Cards in Action Tomorrow -- SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

One More Sleep til Game Day

Like kids on Christmas Eve, Cardinal fans are buzzing with anticipation today as the Louisville women's basketball team will be back in action tomorrow against Miami. It's a 4 PM tip, so it will be like when you go to Christmas at your uncle's house for dinner and have to wait all day for presents, but it's better than nothing. On the plus side, you can roll the end of the game straight into your New Year's Eve plans or, better yet, take a nap between the game and staying up to watch the ball drop. 

In an effort to leave Jeff something to write about on Sunday, I won't do a complete game preview here, but let's take a quick look at the season so far for each team. 

Louisville is coming off of a bounce back win over Washington after the dismal second half against UConn on December 16th. Tomorrow will be the 11th day since the last Louisville game, so the team will be well rested from a long break, but hopefully they will have stayed mentally sharp. Louisville won their first four games of the season before falling in that weird game against Alabama on Black Friday. They then won six straight before meeting UConn. Louisville has one ranked win on the road, which they picked up against Ole Miss on November 29th.

Miami would be Louisville's second ranked road win, depending on which polls you look at. The Canes are 10-1, suffering their only loss in San Antonio against Baylor two weeks ago. Miami also played on December 20th, but they've played a game since Christmas, as they beat Alabama State 81-36 on December 28th. A Thursday game against a team like that is not likely to have beaten Miami down much physically, but it will have gotten them back in the zone after the holiday break. That, combined with it being a home game, could give Louisville some fits. Miami also got their only ranked win of the season on the road in the ACC/SEC challenge. Miami's victory came against Sam Purcell and the Bulldogs of Mississippi State. Outside of that, the Canes have played a pretty light schedule. The two teams' only common opponent is DePaul. Both Louisville and Miami won at home, with the Cards winning by seven and Miami winning by five.

It'll be a close game, so be sure to tune in to ACC Network as Louisville WBB closes out 2023.

No Cardinal Couple Radio Hour Podcast

We'll be out this week as holiday travel and other plans have the crew mostly out of commission. We're going to work to continue the show in the next couple of weeks, but noon games for MBB will have Jared out. We'll play it by ear, so be sure to check the site Saturday mornings to find out the latest.

Until next time, Go Cards!

Case

WBB secures victory over Miami 71-57 -- SB at UCF -- FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL



Hello and happy Friday readers. I can't believe we are nearing the end of another WBB regular season. I want to start by giving a huge thanks to Paul for the opportunity to cover one of my favorite squads.  It was my last night on media row for the 2022-23 season but I should make it in the stands for Sunday's rematch with the Irish and Senior Day

 

Paulie celebrated another 30th birthday on Wednesday and Sonya celebrates hers today so lets give a shout out to the original Cardinal Couple on their celebrations this week. He even gave Kasa Robinson one of the cupcakes I brought him.  

I always think of things I should've said to players when I'm standing there but I guess I can say them here and hope she sees it.  I wish I would've thanked Kasa.  For several things.. one being the night she just had vs the Hurricanes.  Robinson has established her role as a Louisville leader from start to finish.   She came out of the gate swinging against Miami, securing rebounds and generously distributing the ball.  If there is a loose ball in the area, you bet Mykasa is diving for it.  Her ability to drive to the basket and out-tough the defense for the up and in has erupted this season. 

For so long the national narrative for Robinson has been 'She gives you everything that doesn't show up in the stat sheet' but here we are witnessing those numbers showing up on the stat sheet.  #5 has given me some of my most jaw dropping reactions in Cardinals WBB memory.   

I stand for Mykasa Robinson and a ACC Defensive Player of the Year award. 

WBB

Louisville got a quality win against Miami on Thursday night, 71-57 in front of more than 8,000 fans. This was a must win for Louisville to remain in control of their post season destiny as Miami and UofL are both battling for 3rd place in the ACC. Hailey Van Lith led for the Cards with 25 points 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Mykasa Robinson and Liz Dixon were huge contributors to this victory as well. Dixon had 13 points and 10 rebounds while Kasa had a season high 12 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. As a team, the Cards only turned the ball over 13 times.

recap

End of 1Q 18-15 Cards


FG %
7 -14 50% Cards
6-14 42.9% Miami
Reb. 9-7 Cards
3-pt %
3-4 75% Cards
1-4 25% Miami

At this point, the starting lineup is the starting lineup and doesn't need really need to be commented on. Walz has found what works and he's sticking to it heading into the final stretch. Liz Dixon scored first on the jumper, HVL hit a 3 on the assist from Kasa for a 5-2 Cardinals lead.  HVL hit another 3... this time from Olivia to make it 8-4.  Jones tried to get going with just under 5 min in the first quarter but her shot went in and out and Liz Dixon cleaned it up for the put back, Cards up 10-8.  Miami responded hitting the 3 pointer to take the lead 11-10 before Olivia was fouled and we took the first media timeout. She made 1-2 at the line to tie it 11 all.   Chrislyn 'The Carr' got started to hit the 3 and put the Cards back up 14-13. With the Cards up 18-15, time winding down in the quarter and both teams trying to establish a rhythm, a loose ball under the basket was dove for by who other than Kasa Robinson. Who secured the possession for UofL.  Paul and I decided her gameday presence as a defensive shark. When she smells blood in the water, she's going to swarm.  


