MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE . GAME FINAL -- CARDS 60-56 over Bulls

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Shoni's jumper, Jude's steal give Cards four-point win over USF.

-Softball swings away at OSU and OU

Never underestimate the power of Schimmels. In a semifinal game that looked like at times neither team wanted to win, Shoni nails a triple-teamed, driving jumper with six seconds remaining and sister Jude gets a key steal, gets fouled and seals the win with two free throws.

Louisville advances to the title game of the AAC Conference Tournament to face UConn Monday night at 7 p.m. with a 60-56 escape against the Bulls of USF.

For awhile, one had to wonder if Louisville would survive Sunday. Credit USF for coming out strong and taking the early lead against the Cards. A slow UofL start and Inga Orekhova's three-point marksmanship had Louisville trailing 20-10 halfway through the first half.

Shoni saw some uncharacteristic bench time...the Cards seemed a step slow and out of sync against the Bulls driving offense and unable to get any kind of inside offense generated. 

Finally, #23 returned to the game and things began to happen.

Led by Shoni and Jude...the Cards rallied with a 16-4 run which included three Shoni threes to take the lead 26-24 on a Jude layup.

The Cards took a nervous 33-29 lead to the locker room, Shoni nailing her fourth trifecta of the half.

USF was not intimidated and started the second half hot again to regain the lead. Courtney Williams picked up the slack for USF and they had the Cards in serious trouble...up 51-46 with a little over eight minutes left in the game.

Shoni and Tia Gibbs responded with back to back threes to put Louisville back on top.

With the score tied at 54-54, two Tia free throws gave Louisville the lead. The Cards got a break when Inga got fouled but missed the front end of a one-and-the-bonus. USF missed a shot inside which could have tied it, but Williams went strong to the paint for the rebound and putback to even it up at 56-56.

It came down to the final ten seconds. Williams went for a three but missed. Schimmel went coast-to-coast for the go-ahead bucket and on the USF inbounds after the score, Jude stole a pass from Williams and was fouled. The junior calmly sank both free throws and USF's final possession resulted in no points.

Shoni's 17 points led Louisville. Williams and Orekhova had 19 each for USF (19-12).

Huskies again. #1 seed possibilities almost flickered out...but re-kindled with Schimmel magic. Pretty? No, not at all...but it's survive and advance this time of year.

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Louisville Softball unloaded the heavy artillery Sunday afternoon in Ulmer Stadium...trouncing Ohio State University 11-4 and setting a new runs scored record in the beating of Ohio University 22-4. Here's the recaps...

Louisville 22-Ohio University 4

18 hits led to 22 runs for Louisville against the Bobcats in the five inning affair. The Cards got three innings from Rachel LeCoq as the starter and an appearance from freshman Tirra Sanabria in relief...who allowed just one run on three hits in two innings.

OU actually led 2-0 when the Cards came up to bat in the botton of the first, but that quickly changed. Kelsi Jones' three-run blast to center, and two-RBI doubles from Hannah Kiyohara and Marissa Becker were key components in the nine-run first inning.

Kiyohara would plate the Cards two runs in the second inning with a single to increase the Cardinal margin to 11-3.

The third inning features 11 Cardinals touching home plate. A three-run blast to right center by Brittany Duncan, four walks an two Bobcat errors all contributed to a 22-3 score after three frames.

Louisville 11-Ohio State 4


Although the Cards could only manage half the runs of the first game, it was still an impressive show of power and pitching for UofL (12-6). Maryssa Becker got the win in relief...Caralisa Connell started and Tiarra Sanabria closed in the circle for the Cards.

UofL made it 4-0 after one inning. A bases-loaded double from Becker scored two and singles from Taner Fowler and Maggie Ruckenbrod got Becker and Duncan home.

The Cards added three more in the second...Kelsi Jones' two-run fence clearer to center the key blow.

The Buckeyes countered with four runs in the top of the third to draw within three...but Louisville added two more runs in the fifth on three singles, a walk and sacrifice fly to build the score to 9-4.

