Sunday Cardinal Couple - Basketball Wins, Volleyball Exits

Basketball Romps Over Valpo

In the second game of a Cardinal triple header, the Women's Basketball team put it to an, honestly, not very good Valparaiso team 75-42.



The Cards had five in double digits with the M&M's (Myisha Hines-Allen and Mariya Moore) both at 12 and three of the freshmen, Erin DeGrate, Sam Fuerhing, and Asia Durr all tallying 10. This one was great fun to watch, with great passing, and a full on Attack Yorkie defense. We saw Dakota Weatherford and Briahanna Jackson both on the court at one time and watched them wreak havoc. Of course, Taja Cole also is a well-deserved owner of the Yorkie tag as well after yoinking three steals along with Jackson. Otherwise, nearly everyone got in on the pilfering, with Mariya Moore, Cortnee Walton, DeGrate, Fuerhing, Arica Carter, and Brianna Jones all coming up with their own burglaries.

Lots of the stats that we've been watching this year were improved, with 19 points off of 22 Valpo turnovers, and 13 points off of 19 offensive rebounds. There is still room for improvement on those, but they are much better than we in some of the earlier outings. Shooting percentages weren't spectacular. 66% from the charity stripe falls short of the 70% benchmark that we use here at CC, 44% for field goals isn't great, but it's in tolerable territory. The one bright spot was the 39% from behind the arc where Mariya Moore led the charge with 4 out of all 5 of the shots she took in the game finding the bottom of the net. Asia Durr also popped a couple from the corner.

The Cards basketball team next head down the road to Rupp Arena to take on Kentucky. This also could be a good opportunity to see what's going on down in Lexington after hearing the news of four players transferring out of the program in six weeks. This leaves Mitchell with a pretty severely depleted roster, though Makayla Epps is still there and will always be a threat. The only team of any real consequence that the Cats have played this year was Arizona State, a game they won 68-64 in Arizona.

Volleyball Season Ends

The Volleyball squad saw their season come to a close after a loss to Illinois in the second round of the NCAA tournament at Cardinal Arena (15-25, 25-22, 25-18, 27-25). Illinois' height was probably the on-the-court difference, as the Illini tallied 11 blocks compared to UofL's 6.

The Cards came out of the locker room hot and heavy, cruising to an easy 25-15 win. Illinois looked rattled, made a number of unforced errors, and only hit .097 for the set. Meanwhile, everything was going UofL's way, and the Cards ended the first set with a .333 hitting percentage. After the first set, the adrenaline wore off, both for the team and the fans, and things were more balanced, though the hitting percentages flip-flopped, with UofL dropping to .182 and UI swinging for .311. After the set break, both teams were able to play cleaner with the Cards climbing back to a still-not-stellar .238, but Illinois ran out to a very impressive .361 hitting.

The fourth set was the dramatic one. The Illini were able to continue with the momentum, climbing out to a 21-15 lead, when UofL Coach Anne Kordes called her last timeout after a controversial touch call. The UofL fans, sensing the do or die moment, stood, cheered, and encouraged the team coming out of the timeout. In the close confines of Cardinal Arena, the difference was clear. The Cards roared back to tie the game at 24-24, and then against at 25-25. During the run, Coach Kevin Hambly used both of Illinois' timeouts and finally UI was able to put the game and match away.

The player of the match was probably Illinois' Jocelynn Birks with a staggering 26 kills for a torrid .426 hitting percentage. Only one other UI player, Naya Crittenden, even reached double digits, with 11 for a pretty efficient .318.

The Cards were led by the spark of Maya McClendon with 17 for .317, and Erin Fairs with 14 on 43 attempts for .140. Tess Clark and Maggie DeJong had solid games out of the middle with 7 kills each, but were hampered by long stretches where the Illinois attack kept the Cards just out of system and thus taking the middles out of the game. Defensively, Janelle Jenkins was out in front with 12 digs, with Katie George getting 11, and Molly Sauer, fighting a mild stomach bug, also coming up with 11. There were three big solo blocks by Erin Fairs, Maggie DeJong, and Maya McClendon.

