deep squad for next year.

Despite the controversies, playing conditions and less-than-satisfying final game...I still enjoyed this season immensely and we'll continue to bring you tons of news and reporting on Louisville WBB here at Cardinal Couple in the off-season.

The future of Cardinal women's basketball still burns brightly, under the direction of one of the best coaches in the nation and I encourage you to be an even bigger part of it next year.  


LACROSSE DROPS A CLOSE ONE TO DELAWARE


At the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium Sunday afternoon, the Cards and Delaware Blue Hens were involved in a close match that was tied late but ultimately ended up in the visitors' favor 9-8. 

A game of runs, as well, in this one...the Cards going up 2-0 early but Delaware going on a 4-0 run to end the first half.

Louisville trailed 5-3 at the half in chilly but clear conditions on Floyd Street and found themselves down 6-3 at the start of the second half, but, thanks in part to some excellent goalkeeping work from Rachel Florek, the Lax girls battled back and forced a 9-8 affair....Caroline Blalock getting the goal with about a minute left in the contest. The Cards could get the equalizer, though, as time expired. 

Florek had 13 saves in the contest and Louisville head Lacrosse coach Scott Teeter commented after the match: 

"If it wasn't for Florek's work in the cage, it definitely could have been worse." 

Ally Hall with the hat-trick in scoring for Teeter's team and Tessa Chad and Blalock added two goals each, as the Cards go to 4-9 on the season. 

Louisville Lax brings UNC into "the Ellis" Saturday , April 5th. for a Senior Day ACC match that'll start at 1 p.m. The Tar Heels are 9-3 after yesterday's 9-7 loss at Notre Dame and are ranked #4 in the nation as of Friday.

We encourage you to come out and cheer on these hard-working LAX women. 


SOFTBALL OUT-SLUGGED IN BLACKSBURG


In the final contest of the three-game series against Virginia Tech yesterday, the UofL Softball squad managed five runs on five hits but it wasn't enough of an offensive output to match the 13 "home plate touches" the Hokies ended up with. 

Falling behind 11-0 after three innings, the Cards did tally four runs in the fourth inning. Doubles by Madison Cousineau and Charley Butler got four Cardinals home, but Louisville couldn't produce enough fire-power to make up the deficit and the Hokies two-run, bottom of the sixth effort ended the contest. 

UofL takes one of the three in Blacksburg and the 22-12, 4-5 Cards come home to face Lipscomb Tuesday, April 2nd, with a 5 p.m. opening pitch planned. Plenty of great softball to be played in Ulmer this year, make sure and be a part of it! 


LOUISVILLE TENNIS  FALLS TO B.C. ON SENIOR DAY

In their final home match of the season and on Senior Day, the Louisville women's tennis team got wins from Raven Neely and Ola Mally, but the Eagles captured the day with a 5-2 overall performance. 

The Cards, won one of the three doubles matches...losing the doubles point there... and four of the six singles matches. 

Louisville women's tennis ends the regular season on the road with four matches in the next 12 days...at Virginia Tech, Virginia, Miami and Florida State. 

*******************************************************************************************


(THANKS TO JARED ANDERSON FOR THE LACROSSE AND TENNIS PHOTOS USED TODAY)


*****************************************************************************************************


Happy April Fools Day and, if you want to prank someone, buy them a package of Oreos but replace the filling with toothpaste...an oldie but goodie pulled on Paulie many moons ago. 


paulie
xxxxx  

WBB #2 in latest rankings -- Asia Durr named ESPNW Player of the Week. -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

LOUISVILLE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL #2 RANKED

Following the wins over Connecticut Thursday night in the KFC YUM! Center and at Clemson Saturday, the Cards have climbed one spot in the AP Poll and are now #2 in the nation, behind Baylor.  

The Cards received three of the 28 first place votes, Baylor the other 25. Oregon checks in at #3, Notre Dame is #4 and the UConn Huskies drop to #5. A guy whose quips equal those of Jeff Walz...Mr. Geno Auriemma was asked about his two losses this season after the Huskies beat Cincinnati 85-55 on Sunday. He replied in typical Geno fashion: 

"Last time I checked, there were 365 Division I teams in America. 364 would trade places with me in a heartbeat. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it." 