The Ville finished the scoring frenzy in the sixth...Keller's double the key blow against Buckeye pitching.

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Did you miss the latest CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO BROADCAST?  It's archived and available for listening now at Crescent Hill Radio. Jeff and Paulie talk plenty of hoops and toss in a little softball and lacrosse as well:

LINK: RADIO UNLEASHED UPON THE INTERNET!!!

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Monday Cardinal Couple -- Cards bombard Bulls 79-59

MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Four in double figures in 20-point WBB win


Louisville used a 13-0 close to the first half to gain control and led by as many as 26 before defeating USF Sunday afternoon in the KFC YUM! Center.

Tia Gibbs sank (4) second half threes and finished with 19 points to lead all scorers. Shoni Schimmel added 14 and Sara Hammond and Nita Slaughter finished with 12 points each for Louisville. Asia Taylor's eight points and 10 rebounds helped Louisville improve to 22-1.

It took the Cards awhile to pull away from USF. A slow start, where Louisville was 1-10 to begin the game, had the scoreboard showing 10-7 Louisville after Taylor sank two free throws with 13:31 left in the first half. USF wasn't going away quietly...Sara Hammond's free throw with 9:34 in the game gave the Cards a 18-14 edge.

Shoni gathered her first score of the game after a jumper put Louisville up 22-16 and Tia Gibbs first trifecta of the contest had Louisville leading 28-18 with 6:24 on the clock.
A technical on the Louisville bench seemed to spur USF with 5:10 to go and the Bulls down 32-22. They scored six points in the next minute and Inga Orekhova's "3" made it 32-28 with four minutes to play.

USF would get no closer the rest of the way. Threes from Shoni and Nita pushed the lead back to ten. Three Shoni free throws increased the Cardinal lead to 41-28 and two free throws each from Nita and Tia gave the Cards a 45-28 margin with 10 seconds left in the half.

The Cards had capitalized on 12 USF turnovers to score 21 points and Nita was leading the way with 12 points on 4-7 shooting.

Shoni's third three got the second half off to a great start and then it was Tia time. Her second three of the game set the tally at 51-35 with 17:20 remaining. She connected from beyond the arc again with 15:40 showing to push UofL ahead 54-37. She connected again from the deep to give Louisville a 59-39 cushion with 13:16 to play and her fourth three of the half gave the Cards a 62-39 margin.

Emmonnie Henderson inside provided Louisville a 66-43 gap with 9:46 showing. The Bulls would outscore the Cards 16-13 the rest of the way...narrowing the gap to 18 before a Megan Denies long-ball set the score to 79-58 with 33 seconds left in the game.

THE FINAL WORD

Louisville drained 11 threes in the contest and shot 72% from the charity stripe. The slow start is almost something we've come to expect out of UofL as of late...but 20 assists on 25 made baskets is something to point to with a little pride.

The Cards (22-1) forced USF into 20 turnovers while committing only 11. No Card saw more than 32 minutes in the game (Shoni) and the UofL bench outscored the Bulls 23-9. USF did outrebound the Cards 42-39.

It was a usable win, if a bit uneven at times...against a squad that has much more potential than their 11-10 record would indicate. Orekhova nailed four threes against the Cards and Akila McDonald grabbed 11 rebounds against the Louisville front line.

Jose Fernandez, USF head coach, did not make the trip to Louisville...hospitalized with intestinal trouble after the Houston game earlier this week.

The Cards return to action Tuesday night in Orlando against UCF.

paulie
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Sunday Cardinal Couple -- South Florida arrives with warmer weather

SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

               ***** GAME RESULT*****

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Louisville went on a 13-0 run to end the first half and (4) second half threes by Tia Gibbs helped the Cards maintain the lead to defeat USF 79-59 Sunday afternoon. We'll have much more in the Monday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE
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- Lacrosse pre-season banquet recap

- WBB faces Bulls today

-Volleyball post-season banquet review

Louisville Lacrosse held their pre-season Crease Club banquet Saturday Night in the PNC Plaza @ Papa John's Cardinal Stadium for an appreciative crowd of players, parents and fans of the program.