Where do the Cards go from here? Katie George has been the face of this team for four years, losing her to graduation will hurt in the departure of the leadership. It also is going to have an impact by losing one of the better setters in college volleyball, however, I think, in Kali Eaken, UofL has a good replacement in the wings, so I think this team will be OK in that area. Erin Fairs takes a lot of offensive firepower away with her graduation. While we've only had her for a year, she made a major impact on this team and losing that offensive weapon will be hard to fully recover from, though we do have 3 hitters coming in as freshmen next year, whether they'll be able to replace Fairs' firepower is an open question. Roxanne McVey will be going to LSU to play sand volleyball and she was a solid defensive presense, and a competent backup setter when George had to take the dig. We have other defensive players already on the roster that can fill that gap. Look, perhaps to see Lindsay Palmer or Gabbie Wiley to expand their roles from just serving specialists to play more defense.

If I may be allowed to editorialize, for a moment, however, I think the biggest lesson that UofL fans should learn from this match is the power of an engaged and loud crowd. I would encourage all UofL fans to go back and rewatch the fourth set of that match...I know it's hard, knowing the outcome...but pay attention to what happened coming out of the timeout at 15-21. Before that, in the set, we were largely passive and sitting, but coming out of that timeout, the UofL crowd (mostly) got to their feet, yelled, screamed, and cheered. The response in the play of the team was immediate and dramatic, putting together one of the most impressive rallies I've seen in college volleyball. Next year, I don't want to see the seats of the KFC Yum! Center filled for UofL volleyball, I want to see people standing and cheering. The fourth set last night was an object lesson in the importance of fans, let's learn it.

RADIO

Our broadcast from yesterday is now up on the Soundcloud at Crescent Hill Radio. We had a lively discussion about Volleyball and also Women's Basketball.

Link below:

THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR

-- JMcA

Louisville Volleyball defeats Belmont in four sets in First Round NCAA contest...Louisville WBB plays Valparaiso today -- Saturday Cardinal Couple

VOLLEYBALL ELIMINATES PESKY BRUINS TO ADVANCE IN NCAA TOURNAMENT

They were the team that would not go away..but Louisville Volleyball finally showed Belmont University the exit door from Cardinal Arena last night -- winning 25-20, 22-25, 25-23, 25-21 in front of almost 1100 people in first round NCAA Volleyball Tournament action.

"We're happy to be able to walk out of here with a win....Hats off to Belmont for being such a tough opponent and we're excited about facing Illinois tomorrow." -- Anne Kordes, on the match.

Louisville started well against the Bruins..jumping out to a 12-4 lead in the first set...but four straight Belmont points drew them within four. The Cards held a tenuous 21-18 advantage but a Belmont service error, Tess Clark kill and Erin Fairs kill got the Cards to game point. A Katie George dump ended the first set at 25-20. The Cards got four kills from Clark and hit .259 for the game.

Belmont roared back in the second set and grabbed a 8-3 lead before a Fairs kill drew the Cards within four. Louisville never could quite get the lead but tied it at 20 before the Bruins went on a game-ending 5-2 run to even the match at one game apiece. Arianna Person had six kills in the set and Brie Lewis added seven for the OVC Tournament champions.

The Cards and Bruins engaged in a back and forth set after halftime...neither team managing more than a three-point lead and the match was tied at 23-23 before the Cards forced Belmont into a hitting error and Maya McClendon delivered a game-ending kill to give the Cards a two-point triumph and 2-1 lead in the match. 

The Cards gained and early 5-3 lead in the final set but the Bruins roared back to take a 14-13 advantage. Tied at 21-21, the Cards used two Clark kills and two timely blocks at the net to take the final four points and complete the game and match. 

Fairs led the Cards with 15 kills, followed closely by Clark's 14 and Janelle Jenkins 10. Clark had a phenomenal .700 hitting average (14-20) for the Cards out of the middle. 

POST GAME INTERVIEWS FROM BELMONT GAME 

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Illinois will be the Cards opponent tonight at 7 p.m. The Illini defeated Southern Illinois 25-19, 25-15, 26-24 in the opening match...getting 12 kills from Katie Stadick and 11 from Jocelynn Birks. The Illini held the Salukies to .137 hitting for the match and forced SIU into 35 errors. 

The Cards will face a big challenge from the taller Illinois squad on the front line. The Illini go 6'3", 6'3" and 6'2" across the front line and Stadick hit an impressive .632 (12-19) in the match against SIU.  

Louisville lost in straight sets to the Illini to start the season but the Cards have improved since then. The Illini have as well...so it should be a great match. ESPN 3 will have the broadcast.

VALPARAISO NEXT FOR LOUISVILLE WBB. 