Would Walz, Mulkey...even McGraw or Kelly Graves' squads make that switch? How about the Bulldogs at Mississippi St. would they abandon ship to put on UConn jerseys?  

Rounding out the top 10 are #6 Mississippi State, #7 Oregon State, #8 Marquette, #9 North Carolina State and #10 Maryland. Other ACC schools getting the top 25 nod are #15 Syracuse, #24 Florida State and #25 Miami. Louisville bring the 'Cuse to town for a Thursday night tangle this week. It means the return of "Q" (Quentin Hillsman) to the 'Ville'...he's one of our favorite showmen in College WBB and a snappy dresser to boot. 

The win over Husky nation means a lot of things, obviously, to Louisville and NCAA women's basketball. It gives the Cards a huge confidence factor from here on out. It does put an even larger "target on their back" when they travel to places such as Blacksburg, Charlottesville and Pittsburgh the test of the regular season and the four foes coming into the downtown arena over the next three weeks. Syracuse, Miami, Boston College and NC State know that a win over Louisville at Louisville is a season changer, heck, program changer and would weigh heavily on the thought processes of the NCAA selection committee. 

The clear-cut favorite as NCAA Tournament favorite is, well, unclear as well. Baylor showed a little vulnerability last night when Texas roared back from a 21-point deficit after three quarters to cut the Bears lead to four with 30 seconds to play. The Cards, the Huskies, the Irish and the Ducks all have losses that were either head-scratchers or sound defeats. Toss in Miss. State, add Oregon State and Maryland for a little seasoning and you have a eight-team stew that is unpredictable from spoonful to spoonful. 

That's why they play the game, though, I doubt the upsets and surprises are done for the regular season. Here's hoping the Cards can stay clear of them. 


ASIA DURR NAMED ESPNW PLAYER OF THE WEEK

After a sparkling performance against Connecticut, Asia Durr has been named ESPNW Player of the Week. 

There were plenty of candidates, no doubt. Five others that come to mind are Kristine Anigwe (Cal), Ruthy Hebard (Oregon), Stephanie Watts (UNC), Destiny Slocum (Oregon State) and Haley Gorecki (Duke) all had weeks that were noteworthy, but Durr delivered a 24-point performance Thursday night against then #2 Conn on ESPN and that was enough to put the award in her steady hands. Why, there was even a quad-double last week, engineered by Grambling State's Shakyla Hill. 

The award trophy case for "Nite-Nite" has to be crammed full, if there is such a thing. 

Durr is projected to be #2 in the WNBA mock draft coming up Wednesday. She's averaging 20.8 p.p.g. this year. 45.1% from the floor and 35% from three-point range. 

The awards, the honors, the recognitions....the triple-teams....all of the emphasis on #25 would be a whirlwind type of experience for just about any DI WBB student-athlete. Durr keeps a calm demeanor, though, and keeps her eyes focused on the ultimate goals. A Final Four slot. A National Championship. 

"What do you think? I think that #25 is pretty good." 

Out of the previous 12 Player of the Week recognitions, the ACC has two others in Jackie Young (Notre Dame) on Nov 26th. and Paris Kea (UNC) last week. The Pac 12 has also had three players-of-the-week. There has not been a repeat student-athlete of multiple award winner this season. 

Have a Terrific Tuesday and stay dry. The monsoon season has apparently begun in Louisville. 


paulie
xxxxx

Cards Shock Country-- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Louisville Women's Basketball Makes Statement with Win over UConn

The country was probably shocked when they witnessed Louisville Women's Basketball defeat Connecticut, 78-69 last night in the KFC YUM! Center.  Four players scored in double-figures  for the Cards, led by Asia Durr's 24 points.

Durr showed everyone why she truly is the BEST player in the country.

17,023 fans packed into the KFC Yum! Center for the event, the largest of the season for the Cards and also the largest of the season for all of women's basketball.  The record for the largest crowd at a UofL women's basketball home game is 22,163 vs UConn back in 2014.

Sam Fuehring and Jazmine Jones each recorded a double-double with Sam going for 10 points and 12 rebounds and Jaz went for 13 and 12.

Jaz also dished out four assists to tie Dana Evans for a team-high.  Evans also tallied 20 points including 5-10 shooting from deep.  Overall, Louisville had 13 assists and limited their turnovers to four.

How many losses does UConn have?