Seniors Hillary Bushway and Monica Negron were the Misresses of Ceremony for the dinner and greeted the capacity crowd along with assistant coaches Crysti Foote and Vicki Latino. The attendees got to see a Game Day video of the 2014 Lacrosse team and heard commentary from the coaches and seniors. After Amy Poteet's Invocation, a delicious meal was served while Coach Young gave her season preview of the squad.

Before Young spoke, she pulled a surprise on senior Nikki Boltja....showing the crowd her #9 jersey framed to hang in a place of honor in the lacrosse offices. Boltja seemed genuinely touched and very humbled by the honor.

Young had glowing comments for each of the thirty players on the squad and revealed "the word" for the season. Last year, it was "champions" and this year it is "finish".

Finish a drill, finish the day. Finish the job, finish the game.

Another video followed...one with highlights...and then the keynote address speaker Kelly Berger Rabil spoke to the crowd.

A former player under Young at James Madison University and member of the 2013 USA World Cup Championship team, Rabil recalled her beginnings in Lacrosse and the joys and heartaches that were part of her high school and college years. She recalled how Coach Young left before her senior year to take the job at Louisville and her sadness about Kellie leaving.

Rabil suffered from two ACL knee injuries, one in each knee...one year apart as she finished her college career. Many players would have abandoned the game at that point but Rabil persisted and eventually made the US National Team and the World Cup squad. Her dedication and drive are inspiring examples we all could follow in our life-situations.

After a touching poem tribute to their teammates, Bushway and Negron gave way to Foote and Latino...who ended the program.

Louisville Lacrosse. #ONAMISSION (twitter-wise). It's going to be a great year for Young's warriors.

paulie

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The Bulls of South Florida ride in to the YUM Center today in an effort to knock off the #5 team in the country, hoping to score a marquee win against a top team.  Meanwhile, the Cardinals are defending their home court, and protecting seeding in the post season. 

Just three weeks ago today, the Cardinals were in sunny Florida taking on the Bulls. 

The Cardinals won that affair, 62-54, but not before the Bulls gave the Cards all they could handle in a slow start. 

In Florida, Jude was not playing due to the ankle injury.  The Cardinals were led in scoring by Shoni Schimmel (25) and two others were in double digits for the day, Bria Smith (10) and Sara Hammond (14).   The Bulls were led in scoring by Courtney Williams who blistered the Cards in the first half of play.  Inga Orekhova, a long ball threat for the Bulls, was held to a single point on the day.   Alisia Jenkins was the only other double-digit scorer for the Bulls, who had all but one player score on the day. 

The Cardinals started the game slow, an all too familiar happening these days.  Courtney Williams scored 16 of her 19 points in the first half.  Half-time adjustments held Williams to just 3 second half points. 

The Cardinals had a good game with scoring 23 points off of 19 turnovers and beat the Bulls on the boards, also scoring 20 second chance points.  In an unusual Louisville stat, the Cardinals had a lone 2 points off the bench. 

The Bulls are no doubt looking for redemption and would love to avenge the recent loss on their home court.  The Cards will need to handle Orekhova again, she is a legitimate 3 point threat who can score in bunches.  Additionally, taming Courtney Williams on the day will go a long way in securing the Cardinal victory. 

As the team heads down the stretch of the season, each game holds added importance.  The Cardinals are currently in a battle when thinking about post season seeding.  We have been talking about it a lot, lately, and for good reason. 

A bad loss, at this point in the season, could remove any chance of a #1 seeding.  As it is, not only will the Cardinals need to take care of their business, they are going to need help from our future friends in the ACC. 

Current thinking has our team with a likely 2 seed in the tournament.  With Louisville, Notre Dame and Stanford all as regional hosts, they will all play on their home court.  Notre Dame and Stanford are projected as 1 seeds, so this leaves two #1 seeds either going to Louisville or Nebraska (the other host of regionals). 

