VOLUME XVI • NUMBER 32 MARCH 28, 2012
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
FEBRUARY 3, 2011
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
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WHAT’S INSIDE:
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AMERICA’S FOREMOST AUTHORITY ON UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE ATHLETICS®
VOLUME XVI, NUMBER 32 • MARCH 28, 2012
EDITORIAL STAFF GENERAL MANAGER - Jack Coffee SENIOR WRITER AND EDITOR - Russ Brown OPERATIONS MANAGER - Howie Lindsey ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES - Mickey Clark, Betty Olsen and Blanche Kitchen CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Gail Kamenish, Howie Lindsey and Chuck Feist CONTRIBUTING ColumnistS Matt Willinger, Jeff Wafford, Jason Puckett and Rick Cushing GRAPHIC DESIGNER - Scott Stortz COPY EDITOR - Rick Cushing
Louisville coach Rick Pitino and his team celebrated their 72-68 West Regional championship win over Florida on a stage in the center of the court at the US Airways Center in Phoenix. The Cardinals advanced to the program’s ninth Final Four, Rick Pitino’s second at UofL, sixth overall. - photo by Howie Lindsey
The Louisville SportsReport is printed in Kentucky and based in Louisville. It is published weekly in January, February and March, monthly in April, May, June and July and weekly mid-August through late December by Louisville Sports News, L.L.C., in Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville Sports News, L.L.C.: Owner and General Manager - Jack Coffee. The SportsReport was founded in 1996. United States Postal Number: 015255 POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Louisville SportsReport, P.O. Box 17464, Louisville, KY 40217. Four weeks advance notice is required on old addresses as well as new. Periodicals Postage paid at Louisville, Ky. Subscriptions are priced at $57.95 each (plus 6% Ky. tax) for 32 issues. Members of the University of Louisville’s Cardinal Athletic Fund receive a special group rate of $39.75 for their initial subscriptions and that amount is applied from each annual donation. Year-round firstclass mailing is available for an additional $53 per year. Please call for Canadian and overseas rates. Not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs unless accompanied by return postage. Publisher reserves right to accept or reject advertisements. Copyright 2008 by Louisville Sports News, L.L.C. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. For subscriber information or circulation questions call 1-502-636-4330. Office hours at 2805 S. Floyd St. in Louisville: By Appointment Only.
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HEADED TO N’AWLINS
A clash with arch rival Kentucky looms as Louisville heads to New Orleans for the NCAA Final Four. The Cardinals are one of the hottest teams in the nation, having won eight straight games.
7 GATORS CHOMPED
9 SPARTAN REVENGE
Despite leading by 11 with just over eight minutes to go, the Florida Gators were hounded by Louisville’s defense down the stretch and gave up the lead and a trip to the Final Four.
Remember the Spartans? Louisville certainly did. The Cardinals got revenge on Michigan State for the Spartans’ 2009 win over then-No. 1 Louisville.
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20 CARLOS WINS!
DOES YOUR BUSINESS NEED TO REACH THOUSANDS OF LOUISVILLE FANS? EMAIL HOWIELINDSEY@GMAIL.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT ADVERTISING IN THE LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT.
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www.cardinalsports.com THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT WILL BE MAILED APRIL 10 COVER DESIGNED BY SCOTT STORTZ COVER PHOTO BY HOWIE LINDSEY
CSPA COLLEGE SPORTS PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
14 SPRING FOOTBALL
Coach Charlie Strong and the Cardinals took the field for three open practices last week. The Cardinals are preparing for the annual Spring Game, April 14 at 1 p.m.
QUIET KYLE
Senior Kyle Kuric isn’t known for his bravado, but it was his speech to teammates that helped spark the Cardinals’ comeback in the 72-68 win over Florida in the Elite Eight.