Durr went scoreless in the first quarter, but Louisville still went toe-to-toe with the Huskies, tied 21-21.  UConn's 3-5 from three-point range kept their offense going while the Cards spread the wealth among five scorers.  Louisville's six fouls and UConn's five would total to be the most combined (11) of any quarter until late fourth quarter.

Things were evenly matched in the second quarter, but Louisville won it, 19-17, to hold a two-point halftime lead.  Nite-Nite began to heat up.  She scored 14 points, going 4-6 from deep and 5-9 from the field overall.  Surprisingly, neither time committed a turnover in the period.

Louisville still held the lead, and was winning the rebounding battle. 20 minutes remained. Cardinal fans were as energized as the frisbee-chasing dogs performing at halftime.

The third quarter is where momentum shifted into the favor of the Cards.  They won the quarter, 18-13.  Asia added another seven points to her total, but it was the defense that showed its strength.  UConn was forced to go deep into the shot clock every possession knocking them out of rhythm.

The fourth quarter was another higher-scoring quarter with Louisville winning it, 20-18.  Between Louisville shooting a high number of free throws down the stretch and the Huskies knocking down a pair of threes near midcourt both teams found life on offense.  UConn got a bucket 13 seconds in the fourth quarter but then went silent for almost five full minutes, pushing Louisville's lead to double-figures.

The Huskies were nailing shots late in the fourth, but so were the Cards. No losing the lead late here. The overall shooting numbers were not spectacular (38% U Conn -  UofL 39.7%). Dana gets our "star of the game" nod. 20 points, four assists, zero turnovers.

This was Louisville's night to shine with a nationwide audience checking in and the roar of the KFC YUM! Center will long be a fantastic memory for me, Paulie, Sonya, Daryl Foust and all of the over 17,000 who were in attendance.

The Cards still have plenty of work to do, of course. A dangerous Clemson team awaits them Saturday in Littlejohn Arena. NC State remains perfect. Syracuse is coming in soon and they are always a "tough out" for UofL

Not a lot of time to celebrate this historic win but, oh, what a night down by the river here in Louisville !


F-R-E-D Report

Paulie says...."Nite-Nite"

Free Throws: Louisville looked great for a while before having a rough stretch in the final minute where there were a lot of 1-2 trips to the line.  Still, the Cards went 17-24 for 70.8%.  There was also an offensive rebound in there so the percentage can go up for that.  Capital "F".

Rebounds: Add another game to the list of games where Louisville won the rebounding battle.  The out-rebounded UConn 46-40.  More importantly, the 35 defensive rebounds helped keep the Huskies from pulling in offensive rebounds for second chance points.  With both Jaz and Sam with 10+ rebounds I'm sold on a capital "R".

Effort/Efficiency: 25-63 (.397) from the field isn't great but 11-29 (.379) from three is pretty solid.  What really catches my eye here is the 13 assists on 25 made shots opposed to only five turnovers.  In terms of effort I'll quote Geno Auriemma "They deserve it.  They worked their asses off tonight."  Capital "E".

Defense: Okay, so UofL didn't hold an opponent under 50 points.  UConn scored 69 points, which is still about 13 less than average.  The Huskies were held in the teens three quarters.  UConn had zero fast break points and only 11 second chance points.  The Huskies looked out of whack for most of the game due to Louisville's pressure.  To finish the perfect score we see a capital "D".

When one plays UConn and wins, things must go right so a perfect score of F-R-E-D isn't all too surprising.

I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say that this is a game we soon won't forget and will talk about many years down the road.  It was a privilege to cover the game as media.

Louisville improves to 20-1 on the year should move back up to #2.  UConn falls to to 18-2 for their multi-loss regular season since 2013.  Jeff Walz is now 1-17 against UConn while in control of the reins at Louisville.

The Cards travel to Clemson this Saturday (not Sunday) to play at 2:00 p.m.

Caption These

You can catch videos of post-game below.

In these two pictures, one of Jazz celebrating and Walz looking like he's about to break into dance, it was a time for smiling, dancing and letting their feelings loose.

The Cards met the dragon and slayed the dragon .

Jeff Walz post game presser

                                                          Asia Durr and Dana Evans

                                                               Geno Auriemma

Happy Friday and Go Cards!

(PHOTOS BY JARED ANDERSON AND POST-GAME COVERAGE BY SETH SPALDING) 

- Jared -