End of 2Q 18-12  Cards

FG %
6-17 35.3% Cards
4-13 30.8% Miami
Reb. 12-8 Cards
3-pt %
1-6 16.7% Cards
2-4 50% Miami

Miami hit a 3 to open the second quarter and tie it 18 all before it started to look like they were going to have their way, going on a 6-0 run over 2 minutes before the Cards said "Not so fast" and went on a run of their own 12-0 over 4:30 minutes to give UofL the 30-24 lead.   HVL hit her third 3 pointer to put the Cards up by 10, 34-24 with a minute left in the half.  Van Lith had 8 points in the quarter while Robinson and Dixon both had 4 rebounds. Cards shot 42% in the first half while allowing the Hurricanes to shoot 37% from the field. Cards outrebounded Miami 21-15, Dixon leading with 7.



HALF 36-27



End of 3Q 23-21

FG %
9-15 60% Cards
8-15 53.3% Miami
Reb. 10-5 Miami
3-pt %
2-5 40% Cards
3-7 42.9% Miami

Louisville opened the quarter with a bucket by Jones, assist by Robinson. But the Cards went cold for more than 2:30 minutes before Jones hit another jumper to push it back to a 10 point lead for the Cards. #14 Haley Cavinder for Miami really started to warm up for the Hurricanes scoring 11 points in the quarter with 4-6 shooting and 3-4 from 3 point land. At this point, the Cards were up by 14, but it definitely didn't feel safe.   And, just as I was mentioning it to Paulie, the Hurricanes put up 4 quick points. Not to be out done, Walz calls Josie Williams' number to come in and create an offensive spark, she drains an open 3 and gets open under the basket to give UofL a 5-0 run and go up 59-47.


End of 4Q 12-10 Cards

FG %
6-16 37.5% Cards
4-12 33.3% Miami
Reb. 11-7 Cards
3-pt %
0-3 0% Cards
1-6 16.7% Miami

Louisville opens the 4th quarter looking to control the clock and keep the lead while Miami is looking for a last ditch effort to steal a win at the Yum! Center.   'Next level Kasa' drives the lane and powers through the defense to score and put the Cards up 63-51 with 6:30 left in the game. At this point in the game, it really did appear that the Hurricanes had run out of gas. Louisville was winded, no doubt, as it was a fast paced contest but Miami had given it all they could.  UofL controlled the possessions for the final few minutes and the Hurricanes backed off.   The crowd rocked the house in victory. 

Cards win!!!  71-57

UP NEXT

Louisville vs Notre Dame

Sunday 2/26  12:00PM

KFC Yum! Center 

Lets get 15,000 out there Sunday for SENIOR DAY AND PAYBACK!!!! 

Fred Durst is our Fred of the game

FRED REPORT


FREE THROWS -- Cards went 9-14 at the FT line for 64.3%. Nyla Harris struggled going 2-5 and needs to spend some time at the gym. This wasn't her first poor performance at the charity stripe. These missed opportunities could be the difference between moving on and going home. no letter

REBOUNDING -- Louisville out rebounded Miami 37-33. Liz Dixon had an imposing impact on the outcome of the game. I was specifically watching her in the pregame and she was hitting those jumpers and feeling her stride. Dixon had 10 total rebounds, 7 of them on the offensive end. CAPITAL R


EFFORT/EXECUTION -- You could tell the team knew how important this game was for post season implications. HVL came out firing to open the game but Miami was not an easy matchup. Louisville shot 60% in the third quarter but also allowed Miami to shoot better than 53% but the name of the game is to do better than the other team, and UofL did that. CAPITAL E

DEFENSE -- Like I mentioned earlier, we have deemed Kasa the defensive shark. Where there is blood, she will swarm. HVL was the biggest fan for Kasa to be ACC DPOY. Will the powers that be agree? I hope so, it would be an incredible send off for the senior. CAPITAL D



FINAL FRED TALLY:    _R_E_D


THEY SAID IT...

pics by Jared Anderson today

POST GAME JEFF WALZ

KASA ROBINSON AND HAILEY VAN LITH POST GAME

Softball

Louisville at UCF

February 24 7:00PM

ESPN+

About the Knights

Prior to Thursday's DH With Gardner Webb, where the Knights swept them in 6 and 5 innings... UCF Knights was 5-7 on the season losing 5 of their previous 6 matchups.   