Fresh off the win Thursday night at Michigan State, the Louisville women's basketball team brings in 0-5 Valparaiso for Saturday afternoon basketball in the KFC YUM! Center at 4 p.m. 

Valparaiso started the season with a 72-53 loss to Butler and was romped 110-54 at Notre Dame. Double digit losses to San Diego and Northern Colorado followed before the Crusaders returned home to narrowly lose to Miami (OH) 75-72 Thursday night. 

Jasmine Walker leads Valpo in scoring with 11.2 a game. Meredith Hamlet averages 10.6 a contest and Dani Franklin contributes 9.0 per outing. 

For Louisville, it'll be a guessing game on who Walz will start and have available. Hopefully, Asia Durr and Briahanna Jackson are healthy and ready to go. Myisha Hines-Allen and Mariya Moore continues to provide solid minutes for the Cardinals and Taja Cole and Cortnee Walton both had impressive outings against Spartie. 

Hopefully Walz will be able to go deep into the bench today and give everyone significant minutes against the win-less Horizon League member.  

As a side note, there was an impressive showing of Louisville WBB players in attendance at the Volleyball match last night. From my end zone vantage view I saw Myisha Hines-Allen, Cortnee Walton, Asia Durr, Sam Fuehring definitely and a couple more that were blocked from my full view. Let's hope they got some tips on blocking by watching the wide-netters go at it. 

This one may or may not be on Cards TV tomorrow...we hear there have been some problems with those broadcasts this year...you can always listen to the dependable Matt Andrews and Adrienne Johnson call it on WKRD 790 AM. 

RADIO TODAY

Another Saturday where Worldwide and I will be in the studio at the same time to discuss the joy and excitement of UofL women's sports on The Cardinal Couple Radio Hour.

Volleyball and hoops will be on the docket and we have great clips from Volleyball to air from the recent media day and first round win over Belmont. 

Join us at 11 a.m. on WCHQ 100.9 FM or live on the internet at www.crescenthillradio.com 

paulie
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Cards conquer Crusaders 86-59 -- Monday Cardinal Couple

Strong first half gives Cards 27 point win on road

Louisville WBB used 54.1% first half shooting to grab a 31 point- first half lead and cruised past the Valparaiso Crusaders 86-57 Sunday afternoon in the ARC. 

Myshia Hines-Allen provided a career high 21 points and was part of the front line attack that produced 59 of Louisville's points. Sara Hammond added 13, Shawnta' Dyer totaled 11 and Emmonnie Henderson finished with 11 rebounds and 11 points in front of 567 fans on the Valparaiso campus.


The Cards struggled early against the middle-denying Valpo zone and led only 7-6 after Dani Franklin hit a follow-up shot five minutes into the game. Louisville head coach Jeff Walz inserted Henderson and Dyer into the fray, though...and the Cards went on a 15-2 run over the next six minutes...a Dyer hook shot giving Louisville a 18-8 advantage.

The Cards increased the lead as the half continued...Arica Carter sank a pull up jumper to make it 22-8 and Carter scored again at the 6:41 mark to make it 30-11 Cards. 

Back-to-back threes from Hammond and Jude Schimmel

sent the Cards to a 40-17 edge and Louisville held their largest lead of the game when Hammond cashed in on her second three to put the scoreboard at 48-17 with 3:06 to go in the first twenty. 

Louisville failed to score in the final 3:06...Valpo finishing on a 7-0 run to provide the 48-24 halftime margin. Hammond had 11 to lead the Cards in the first twenty.

The second half was a little more challenging for the Cards...after leading 62-34 five minutes in...the Cards saw the Crusaders put together a 16-6 run during the next seven minutes to cut the lead to 68-50.

Mariya Moore countered with a three to start a 12-5 run which pushed the Cards back out to a 80-55 advantage after a Henderson free throw at the 2:44 mark. Megan Denies connected on a three with 1:09 left to make it 83-57 and the Cards closed out the road win 86-59.


In addition to the double-figure producers...Mariya Moore totaled eight points, Carter six, Smith and Deines five, Schimmel and Vails three. Ariana Freeman played but did not score.

Cards warm up before the Valparaiso victory

The playing time was well distributed Sunday...Smith on court for 33 minutes, Moore 23, Carter 22, Hines-Allen 21, Hammond 20, Schimmel 18, Dyer and Denies 17, Henderson 16, Vails 7 and Freeman 6. 