4 2012 ncaa men’s basketball tournament bracket 6 opponent preview: kentucky wildcats By Rick Cushing 8 these cards might have another rabbit in their hat By Jack Coffee 10 the good, the bad and the ugly By Howie Lindsey 11-13 NCAA Tournament photo galleries 15 behanan, dieng need to continue strong play By Russ Brown
Carlos Almeida won the last race of his UofL career, and it was a big one. Almeida brought home Louisville’s firstever NCAA championship trophy in swimming.
17 once written off, cards have authored new script By Russ Brown 18 opponent preview: kansas jayhawks By Rick Cushing 19 opponent preview: ohio state buckeyes By Rick Cushing 21 cards now 27-0, last unbeaten team in the country By Rick Cushing 22 cardinal stars of the week By Howie Lindsey 24 cardinal kids photo gallery
The next issue of the Louisville SportsReport will go to press, April 3. That edition will be published digital only (not mailed) unless Louisville wins the national championship. Fans can see all the digital editions of the Louisville SportsReport at www.louisvillesportsnews.com
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
2012 NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET
MARCH 28, 2012
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
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RECRUITING NOTEBOOK LOUISVILLE BASKEtball 10 AMAZING AND MEMORABLE MOMENTS OF THE 2009-2010 SEASON
U nderdog U of L eager for rematch with top seed
Dream Game II: Cards and Cats in Final Four showdown By Russ Brown After Louisville had beaten Florida for the West Regional championship in Phoenix last Saturday, much of the talk in the locker room wasn’t about that win but about the next game -- a possible matchup against Kentucky in the Final Four. UK was still 24 hours away from punching its own ticket to New Orleans with an 82-70 victory over Baylor in the South Regional final on Sunday, but the speculation was that the top-seeded Wildcats (36-2) would be UofL’s opponent in the 6:09 p.m. game this Saturday in the Superdome. Senior guard Chris Smith, for one, left no doubt that he was eagerly looking forward to a rematch of Louisville’s 69-62 loss to Kentucky in Rupp Arena on New Year’s Eve. “Everybody wants to see that matchup, and I want to see it also because I feel we owe them a little something,” Chris said. “I feel like they stole the game from us down there. They’re a great team, and we want greatness, too. For us to have a capitalized season we want to beat the No. 1 seeds, and that would make our season.” UofL (30-9), a No. 4 seed, already has taken out one No. 1 seed, sending Michigan State to the sidelines with an impressive 57-44 victory in the West Regional semifinals last Thursday. UK is the only top seed to make the Final Four, with Ohio State (31-7) and Kansas (31-6), both No. 2 seeds, meeting in the other semifinal. Asked after the win over Florida about the possibility of facing his former employer in the Final Four, UofL coach Rick Pitino said: “If that happens it would be awesome for the state, but I don’t get into these petty things. There will be people at Kentucky that will have a nervous breakdown if they lose to us. They’ve got to put fences up on the bridges.” He went on to say:”I respect excellence. I marvel at excellence, and they’re certainly an excellent ball club. We think they’re great. I coached there. It’s great. Great tradition. We want to be Louisville. We have a different mission. But there’s so much petty jealousies. When I was at Kentucky we would never get jealous of Louisville in any way. We were just appreciative of being Kentucky. But I don’t get into these petty things. Kentucky/Louisville. To me it’s nonsense.” This is hoops hysteria at its utmost. One columnist referred to it as the Kentucky Derby without the horses, but this probably goes beyond even the Derby, or virtually every other sporting event in the Bluegrass state in the last 25 years for that matter. “When you talk about Louisville and Kentucky playing, that goes to the stratosphere of intensity and history and tradition,” said CBS Sports college basketball analyst Clark Kellogg. “This is way off the charts. Kentucky is the best team in the country. It’s not even open for debate. They don’t have any glaring weaknesses.” UofL and UK have split their four matchups in the NCAA Tournament, but this will be their first meeting in the Final Four and their first in the tourney since 1984 when UK won a Sweet 16 showdown 72-67 in Rupp Arena. The last time the teams played with this much on the line was in the 1983 Elite Eight in Knoxville, Tenn. -- the so-called Dream Game, which UofL won 80-68 in overtime to reach its third Final Four in four years under coach Denny Crum. That game prompted the resumption of the regular-season series the following season after it had been dormant for 24 years. “Fans are going to go crazy,” UofL point guard Peyton Siva said. “All New Orleans is