On Wednesday, the Knights lost 4-3 walk off loss against Stetson after giving up 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th. Kaitlyn Felton was nearly untouchable throughout the evening, yielding just one first-inning run on two hits before being pulled after a couple walks in the 7th for left-hander Angelina DeVoe to enter and take the loss. She gave up an RBI single on the first pitch, and a third walk in the inning loaded the bases with two outs. Junior right-hander Grace Jewell represented UCF's third pitcher of the inning to try to close out but Stetson plated the tying and winning runs on a fielder's choice at third base after a throw to second ricocheted off the defenders glove.

After opening the weekend with a 8-2 win over  #25 Michigan, the Knights lost to Texas A&M 7-0. UCF fell short in extra innings to #17 Duke and #12 Alabama before closing out the tournament with a 5-4 win over Mississippi State.

    • Chloe Evans leads the team with a .351 batting average, three home runs, five doubles and 12 RBIs.
    • Kaitlyn Felton (2-2) has carried the bulk of the pitching duties, logging 24.2 innings with 28 strikeouts and a 3.16 ERA.

Daisy, Daisy, Daisy ! 

About the Cards

UofL brings a 6-3 record into the weekend following a 2-2 performance in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
• The Cardinals are receiving votes in the ESPN.com/USA Softball coaches' poll.
• In Sunday's 2-1 win against Wisconsin, Taylor Roby registered her 42nd career home run, tying UofL's all-time record set by Courtney Moore (2004-07).
• Senior Daisy Hess has reached base via a hit or walk in six straight games while junior Vanessa Miller carries a five-game reached-base streak.
• Senior Elana Ornelas leads the team with a .417 batting average.


Louisville leads the series 4-2 with the Cardinals winning the last meeting 5-3 at UCF on Feb. 9, 2018. 


As always

Go Cards!

~Daryl 

Smith home run gives SB win -- ACC Tournament -- CC ACC WBB Pick 'Em Results-- MONDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 

KENDALL SMITH HOME RUN GIVES CARDS 3-2 WIN

When Kendall Smith completed her four years at Western Kentucky, and wanted an additional year at a school that offered a master's degree in sports administration, my guess is that Holly Aprile's hand went high into the air and pointed to her, Ulmer Stadium and the UofL Master's Degree programs. After all, there was a bit of familiarity there. Smith had played in Ulmer, with the Hilltoppers in the 2021 season and she had caught Topper turned Cardinals pitcher Jen Leonhardt, One might speculate that she may have figured she just might be able to add a little depth to the Cards "behind the plate" student-athletes. 

The move up I-65 from Bowling Green to the "Ville has paid dividends, especially Sunday -- when Smith's sixth inning olo home run was the winning blow in UofL's  3-2 win over Hofstra. The "touch 'em all" was Smith's six of the season and gave the Cards a bit of revenge for allowing Hofstra to defeat them twice on Friday. .  

Hofstra was determined to make it a sweep over UofL and opened the contest with two runs in the top of the first. The Cards got one back in the bottom of the first and tied the game in the third. 

The Cards (11-8) used four pitchers inside the circle Sunday...Chardonnay Harris getting the start and going four innings, Sam Booe throwing an inning and a third, Gabby Holloway entering the circle in the sixth inning for 2/3rds of an inning and Taylor Roby finishing the contest in the seventh. Since Holloway was still the pitcher of record when Smith unloaded her bomb to left-center, Gabby gets the win and Taylor the save.

 

Louisville co-hosts the Bluegrass Challenge next with UK. Valparaiso plays the Cards in Ulmer on Thursday, Central Michigan and Ohio face UofL on Friday, EKU visits for a Saturday game against the Cards, and UofL and Indiana will meet Sunday morning. 

Jared Anderson got some post-game comments from Cards skipper Holly Aprile after the game. Hear them HERE

SOFTBALL PICTURES FROM JARED ANDERSON

NCST wins ACC WBB Tournament

The Miami miracles came to an end Sunday, as North Carolina State defeated Bassy's Canes 60-47 in the ACC Tournament Championship game.

Miami had to be exhausted --playing their fourth game in four days -- but gave the Pack a battle in the first quarter before running out of gas. NCST star Elissa Cunane left the contest with an apparent ankle injury in the third quarter but Miami actually lost ground to the Wolfpack while Cunane was being evaluated. Cunane did return to the floor, sporting an ankle brace and the Heels won their third straight ACC WBB Tournament title. 

Cunane finished with 17 points and was named Tournament MVP. 

Kelsey Marshall had 24 points for Miami (20-12), who probably improved their seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament, with the run.  

Congrats to NC State.  Enjoy it while you can. A bigger dance awaits. 

CARDINAL COUPLE ACC WBB PICK EM CONTEST

And the winner is......(drum roll, please)...

Katy, who finished with a 11-3 record is the winnah !!!. She's Jared's finacee, and a FSU grad. It's her first win in the contest. She gets the $25 Cracker Barrel gift card.  