Louisville won the points-in-paint battle 54-34 and forced the Crusaders into 22 turnovers while creating 13 steals. 

The Cards will return to action Thursday, Dec. 4th when they host Iowa in the KFC YUM! Center for a 7 p.m. tipoff. 

What We Liked

- Myisha Hines-Allen's 9-13 shooting and 21 points. The freshman has a knack for getting the ball and finishing...the Valpo front line could not contain her, Dyer or Henderson.

- Multiple three-point scorers in Jude, Sara, Mariya and Megan. As more team pack the paint defensively against the Cards...a few good women will be needed to loosen up the defense.

- "E" riffic! Henderson continues to get bunches done in her time on court. Her 16 minutes provided 5-6 shooting, 11 boards, a free throw, and a steal. And, she only picked up one foul.

What Needs Work 

- Walz has got to find a way to increase free throw productivity. 11-23 is 47.8%. Backups Vails and Dyer were a combined 2-7. 

- Stopping second half runs. The Cards were deep into the bench when the Crusaders went on their 16-6 jaunt...at 68-50 Walz started trickling back in the starters to make sure it didn't get any closer. 

A win to put Louisville at 7-0 and a November sweep. Give Valpo credit for not throwing in the towel completely after being down by 31...Louisville only outscored VU 38-35 in the final twenty. The Cards continue to do what the premise of this team is this season...strong inside play that finds its creation in turnovers, transition and going to the boards on both ends. 

Enjoy the cruise over the Crusaders, Cards...Iowa and Kentucky are waiting on the dock this week. 

Game highlights below, courtesy of Valpo Athletics:  

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

paulie

WBB with 2:30 tip against Valpo -- Sunday Cardinal Couple

#12 CARDS HOPE TO CRUSH THE CRUSADERS ON ROAD

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SCORE FINAL: LOUISVILLE 86-VALPO 59. Cards led by 31 in the first half before coasting in with the win. We'll have all the details in the Monday edition of CARDINAL COUPLE ! 

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Louisville WBB takes their second road trip of the season to face Valparaiso today at 2:30 p.m. EST in the ARC (Athletics Recreation Center). It's the first ranked opponent the Crusaders have faced in three years at home. 

Valpo (3-2) comes into the game after a 100-65 drubbing by Arkon. Their wins have come against Butler, Northern Illinois and Tennessee Tech...the Crusaders lost to Indiana 81-49. 

The Horizon League members are led by freshman Dani Franklin who averages 13.2 a game. The other double figure scorer is Abby Dean with 10.8 a contest. The Crusaders shoot 70% from the foul stripe and have a 44% success mark from beyond the arc...averaging 22 threes per event. 

Valpo was picked to finish eighth in the Horizon League and

have faced Louisville once before...falling to the Cards 96-40 in the KFC YUM! Center on Dec. 8th, 2012. Sara Hammond had 14 in that one...one of five Cards in double figures. 

Three UofL players (Mariya Moore, Bria Smith and Jude Schimmel) have more steals than the entire Crusaders squad and the freshman duo of Moore (15.3) and Myshia Hines-Allen (14.2) lead the Cards in scoring. 

Louisville will look to do what has worked in the last six games...create the turnovers and score in the paint. They'll look to duplicate their successes at the shutdown of of an opponent in the first twenty minutes. UofL is allowing an average of just 22 first half points this season for their foes. 

Valpo is 2-0 at home this year. After five games, they have scored 349 points..the exact same amount they have given up to their opponents. 

This one is scheduled for ESPN 3 coverage and if you want to sneak a peek at a future Cards foe....Notre Dame goes against Kansas @ 1 p.m. 

Valpo was 6-25 overall and 3-13 in the Horizon last season. They don't exactly strike fear into your friends here at CARDINAL COUPLE. We'll up the ante here and be satisfied with a 30+ point win and 70% + free throw shooting. If Akron can put up 100 on them...shouldn't we expect the Cards could do the same? 

Valpo is another creme puff on the November dessert cart

What chu talkin bout,Willis...Valpo gonna beat the Cards? 

the WBB squad has been feasting on. It gets much more real in December. 

We'll have a full report here on the festivities shortly after the game...

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Bobby mixes it up with a UK staffer. 

Congrats to Louisville Football for their win in the annual Battle of the Bluegrass vs. Kentucky. 