The remaining # 1 seeds are projected to be Connecticut and Duke.   IF the committee follows it’s typical pattern, placing teams closest to their home geographically, Connecticut would come to Louisville.  It goes without saying, we do not want to see Connecticut in Louisville for the regionals. 

In my opinion Duke is the most vulnerable of the #1 seeds.  Here in lies the importance of winning out the season, excepting UConn.    If Louisville can win all games, except UConn, and if Duke could take a couple of losses, Louisville could sneak out a #1 seed.  This is an ideal scenario, thus eliminating facing UConn a potential 4^th time on the season (before the championship game).   Duke has a pretty tough remaining schedule, Notre Dame twice, NC twice, Maryland (who seems to be in a free fall) and NC State (they are a rising program at the moment). 

If we get a #2 seed, I am not sure the selection committee would place UConn in Louisville.   The goal of having teams host regionals (this is the only year it is going to happen) is to increase fan attendance.  Pitting UConn against a team for a potential 4^th time is not the way to increase butts in the seat.  I project UConn goes to Nebraska.  If Duke maintains it’s projected #1 seed, I think we see Duke in Louisville.  However, this is going against geographic placement, which the committee historically relies heavily on. 

I have digressed a bit here.  However, it all goes to the importance of winning.  Beating USF is one step closer to controlling our own fate. 

Lest you be caught unaware, after today’s game against USF, the Cardinals only have 4 regular season home games left.  Do you need me to spell it out for you?  That means after today, there are only 4 games left to see Shoni Schimmel, Tia Gibbs, Antonita Slaughter and Asia Taylor.  4 games. 

It is hard to imagine this program without Schimmel, Taylor, Gibbs and Slaughter.  The clock is ticking my friends.  You do not want to miss this dynamic group of players.  Get in your seats.  If you are not a season ticket holder, get downtown and buy yourself a seat in what has to be the greatest value around for 2 hours of quality entertainment.   I expect tickets to be going fast as this incredible class winds down their collegiate careers. 

Tick tock, tick tock.

Jenny o’bryan

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Volleyball also held their banquet Saturday. Being a Fall sport instead of a Spring sport like
Lacrosse, this banquet was a celebration of the season completed and of the seniors that are graduating and moving on to new chapters of their life.

Emceed by the inimitable Sean Moth (Voice of The Cards), the program featured an opportunity for each senior to address the crowd and share their thanks to various people who have supported them on their journey.

Several awards were presented, including the Team GPA award, won by setter Katie George on the strength of her 4.0 GPA in the fall semester, as well as The Cardinal Award presented to Nicole Alderson who is the Academic Advisor for the Volleyball. Nicole is credited with supporting the team in achieving over a 3.5 GPA for the Fall semester.

Coach Anne Kordes was the featured speaker and she spoke very highly of the graduating seniors, along with some comments about some of the other players...apparently she thinks Maya McClendon needs to eat more. Maya made a show of eating more chocolate cake in response.

We also heard a bit about what each of the graduating seniors are planning for next steps in their lives. Carly Sahagian wants to do event planning. Randi Ewing will be finishing up her Masters in Communication and is currently interning with WLKY with hopes of landing a Sports Broadcasting position. Brooke Mattingly will be completing her Masters in Art and is planning on becoming an Art teacher...as an aside, if you've ever seen any of her artwork, much of it in sculpture, you know that it is simply amazing. Emily Juhl will be starting Dental School here at UofL in July. And lastly, Caitlin Welch is doing some volleyball coaching at the club level and is hoping to coach for a high school as well...I suspect she is hoping to continue playing volleyball at higher levels as well and will be keeping my eyes peeled for her name in connection to US National Team Programs.

While focused on the past season, we also get a glimpse of the future. Liberos Eleni Georgiafandis and Roxanne McVey were both in attendance having enrolled in the spring semester.

Janelle Jenkins was unable to attend as she is in Texas with her family mourning the passing of her grandfather.

ALSO, THE LATEST BROADCAST OF CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO IS UP AND ON THE SOUNDCLOUD. COME HAVE A LISTEN AT THE LINK BELOW!