We had a four way tie for second at 10-4 between Nick O, Thomas, kstarksr and Louavulfan35, so we had to go to the tie-breaker, which was who would get closest to the total score of the final game.  The final points total was 107 and Louavulfan35 was closest with an entry of 117. The $20 Subway card awarded here. 

Winners, get in touch with me via e-mail at cardinalcouple@twc.com to let me know where to send your cards. 

A huge thanks to all who submitted entries and next up, the Cardinal Couple NCAA WBB Pick 'em. Jared will explain more about that as the March 13th NCAA WBB Selection Sunday gets closer.  We'll offer gift cards on this one, too -- I'm working on securing those ... 

paulie

  

UofL WBB faces Miami in ACC Quarterfinals -- SB Opens at Ulmer; FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

FRIDAYS WITH DARYL

Happy March, readers. It was a rare clear schedule for the Cardinals on Thursday evening as most of the squads were scouting upcoming opponents.

The group chat was buzzing with ACC WBB tourney updates from Paul & pics of Jeff swimming and posing in tiny red cars.  My bracket's already busted after the first game, had 'Cuse over Clemson for some reason.  I'll be happy as long as my final prediction works out.  

ACC Women's Basketball Tournament

ACC Quarterfinals 

UofL vs Miami 

6 p.m. on Bally Sports

Miami beat Duke in a down to the wire comeback fashion...61-55   The Hurricanes beat the Blue Devils 22-15 in the fourth quarter and held the Dookies to 9 points in the second and third quarters. Elizabeth Balogun finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds.  Miami shot 44% from the field and made only 3 three's.  They had 21 free throw attempts and turned the ball over 15 times along with double digit scoring efforts from most of the starters.  #7 seed Miami is currently on the bubble for the NCAA tournament with an 18-11 (10-8 ACC) record. 


ABOUT THE HURRICANES

The Cards played Miami on 2/1/22 and escaped Coral Gables with a 69-66 win.  Kianna Smith had 21 points and Olivia Cochran scored the go-ahead basket and finishing with 18 points on the night.  Kelsey Marshall's game-tying 3-point attempt as time expired bounced off the rim.  UM is 7-3 in their last 10 games. Kelsey Marshall is Miami's lone double-digit scorer with 14.1 points per game, which is good for 10th in the league and third in the ACC with more than two and a half 3-pointers a game and is shooting 35.5 percent from deep, which ranks sixth.

Louisville leads the all-time series 7-2, winning seven out of the last eight games. The first meeting came in 1989, where Miami defeated Louisville 58-59 in Freedom Hall. After an almost three-decade hiatus, the conference opponents have played each season since Louisville joined the ACC in 2014-15 and UofL is 7-1.


Other ACC Tournament results from Thursday

Virginia Tech crushes Clemson 82-60 -- Elizabeth Kitley goes for 19 points and 10 rebounds and Aisha Sheppard 7-11 for 20 points as Clemson goes 0-9 from beyond 3.   

Florida State over BC 63-58 -- Powered by a huge third quarter where the Noles shot 66% from the field and went 4-5 from three point land.  

Georgia Tech beats Wake Forest 45-40 -- Offensive snoozefest!  This one had a 20-13 halftime score as GT beats WF for the second time this week.

FRIDAY MATCHUPS -  ACC Tourney 

GAME 8 - 11:00 AM

#4 NORTH CAROLINA VS. #5 VIRGINIA TECH

GAME 9 - 2:00 PM

#1 NC STATE VS. #9 FLORIDA STATE

GAME 10 - 6:00 PM

#2 LOUISVILLE VS. #7 Miami

GAME 11 - 8:00 PM

#3 NOTRE DAME VS. #6 Georgia tech

SOFTBALL 

The Cardinals bring an 8-6 overall record into Ulmer Stadium for the home opening weekend. 

First up, the Cards are set to face HOFSTRA at 3 p.m.  The last time the Cards played the Pride was 2/18/12 when the then #21 ranked Cards won 7-6 in 9 innings.  The squads are 1-1 against each other. HOFSTRA is 0-9 to start the season coming off of a 6-0 loss to Indiana on Monday.   At a glance, the Pride is struggling to put run on the scoreboard with several losses with goose egg results.   Sophomore and left handed pitcher, Julia Apsel leads the pitching efforts for the Pride with a 3.04 ERA in more than 25 innings pitched. 

UofL will get a break before facing Illinois in the final Friday game at 8 p.m. The last time the Cards played the Illini was 3/8/2020 and the Cards won 4-3.   Like Louisville, Illinois also got a win over #10 Arkansas this week.  Sydney Sickels leads in the circle for the Illini with 30 innings pitched and a 2.10 ERA. 

Cardinal Couple Radio -  Case, Jared and myself will be out for radio this week with other spring sports and appointments but the OGs Paulie and Jeff will carry the load with much ACC tournament, lacrosse and softball to cover.  Tune in at 11 a.m.