Kyle Bolin....who knew? 

This one got off to a raucous start when the UK players came onto the field and stomped the Cardinal Bird logo.

Don't stomp on our bird.  

Charlie Springer does a great write up at the link below:

CARDS 44- CATS 40

paulie
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Sunday Cardinal Couple - Cards 96 - Valpo 40

SUNDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

- Cards vaporize Valparaiso by 56.

Adorable kids provided the National Anthem

If someone had suggested before the game tonight that Louisville would put up 96 points, win by 56 and Shoni Schimmel would have only two of them...we might have wondered about their mental state or sobriety. With five other Cards in double figures, though...that was the scenario tonight in the KFC YUM! Center....Louisville jumping out to a 33-4 lead in the first 10 minutes of the first half and rolling past the Crusaders 96-40.

Maybe it was the starting lineup change. Breaking from the traditional starting five we've seen most of the season, Sherrone Vails and Antonita Slaughter joined Megan Deines, Shoni Schimmel and Shawnta Dyer at half-court for the opening tip and Louisville proceeded to score the first seven points of the game.

No post-UK letdown tonight.

Dyer and Slaughter were responsible for the first five points and after a Jude Schimmel three, it was 15-2 Louisville three minutes into the game. The Cards would roll that up to 22-4 when Monique Reid connected on two free throws with 13:15 left. It was 35-4 when Megan Deines nailed a layup with 9:44 to go and the only thing left to debate on press row was if the Cards could get to 100 tonight.

The Crusader offensive eventually got rolling but Louisville kept pace. Two Bria Smith free throws with 4:34 remaining made it 44-14. A rare three from Vails put Louisville ahead 50-17 at the 1:21 mark and Vails nailed a jumper with 12 second left in the half to send Louisville to the locker room up 55-19.

They had cookies in the media room at halftime. They probably ran out of turnovers...Valpo had 15 of them in the first half...Louisville only two.

Two Louie's!

All the Cards but Shoni scored in the first half...Slaughter's nine leading the way. Jude added eight, Vails and Reid with seven, Deines and Dyer six each, Hammond five, Harper three and Walton and Smith two each. 

Louisville had 30 points in the paint, Valpo 10. The Cards had 25 points off turnovers, led 16-2 on 2nd chance points and grabbed 23 boards to Valpo's 15.

Walz started the same five that began the game in the second half...but with different results. The Crusaders jumped out on a 6-2 run in the first 2:30...which necessitated a 30 second Louisville time-out and five new players on the court. The combination of Walton, Jude, Harper, Hammond and Reid took off on a 7-2 run over the next 2:30...capped by a 1-2 performance by Walton at the free throw line with 15:13 to go to make it 64-29.

It was one of two free throws the Cards would miss in 40 minutes...going 18 for 20 from the charity stripe.

Shoni became the last Cardinal to score...after a jumper in the paint went in at the 9:42 mark....making it 72-30

Louisville led 75-30 with 9:14 left after a Vails score and free throw and 82-33 when Slaughter hit a jumper with 5:54 left on the clock. It was 90-40 with 2:49 remaining after a Walton layup and Jude Schimmel completed the Cards' 8-0 game ending run with a steal and layup with 44 seconds to go.

Cards win 96-40

Sara Hammond led the balanced Cardinal attack with 13 points and eight rebounds. Slaughter finished with 13 also and Jude, Dyer and Vails scoring 12 each. Dyer added 10 rebounds to record a double-double. Deines and Reid finished with nine each, Walton seven, Harper five, Shoni and Smith two each.

That's right...the usual starting point and two guard for the Cards combined for four points. Smith did not see playing time in the second half...sore knee the report on her.

Louisville shot 45% from the floor (36-80) and 33% from the arc (6-18)...missing all seven three point attempts in the final twenty minutes. The Cards won the rebounding battle 45-28, forced 31 Crusader turnovers while committing just nine of their own and had twenty steals.

THINGS WE LIKED

1) 18-20 from the foul line. We ask each game for 70%. We got 90% tonight. Well done, ladies!

2) 6-11 three point shooting in the first half against a team that came into the game allowing 24.8% by opponents.

3) 38-4 advantage on fast break points for the Cards 

4) A 45-28 advantage on the boards by Louisville.

5) Only nine fouls for the entire game...four of them by Walton. The starters committed one.