MAMA, THOSE PEOPLE ARE ON THE INTERNET AGAIN !!

Jeff

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Saturday Cardinal Couple -- Softball, Lacrosse drawing nearer

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Lacrosse opener set for Feb. 9th @ Duke

- Softball travels to Boca Raton Feb. 7th.

- Hoops Sunday

- Radio today


If Kellie Young thinks the Louisville Lacrosse team is in the "D" league this season instead of the BIG EAST...we can understand the confusion. The Cards have Duke, Detroit, Drexel, Denver, Old Dominion and Notre Dame on the schedule this season.

Louisville has their first draw at Durham, NC on Feb.9th. against the Blue Devils...one of 12 away games in a 18 game schedule. UofL will visit eight different states and the District of Columbia on their "world tour 2014" but do have the advantage of playing their final three regular season games at home. Kellie explains:

" It's partially the economy...we have the resources to travel here at Louisville, thanks to Tom Jurich...and some lacrosse programs don't...so we'll be going to a lot of different places to compete this season."

The Cards will participate in the BIG EAST this season and that seven game conference schedule begin March 29th. in Washington, DC...which is also where the BIG EAST Lacrosse Tournament will be played May 1&3.

( HEAR MORE FROM COACH KELLIE ON THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR TODAY AT 11 AM ON CRESCENT HILL RADIO )

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Sandy Pearsall rolls out the 2014 version of Louisville softball on Feb. 7th, in Boca Raton to participate in the FAU Kickoff Classic. The "Bat" Cards return a strong, talented and experienced squad with stellar performers from last year, including Taner Fowler, Katie Keller, Maggie Ruckenbrod, Hannah Kiyohara, Caralisa Connell, Rachel LeCoq, Brittany Sims, Kayla Soles and Whitney Arion plus a very deep and highly ranked freshman class and skilled transfers.  

Softball debuts in newly renovated Ulmer Stadium on Feb. 21st. to celebrate my birthday with the Cardinal Classic. It's one of three classics Louisville will hold in Ulmer and UofL will participate in before they face WKU in Ulmer on March 14th.
 
Softball is in the American Athletic Conference this season and they'll also have a conference tournament that begins on May 8th. in Houston.

( HEAR COACH SANDY DISCUSS THE SEASON, PLAYERS AND MORE ON CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO TODAY AT 11 AM !)

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Hoops returns from a layoff of sorts (at least in games played) when they travel to Tampa to face USF Sunday at 3 p.m. It's a revenge thing, here...the Bulls came into KFC YUM! Center and hung a loss on Louisville last year...the Smith sisters going ballistic on the Cards. 

The sisters are gone...but Jose Fernandez has plenty of weapons left....including Inga Orekhova, Courtney Williams, Alisia Jenkins and Tamara Taylor. 

USF defeated Temple Tuesday in their last game 64-51. Louisville downed Cincinnati 64-45 last Saturday...despite shooting a season-low 30% from the floor. 

We'll have more on this game in the Sunday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE and discuss Cardinal WBB at length on today's radio show.

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You've probably figured out by now that we're doing our weekly radio show on Crescent Hill Radio this morning at 11 a.m. We expect a full studio...Paulie, Worldwide and Jenny and we have a lot of topics to cover, picks to make and quizzes to take.

Join us...won't you? Linkie below:

ALL YOU DO IS TALK, TALK, TALK

paulie
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Wednesday Cardinal Couple -- USF visits Lady Cards tonight

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WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

(Game report...Louisville loses to USF 73-62. Cards down by two at half after a horrible start, but could get no closer. Jenny will have the full report in the Thursday Edition of CARDINAL COUPLE)


-South Florida 'Bulls' their way into KFC YUM! Center

(Quentin Voigt with the pregame look at Louisville WBB opponent tonight -- the South Florida Bulls.  Paulie follows with some garbled non-sequiters and nebulous rambling.)