 

CARDINAL COUPLE PICK 'EM

Bracket czar Jared Anderson reports that, after seven games, three contestants are 7-0 in their selections. Nick O, Joe Hill and Thomas are the trio. Three contestant wait in the wings at 6-1 -- Kstarksr, Katy and Louavulfan35. The rest of the entrants have a bit of shoveling to do. 

As always
Go Cards! 

~Daryl 

Cards comeback leads to 69-66 win at Miami -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

SMITH WITH 21, COCHRAN WITH 18 IN CARDS WIN OVER CANES

For awhile it looked bleak for Louisville women's basketball against Miami Tuesday night. 

UofL trailed Miami 59-50 with 6:13 to play in the game. How would the Cards respond? Louisville showed they weren't in Miami just for the weather, and powered back to take a 65-62 lead on a Chelsie Hall three-pointer with 36 seconds to play and an Olivia Cochran bucket and two Kianna Smith free throws allowed the Cards to keep the lead and get their 19h win of the season against a determined Hurricane squad. 

Jeff Walz predicted a close one pre-game, our Daryl Foust saw it that way, too in Tuesday's preview column. It was an exciting one in the Watsco Center in Coral Gables. Until Kelsey Marshall's desperation three as time expired missed the mark, it was anyone's game. 

The Cards started slowly, falling behind 4-0 early, but rallied to grab an 11-10 lead with 5:49 left in the first quarter. It was 15-15 with 4:42 remaining but the Cards held a 19-18 lead after one, And, Louisville failed to score in the final 2:55 of the quarter, after Liz Dixon's put-back.

 

The Cards maintained the lead for almost the entire second quarter, holding a 23-19 edge after a minute of play, 26-24 with 6:50 left in the half and going on a three minute 6-0 run to hold a 32-24 advantage with 3:43 left in the half. UM wasn't tossing in the towel, though. At 35-30 Cards with 34 seconds left in the quarter, the Canes used a 5-0 run to close out the half and knot the score at 35-35 on a Kelsey Marshall three with, uh, 3 seconds left? Our 2.5 seconds left or 1.9? -- no one seemed to know, so the officials huddled and then motioned for both teams to head to the locker room -- the half was over. An interesting decision -- maybe the refs were thirsty or something?

A huge first half for Kianna Smith with 15 points on 6-9 shooting and four Cards had four points each (Van Lith, Hall, Engstler and Cochran).

The Cards came out slowly to start the second half and Miami took a 39-35 lead in the first 90 seconds. it was a lead they'd hold until Hall sank a three for the Cards with 3:52 left in the third to put UofL up 42-41. Not intimidated, Miami countered with 6-2 run over the next two minutes to go up 47-44 and a Maeva Djaldi-Tabli layup with 20 seconds to go gave the Canes a 49-46 lead after three. 

The fourth quarter was an epic one. The Cards climbed within two after a Kasa Robinson steal and pass to Cochran for a layup. Then, the tide turned in Miami's favor. Seven straight points by the Canes over the next 70 seconds had UofL in a 56-48 hole. A UM three created a 59-50 Miami lead. Engstler countered with a three but the Cards weren't making up any ground and the Canes led 61-55 with 4:52 to play.

It was time for UofL to respond. A huge Van Lith three cut the lead to three. And, with 2:05 to go, K. Smith nailed a jumper to make it 63-62 -- the Cards had pulled back to just a one-point deficit. Hall's three with 56 seconds to play put the Cards up 65-63, but Marshall countered with a three just nine seconds later to give Miami the lead back at 66-65.

How would it end? Cochran to the rescue with a jumper that gave the Cards a 67-66 lead with 32 seconds to play. Then, Kasa, with a huge steal got the ball back in the Cards possession with 20 seconds to play. The Canes fouled Kianna Smith and the red-shirt senior calmly sank both free throws for the 69-66 final score. A desperation Marshall three fell short and the Cards prevail.

 A Tuesday night thriller that Louisville pulled out by sinking five of their final six shots.

Hunt successful for Fred and Jed...another skin for the Cards

THE FRED REPORT

FREE THROWS  --  Louisville went 5-9 from the line (by comparison, Miami got 17 attempts and made 13). 55.6% isn't spectacular and we can't award a letter here. The discrepancy...in attempts significant.

REBOUNDS --  The Cards took the boards war 35-29. Emily Engstler a big night with nine. That's good enough for a CAPITAL "R" by me...the old adage, win the boards win the game held true. 

EFFORT/EXECUTION -- 23 assists on 28 made baskets, which is fantastic and 8-20 three point shooting, which was another plus, especially at the end. The team effort was the key, though, at the end that won this one for UofL, overcoming that nine-point deficit was a thing of beauty...there is no quit in these Cards.  CAPITAL "E" here.