THINGS TO WORK ON

1) 40 minutes of consistency. The 6-2 run by Valparaiso to begin the second half was aided by two quick Cardinal turnovers and two missed three-pointers.

2) Keeping Sonja awake during 56 point wins.

SUMMATION

The Cards came out with the foot on the accelerator and didn't let up. The lineup change, due in part because of Smith's sore knee and Hammond's late arrival because of a family matter, clicked and worked well together. But, it was Valpo. Would it do the same against a DePaul or Notre Dame? Hard to say, but games like this are fun to watch and it's always good to see Shelby sink a three. Shoni's low point total surprising but it came on a night where she really wasn't needed. Jude's big night a ever-growing sign that she's improved dramatically since her freshman year. The Louisville front line combined for 66 points and 34 boards.

The Cards take to the road next out for a trip to Colorado and a game against the surprising 8-0 Buffaloes Friday night. Louisville at 9-1 and Colorado possibly at 10-0 after Tuesday's upcoming game. It should be a great battle!


Post game Walz interview link below

http://www.gocards.com/allaccess/?media=357511



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HELLO?

This vid from earlier in the day at the Rick Pitino press conference. Coach takes a call for Bob Domine, who was using his cell phone to record Pitino's remarks.

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Saturday Cardinal Couple -- Valpo to face Lady Cards

SATURDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Crusaders face Cards Saturday night in KFC YUM! Center

-Where are we going?

The Valparaiso Crusaders travel down I-65 to face #8 Louisville in the KFC YUM! Center at 7:30 p.m. Saturday night. Valpo (3-5) plays in the Horizon League and is coming off a 82-73 win over IPFW on Tuesday night in Ft. Wayne.

Coach Dorrow

This will be the first meeting ever between the schools in women's college basketball. First-year head coach Tracey Dorrow took the program over in April 2012 after spending 14 years as the head coach at Ferris State University ( no, not Ferris Buehler U).

Valpo has never defeated a BIG EAST team...currently 0-52 against the conference. They did open the season with a win over Indiana University. They were on a five-game losing streak before the win over IPFW...falling to IUPUI, Butler, Duke and W. Illinois on the road and St. Louis at home.

Lange can put up big numbers

Senior forward Gina Lange is one of the scoring threats for the Crusaders and had 18 points against IPFW. Other scoring threats are junior Tabitha Geradot, Shaquira Scott and Charae Richardson.

The Crusaders are tough defenders of the three-pointer. Opponents are shooting just .248 from beyond the arc this season. They also rebound well for a team whose tallest player is just 6'1". They average +3.1 rebounds more than their opponents this year and have grabbed at least 11 offensive rebounds in each of their eight game this season.

So, how will Louisville react in their first game since the loss to UK? Walz has had several days of practice to work on the things that plagued Louisville in the latter part of the second half against Kentucky...namely free throw shooting and the guards getting the ball inside to the bigs. Since Valpo does defend the three well...inside scoring will be a priority and Louisville would be well served to engage the press and create turnovers to get the transition game active early.

The Cards have been notoriously slow starters in a few games this season and this could well be another night of that if they can't get shots to fall early. Offensively, Valpo can't throw much at Jeff Walz's squad that they haven't seen already this year...and with a decided height advantage...if the Cards can take care of the little things like blocking out, going after loose balls and getting second-chance baskets, they should be able to win this one pretty convincingly tonight.

If the guards can solve the Crusaders' defensive pressure, they should be able to get the ball to bigs Monique Reid, Sara Hammond and Shawnta Dyer for close-in opportunities.

We'll be back later tonight (or Sunday morning) with a game recap.

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Had to share this one with you. Someome has some 'xplainin' to do...Lucy!

"this place doesn't look like Charlotte at all. Where are we?"

Got a call this morning from no other than Louisville head football coach Charlie Strong (one of those automated message thingies) He was inviting me to join him on December 27 in Charlotte for the Belk Bowl.

Been there, done that.

Word of advice to the UofL Ticket office. Promoting this event might hurt Sugar Bowl ticket sales. Or, it is a secret, cryptic message from Coach...indicating that he's job-hunting again and considering a job opportunity with one of the Belk Bowk
teams?

We did the Belk Bowl last year. A cold, raw nasty day. Tailgating in 30 degree temperatures and 30 mph winds was brutal.

Advice to Cardinal football fans. If Charlie calls you, decline the offer. New Orleans will be warmer and the stadium is a dome.
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