Layin' a "Bullish" beat down

The South Florida Bulls (17-7, 6-5) are visiting the KFC YUM! Center on Wednesday, Feb 20th. at 7 p.m. with one thing on their mind. How do they manage four more points or allow Louisville four fewer points than were put up the last time they met. The score January 20th. in Tampa at the Sun Dome was 78-75 in favor of the Cards.

USF hit nearly half of their shots that night, including long range attempts, and 12 out of 13 freebies. When they went ahead by nine points in the second half, thanks to some timely scoring by freshman Alisa Jenkins, I'm sure their collective confidence began to soar. The tide seemed to be turning against the visiting Cardinals.

Coach Walz got a timeout. A 30-second variety..where he spoke animatedly to his squad. What he said, I can't tell you, but determination was what I read on those faces as they resume the frey.

The margin began to dissipate...seven points...down to four points...another two-pointer dropped in...then another. The score was finally tied. The intensity scaled upward, bodies were flying to the ball, trying to secure positions on the floor to block the progress of an opponent or take a charge. At the final buzzer, all of the Sun Dome crowd exhaled at once as they seemed to release the pent-up tension.

The players in the drama remain for the re-engagement. For the Bulls are twins Andrea and Andrell Smith. The 5'8" seniors average 16.3 and 14.5 ppg, 5.2 and 5.0 boards and are fast, lithe and athletic. Inga Orekhova, the 6'2" 'Soviet assassin' from Sevastopol in the Crimea, brings her special skill set and accuracy with the three-ball. Coach Jose Fernandez also brings a collection of role players...6'1" Jenkins, 5'8" Courtney Williams, 6'4" Akila McDonald and 6'4" Caitlin Rowe. All are good rebounders, good free-throws shooters and are quick on their feet.

Both teams have shown their mettle and their desire to win. Who will prevail?

At home, I think the Lady Cards do...and are good for an additional four points. Make it 79-72 UofL. Go Cards!

-Quentin Voigt


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The thing that strikes me most about this deep, talented and aggressive USF is their record. Put this squad in any other conference in college basketball and they are already at 20+ wins and have only one or two conference losses. 

Yet, they toil in the BIG EAST and are part of the zombie apocalypse mid pack clawing at the top four above them...Louisville, Cuse, UConn and Notre Dame.

The Smiths are game-changers. The Russian Rocket Inga could stand on the Second Street Bridge and drain threes into the rims on Denny Crum Court. All mentioned above in Quentin's scout above are capable of throwing double-digits at an opponent.

They'll give the Cards a tussle tonight. Road wins in the BIG EAST are as difficult to find, though...as a honest politician on Capitol Hill...and the Cards prevail here.

If...

Bria Smith's new found, endless love with the free-throw line and driving the lane (and actually scoring) continues. You're a year older now, Bria dear...show some responsibility.

If...

If you look closely, you can see Sonja's head
where the "I" is on the Louisville table front.!

Sara Hammond's decision to become "Hammer...Queen of the Boards" continues. 13 grabs against DePaul is impressive. 12 grabs against the Bulls should get her an Oscar for Best Supporting Paint Player in a Conference Game.

If..

Der Schimmel can create an offensive attack similar to Patton's march through the Rhineland in WW II. Attack and score, Shoni. The fans love it when you do. I'll take a 50% shooting night anytime from the juggernaut junior.

(I don't ask for much, do I?)

Toss in a little Nita consistency...a few minutes of Vails paint presence...Mo going strong for 15 and the bench contributing....simmer slightly till ready and serve piping hot to 10,000+ patrons.

Cards by 13. More if Louisville can hit 70% or better from the stripe.

Need this one to keep pace with third-place Syracuse who defended their turf with a 58-45 win over hard-luck Rutgers last night. C-Viv still stuck on 899 career wins. Won't be any easier for her Saturday...going against St. John's in Queens, NY.

The Bulls won't make it easy. As of 2/16/13, they were the leading rebounding team in the BIG EAST with an average of 45.6 secures a game. They hold a +6.2 advantage over opponents in rebounds a game. Louisville needs a hot shooting night to limit the number of grabs available for USF.

Be the ball, Danny....be the ball...