DEFENSE -- Holding Marshall to 11 points was huge and the Cards won the points off turnovers battle also. Limiting UM to just three points in the final three minutes was a key to the Cards win...defense does it again and we'll bestow a CAPITAL "D" for the defense. 

FINAL FRED TALLY:  _-R-E-D

The Cards return to action Thursday, plying at Clemson in a 6 p.m. scheduled start.

paulie

UofL WBB on the road vs Miami PREVIEW -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

Hello! Hello ~ readers

Its Daryl stepping in for Jared on the Tuesday/Game-Day edition of Cardinal Couple.  A midweek WBB matchup for the Cards is a nice shake-up to the regular Thurs/Sunday we've been used to.  This game was originally scheduled for Jan 9th, 23 days ago. 

Also, a Happy February to you all.  I haven't had a lot of chances to do basketball previews this season and the season is really going to heat up from here on out, so let's get to it.   

CARDINALS (18-2 8-1)   vs    MIAMI (11-7 4-4 ACC)

PREVIEW

All Photos: Jared Anderson 

Date: Tuesday, Feb. 1

Time: 7 p.m. ET

Site: Coral Gables, Florida

TV: ACCNX

Radio: 790-AM WKRD for Nick Curran&Adrienne Johnson

Last Meeting: W, 79-76 (Jan. 26, 2021 at KFC Yum! Center)

Series History: 6-2 (W2, 3-2 home, 3-0 away, 0-0 neutral)

The Cardinals are on the road looking to win their fourth game in a row and continue their dominance over the Miami Hurricanes.

Louisville has won six out of the last seven games. The first meeting came in 1989, where Miami defeated Louisville 58-59 in Freedom Hall. The two have met as conference foes since Louisville joined the ACC in 2014-15 and the Cardinals are 6-1. UofL is 3-0 in Coral Gables.

Four of the eight contests have been decided by single-digits and two of the last three came down to the final minute of play.

The Hurricanes are 9-1 when outrebounding opponents this season, with the only loss coming to NC State. The Hurricanes’ are holding their opponents to just 57.8 points per game and averaging 61.6 points of their on 38% shooting and 29% from beyond the arc per game. As a team they are attempting almost 10 FT / game and shooting just 68% when they do get there. Both Miami and Louisville are averaging 38 rebounds per game. Hurricanes average 17 turnovers, 9 steals and 3.5 blocks per game.

Grad senior Kelsey Marshall leads the offense for the Hurricanes, averaging more minutes and more than 14 points per game. She had 19 points including four 3-pointers for UM in the 2021 matchup vs the Cards. Naomi Mbandu came off the bench for the Hurricanes and had 17 points and 11 rebounds vs UofL. Junior and 6-4 forward Lola Pendande is the team's leading rebounder but not by much as it seems the guards can pull a decent about of loose balls as well. The assumed to be starting Lola's minutes are pretty a even split with Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba - a junior who pulled down 10 rebounds in their outing vs Wake Forest on Sunday. Miami shot 28% from the field and 22.2% from beyond the arc but managed to win 66-59 over the Demon Deacons.

Miami has been coached by Katie Meier since 2005. She was voted AP Coach of the year in 2011.


Game Plan vs Miami
The Cards must win rebounding battle to get the victory. It could get ugly for the Hurricanes if they turn it over more than they already average (17). But I do think it will be another down to the wire battle for UofL. I think it'll be close the whole way rather than seeing a huge lead diminish in the final minutes and Emily Engstler continues her path to the WNBA draft. She leads all rebounders with 12 while also manages 4 steals and 2 blocks. Olivia Cochran is close behind with 10 of her own while also manages to get to the free throw line where she has an efficient outing of better than 80%.

As Always
Go Cards!!
~Daryl

Dana. Dixon Deliver -- Cards 79- Miami 76 -- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 EVANS, DIXON COMBINE FOR 41 IN CARDS WIN

"Katie, I bet I can get Norika to yell in today's game."

It was a case of Liz Dixon early and Dana Evans late in Louisville women's basketball's 79-76 win Tuesday over a Miami team that refused to go away. The 6'5" Cards post from Memphis, TN delivered 13 points and seven rebounds in the first half for UofL to help lead them to a 44-36 lead. Miami staged a rally in the fourth quarter to trim Louisville's team to four with 1:47 remaining in the contest, but four late free throws by the Gary, IN senior prevented the Canes late comeback attempt from being successful.

Evans scored the Cards last 12 points of the contest and had all but two of the 14 total points Louisville registered in the final quarter. Her 20 points were second high for UofL, Dixon contributed 21 in just 26 minutes. 

"Hands up if you want to hear Norika yell !" 

Tuesday's contest was one where the Cards would build substantial leads at various times but Miami would manage to come back and stay in contention. Witness the Cards 62-46 lead with 4:03 left in the third quarter after a pair of Kianna Smith free throws. That had shrunk to 65-56 by the end of the quarter and the Canes outscored Louisville 20-14 in the final ten minutes to make it interesting.