Guards Peyton Siva and Russ Smith celebrated on the court after Louisville beat Florida 72-68 to advance to the Final Four in New Orleans. - photo by Howie Lindsey
going to be red and blue. I don’t think anybody else is going to have a ticket. It’s great to bring the city this much joy.” Said freshman forward Chane Behanan: “Won’t nobody be in Kentucky. Everything will be empty.” This marks the first time two teams from the same state have met in a Final Four since Cincinnati beat Ohio State in the 1961 and 1962 national championship games. “It will go down in history,” Behanan said. “It’s exciting to be a part of that.” It may be exciting, but it’s also a huge challenge for the Cards, a task that could fall under the category of be careful what you ask for. “I don’t think anybody wants to play Kentucky right now,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said after watching his team get demolished by the Cats. They’re (UofL) probably more familiar with them, but Kentucky is the best team in college basketball. I think if Kentucky plays their best basketball, nobody’s going to beat them. If Kentucky doesn’t have a good night, anybody can beat anybody for one game.” Pitino compared Louisville’s formidable undertaking with the one he faced in 1982 when his Kentucky team faced No. 1 Duke and took the heavily favored Blue Devils into overtime before losing 104-103 on Christian Laettner’s infamous last-second shot. “In everybody’s mind, Duke was considered an unbeatable team at the time, nobody giving us much of a shot,” Pitino said. “I’m sure that’s pretty much the case with us right now, that nobody’s giving us much of a shot. But we believe we can win. Every team should believe they can win. “But certainly our respect for Kentucky is off the charts. We thought they were a great team in December, we think they’re even a better team now, so we understand we’re going to have to play the type of game Villanova played against Georgetown (to win the 1985 national title). We can’t make a whole lot of mistakes to beat Kentucky, and that’s what we’re hoping to do.” For Kentucky it has been a steady march
to what many think has been their ultimate destiny, but for a flawed UofL team it’s been an improbable run. “I think if you look at us on paper, you’re not impressed,” Pitino said. “But when you have to play against us and your legs are giving out in the last five or six minutes you’re more appreciative of the way we play. “You can’t get to the Final Four without being a talented ballclub. Now, we may not have as much talent as some other teams in certain areas, but we have young talent that is really going to develop -- Gorgui Dieng, Chane Behanan, Wayne Blackshear. The best team in the pros is going to win generally speaking 90 percent of the time in a best-of-seven series, but in a one-game situation anybody can win. “There are games I’ve lost with more talent and games I’ve won with less talent. Somebody shoots great, breaks go your way at the end, anything can happen. Florida totally outplayed us. For 32 minutes they were much the superior team. In the last eight minutes we were fortunate enough to turn it around. Talent is not always the reason you win or lose.” UK coach John Calipari said he isn’t “worried about who we’re playing” but realizes that his players will be hearing from fans throughout the week. “We’re playing a basketball game,” Calipari said. “Believe me, we will not change. The drama of the game will be on the staff, but I don’t have many Kentucky players on my team. They don’t know all that stuff. I’ll tell them, get off the message boards, don’t worry about the Twitter and Facebook. Don’t buy into that. “The minute you start drinking that poison you die, because the other team is jacked up and ready to play. Every team we play it’s the biggest game of the century. I’m going to talk to my grandchildren about this game if we win. People want to make a big deal about the rivalry. Not at this time of the year. Whether it’s a team 12 miles from you or 1,000 miles from you, it doesn’t matter. It matters to fans, but we’re not worried about that. We’re worried about playing