-Paulie


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Wednesday Cardinal Couple -- Boogie with Bulls

WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

GAME REPORT

Louisville breaks a 66-66 tie with back-to-back threes from Shoni Schimmel and Nita Slaughter and hangs on to win 78-75. Shoni with a career high 38 in the game and career high eight three-pointers. Jenny will have more on this "Cardiac" win later...

-Boogie With the Bulls tonight

(Quentin Voigt provides the scout on the University of Louisville women's basketball team's next opponent...a visit to Tampa and game against the South Florida Bulls.)

Wednesday, January 30th. 7 p.m. brings the next test for Jeff Walz's Lady Cards...a showdown in the Sun Dome in Tampa against Jose Fernandez's USF Bulls.

These Bulls are 14-5 on the season and 3-3 in BIG EAST play. Conference losses have come against Notre Dame in Tampa, a four point win by UND in overtime. USF has also fallen on the road to DePaul by 16 and at Villanova by three.

USF's Andrell Smith

Players to watch for USF included the Smith sisters Andrea and Andrell. Andrea averages 17.7 ppg and Andrell contributes 15.9 ppg. Inga Orekhova is good for 11.6 for the team and all three are deadly from long range. The front line features Caitlin Rowe and Akita MacDonald, both 6'4" and they and freshman Alisha Jenkins are the major rebounders for Fernandez's squad.

The Smiths and Rowe came from Gulf Coast Community College, where they won the National Junior Community College title in the 2009-10 season.

Last time out, USF handled Marquette 58-48 in the SunDome on Saturday. Freshman guard Courtney Williams had 10 points in the win and Jenkins grabbed 11 rebounds.

The Russian Rocket - Inga Orekhova

Like Louisville, when USF gets on a run, they're hard to handle. I look at this one as a very close contest and predict the Cards win by three.

-Quentin Voigt

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USF is a dangerous, dangerous team. The Russian rocket Orekhova can bury you from deep. The Smith's are hard-nosed, aggressive ballers that can score from anywhere. Louisville trailed USF last year at halftime and was fortunate to go on a late run in the YUM! to win 63-57. Sheronne Vails and Cierra Warren combined for 24 points last year against them. Warren, of course...is gone. There's still an APB out on Vails, according to some, too.

UofL's Andrell Smith

Louisville is headed into an arena that holds 10,000 but has only managed to get an average of 1100 in for games. Wouldn't surprise us if that isn't doubled tonight...Louisville does have a sizable fan base in the area and opponents do love to come  out and cheer against the Cards when they come to town.

Just in case any football fans have wandered over here and are confused...the Andrell Smith USF guard and Andrell Smith UofL wide receiver aren't related. They're both excellent at their respective sports, though

How does Louisville pull off the win in hostile territory? Honestly, I don't think they do tonight. The Bulls came darn close to knocking off Notre Dame in the Sun Dome.

But, if they do win on the road, they'll need super efforts out of Bria and Shoni, along with a return of the Vails from last year and a strong Sara effort. We know we can count on Nita for a big game. I do hope it's a big enough effort to get the Cards a win. Really, I do.

I hate to say it, hope I'm dead wrong...but I'm calling "Bull" on this one. USF by 6. Prove me wrong, please.

You might be able to watch this one on BullsVision for a fee. It's unclear whether the video or just the audio is being offered over there. Sign up at the official USF sports site. We'll probably just give AJ and Matt a listen on WKJK 1080 or gocards.com.

I may switch over and give USF Bulls women's basketball play-by-play guy Alex Perlman a listen. He's one of the best young announcers in the business. Even if he attended Syracuse and looks like attorney Cary Agos on "The Good Wife". (Which has Sonja enamored with him...)

Coach Walz talks about stealing wins on the road in the BIG EAST. If the Cards can pull this heist off, the team's picture should be posted in all the post offices...because it will be the theft of the century. Let's hope Al Capone, John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson are sitting on the Cardinal bench. "Theft in Tampa". Let's hope so.

Jenny will be by to do the recap later tonight or tomorrow.

-Paulie
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