Katie Meier ws proud of her squad, despite the loss:

"We played tough and it was a heck on an environment. I could tell before the game that the team was really dialed in. I thought we were very focused for 40 minutes." 

"Well, we're all waiting..."

Meyer was looking for her 300th. win in a coaching career that has seen her at Miami for 16 years now. 

Louisville also got nice production from  Elizabeth Balogun (14 pts) and Kianna Smith (8 pts) in getting their 15th win of the season. Dana Evans summed up the victory this way:  

"You just do what you gotta do to win the game. Obviously that's what I do. Whether it get to the free throw line, because, obviously my jump shot was off again tonight --  do what I have to do to help this team win." 

 Evans was 5-15 from the floor in 37 minutes and 2-9 from three-point range but went a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line, logging six of those in the crucial fourth quarter. 

"SUCCESS !!" 

The Cards launched 30 threes in the contest and saw ten of them go in. Kudos to Balogun, she was 4-5 on her long-range attempts and handled the rock well with no turnovers in 28 minutes. 

Jeff Walz spoke at length about the mental strain of three games in five days...plus the return to classes for the student-athletes for the spring semester. It doesn't slack up for the Cards as they'll host UNC Thursday night. Early in the season, the Cards were struggling to find games and juggling the schedule, now it's a "cup running over" of contests and opponents. Despite the obvious physical strain, the players will tell you that they'd rather be on the court instead of sitting around wondering if they'll play. 

THE FRED REPORT

"Fred" from  SNL (when he's not being
Ian Rubbish) 

FREE THROWS -- Another fine performance from the charity stripe for Louisville. 21-27 is 77.8% and that will get the Cards a CAPITAL "F" by our standards. What was kinda weird was how they developed. Louisville received just four opportunities in the first half and 23 in the final 20 minutes. I can only attribute that to either the refs reeiving new whistles at halftime and being eager to try them out, or Miami deciding that fouling Liz, and Dana was the only way to get back in the game -- the two had 20 of the UofL attempts and made 17 of them. 

REBOUNDS -- Whatever the Cards worked on in practice Monday in terms of getting grabs sunk in. Louisville out-rebounded Miami 34-32. It's interesting to note that Dana may have had a career high with six and Liz barely missed her double-double with nine. The Carrds guard combined for 24, which had to bring a smile to Coach's Walz and the staff's faces. I award the CAPITAL "R" for grabbing the missed shots. 

EFFORT/EXECUTION --  There was still too much standing around, excessive dribbling and offensive stagnancy for Louisville Tuesday, the Cards could get out on the transition game (just two fast break points and 15 assists on 24 made baskets, but the 46.2% from the floor could have, should have been better if you toss out the dismal 25% (3-12) shooting in the fourth quarter. Nothing spectacular here in points-in-the paint either, where Louisville lost the battle 30-26 or second chance points, where Miami had a 20-13 edge. No letter here. 

DEFENSE -- It started well for the Cards on defense, holding the Canes to 38% shooting, but Miami went 8-18 from three-point range (44.4%) and Kelsey Marshall, the ACC's best long-range bomber had four of them. Louisville lost the steals stat six to four, and forced 14 turnovers, compared to Miami forcing 13. Miami's 76 points were 10 over their average and those 76 points were the most the Cards have surrendered this season (DePaul scored 75 early in the season). It was a win, though, so we'll offer a lower-case "d". 

FINAL FRED TALLY:  F-R-_-d

"Another three for me !" 

 

Maybe a bit of concern that the Cards aren't blowing opponents out of the KFC YUM! Center or on the road as of late but you have to figure that it's a whole new ball gane now, when your foe is looking to kncok off #1 in the nation. I expect a scenario that could be the same on Thursday night, when Janelle Bailey, who I consider the best center in the ACC, brings her TarHeels in to test Liz and Olivia. 

Wins are wins, though, whether they're by two or 22 and Louisville keeps amassing them. Let's hope it continues. 15-0 and (who knows how many more?) to go...

"I get down low when I'm ready to go." 

(A special THANKS to Jared Anderson for the photos. They can move you around, gripe and whine...but your photos always turn out fine...)

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

paulie

 -- 

Cards Host Miami -- Other WBB News -- Tennis -- Lax Schedule -- TUESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 Louisville WBB Hosts Miami

In their third game as the #1 team in the country, Louisville women's basketball prepares to host Miami on Tuesday afternoon. The Cards are fresh off a last second victory over Wake Forest and have entered their second straight week in the top spot of NCAA DI WBB rankings

UofL is 14-0 on the year, matching the 14-0 start in 2018-2019. They started 15-0 in 2006-2007. The best start in program history was 20-0 in 2017-2018.

Miami enters the game at 7-5 on the year with a 4-5 conference mark. The Hurricanes are wrapping up a five-game road trip today at the KFC Yum! Center. At 67.1 points per game, Miami ranks last in the ACC in scoring. Their 66.6 points allowed per game doesn't rank much better. Although, having attempted 291 threes on the year, Miami is only shooting 28.9%.

One promising sign for Miami this year is their turnover margin: +2. That is good enough to rank third in the conference behind Boston College and Louisville. While averaging 14.9 turnovers per game themselves, the Hurricanes are forcing nearly 17.

There's a new "Marshall" in town this afternoon

Senior Kelsey Marshall leads the team in scoring at 14.9 points per game. She has also made 33% of the team's made three-point shots with 17. Three other players average between 8.70 and 9.80 points per game.

Rebounding has been by committee for Miami, who has eight players hauling in 3.13 and 5.90 boards per game.

At 65%, Miami has not been a great free throw shooting team. Or at least by the F-R-E-D Report standards, we would not be satisfied with 65% shooting.

Katie Meier is the head coach of Miami WBB 

The Cards are 5-2 all-time against Miami. The Hurricanes came to the KFC Yum! Center back on Feb. 17, 2019 and pulled off the 79-83 upset. Since then, Louisville crushed the Canes 87-41 back on Jan. 9, 2020 down in Coral Gables.

This game is a bit earlier than normal at 4:00 p.m. You can catch it on ACC Network as well as online. You also have the option to 790-AM WKRD to hear Nick Curran and AJ.

Other WBB News

-- Dana Evans was named ACC Player of the Week. Is there any real debate? Evans has straight ice in her veins and should be everyone's top contender for Player of the Year. The senior averaged 23.0 points per game in the wins against Syracuse and Wake Forest while playing every minute of both games. She also averaged 5.0 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals over that stretch.

-- Louisville remained #1 in the latest AP Poll with 739 points. NC State is close behind at 710 points for the #2 spot. Pending no upsets for either team in the next few days we will have one Hell of a game next Monday.

-- UConn and South Carolina remained at #3 and #4, respectfully. After a match-up that the Bruins came out on top, UCLA and Stanford switched spots with UCLA taking #5. Syracuse dropped out of the rankings and into the receiving votes category. They are joined by Georgia Tech.

Women's Tennis Opens Season With Sweep

Louisville women's tennis head coach
is Mark Beckham 

It was a solid way to start the season as women's tennis as they swept Ball State 7-0 The Cards three doubles groups all won with scores of 6-2, 6-3, and 6-4.

Nikolina Jovic starts season as #1 seed

Nikolina Jovic played in the #1 role, winning 6-3, 7-5. Andrea Di Palma was in the #2 spot and won 6-3, 6-3. Raven Neely was in the #3 hole and defeated her opponent 7-6, 6-0. Chelsea Sawyer was #4 on the chart and claimed a victory 6-2, 6-3. Rhea Verma lined up #5 and won 6-4, 6-3. Dina Chaika was in the final spot and won 6-3, 6-2.

The Cards start the year 1-0 and return home on Saturday against Miami (OH).

Lacrosse Schedule Released

Another spring schedule was announced yesterday as we saw the lacrosse schedule released. The LAX Cards have 15 games on the schedule, eight at home and seven on the road.

Louisville starts the season with four straight home games, hosting Florida (Feb. 13), Colorado (Feb. 18), Notre Dame (Feb. 28), and Cincinnati (March 3).

They then hit the road for a three game stretch. The Cards will visit Virginia (March 6), Central Michigan (March 12), and Marquette (March 14) before returning home briefly to host North Carolina (March 20).

Scott Teeter is the Louisville LAX head coach

Some later ACC games will feature double headers over the weekend. Louisville travels to Boston College for a two-game series (March 26 and 28) before a visit to Virginia Tech (April 3). Louisville's home season ends with three straight home games. They host Duke (April 10) and close with Syracuse for a double header (April 16 and 18).

The Cards conclude the regular and conference season on the road at Notre Dame (April 24)/. After that, the ACC Tournament, although we haven't got a firm "Yes, that will happen" yet. 

This is a top-flight, challenging schedule for Scott Teeter's squad. The LAX Cards will play 11 of the 15 contests against squads that were ranked in the top 25 last season. They face #1 UNC, #2 Norte Dame twice, #4 Syracuse twice, #8 Florida, #15 Virginia, #18 Duke, #19 Boston College twice and #24 Virginia Tech. In the power-packed ACC, the Cards are the lone squad that wasn't ranked in the top 25 last season. The Cards do return their top two scorers of the shortened 2020 fall season in Hannah Morris and Ally Hall. 

We'll still be without any nighttime games at the Louisville Lacrosse Stadium, but the Cards do have an evening game at Syracuse. The home schedule features a game on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday plus three games on Saturday and two on Sunday.

In-person media coverage of lacrosse this year is still uncertain, although we will provide plenty of lacrosse news and coverage both near and afar here at Cardinal Couple.

Happy Tuesday and Go Cards!

Jared