basketball.” Easier said than done, of course. “We think of it as Kentucky against the next team,” said UK All-American Anthony Davis. “Louisville is a great team. So we’ve got to come out and play hard. We’re just worried about the next win.” Davis and his shotblocking skills on defense, along with his scoring ability, will be a stiff challenge for UofL’s Gorgui Dieng and Chane Behanan. So will Michael KiddGilchrist, a versatile 6-7 player who led the Cats with 19 points against Baylor and had 43 points in two regional games, hitting 14 of 25 shots and all 14 of his free throws to be named the Most Outstanding Player. The 6-10 Davis got 18 points and 11 rebounds in the final. Louisville has some weapons of its own, although the Cards rely mostly on their defense. UofL’s scoring in the postseason has been even more balanced that it was before. For six straight games prior to Russ Smith’s 19 points in the regional final against Florida, the Cards produced six different leading scorers -- Behanan (15 vs. Michigan State), Russ Smith (17 vs. New Mexico), Siva (17 vs. Davidson), Chris Smith (15 vs. Cincinnati), Dieng (16 vs. Notre Dame) and Kyle Kuric (20 vs. Marquette). “The one thing about us is we’re a complete basketball team, so on any given night it could be anybody’s ballgame,” Chris said. “It could be my night, Gorgui’s night, Chane’s, Russ’s, Peyton’s. And anybody off the bench could come in and have a good night.” Calipari said UofL is playing much better than it was at the time of the earlier loss, and nobody would dispute that. After a 12-0 start, the Cards were in the process of losing 5 of 7 games. “They’re in a nice mode right now playing the way they have to play to win,” Calipari said. “They’re defending that way, they’re playing offense that way. When I look at them, I say, ‘Wow.’ They’re very, very aggressive. They’re doing all the things they need to do to put themselves in position to win. “They’ve kind of morphed their zone defense into how you’re playing. At times they’ve pressured people, and it has rattled some cages. They pressed us the first time and rattled us. We weren’t ready for that at that time of year and we were lucky to get out alive in that game. They’re terrific defensively, they play hard and they’re physical.” In the first meeting, UK controlled the game most of the way, although the Cards rallied to tie the score at 40 4 1/2 minutes into the second half after trailing by as many as 15 in the first period. However, the Cats pulled away again and led by 13 (67-54) going into the final 18 seconds. Russ Smith was UofL’s only double-figure scorer with 30 points, and the Cards shot just 32.3 percent, including 4 of 18 from three-point range. Kidd-Gilchrist got 24 points and 19 rebounds for UK, and Davis had 18 and 10 as the hosts manhandled UofL on the boards, 57-31. “They’re a great team, but we’re playing really good right now,” Siva said. “It’s going to be a great, tough-fought game.” “They’re as good as it gets in all phases of the game,” Pitino said. “They have improved, we have improved. We’ll take a look at that game, see what was successful, what wasn’t and what we can improve on. Then we’ll be ready with the game plan and be ready on Saturday.” And try to stage a Cardi Gras celebration in New Orleans.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
GAMEDAY PREVIEW - KENTUCKY
KENTUCKY
BREAKING DOWN THE WILDCATS By Rick Cushing Top-ranked and the overall top seed in the NCAA Tournament, UK has rolled through the tourney, culminated by an 82-70 victory over Baylor in the South HEAD COACH JOHN CALIPARI Regional final last Sunday in Atlanta. The final score didn’t reflect the total dominance of the Wildcats (36-2), who took control with an early 16-0 run, led 42-22 at the half and cruised past the thirdseeded Bears (30-8). Michael Kidd-Gilchrist scored 19 points, National Player of the Year Anthony Davis had 18 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks, and Terrence Jones had 12 points, nine rebounds, six assists, three blocks and two steals. The Cats got to the Elite Eight by beating 16th-seeded Western Kentucky 81-66, eighth-seeded Iowa State 87-71 and fourth-seeded Indiana 102-90, avenging one of their two losses. This will be their second straight trip to the Final Four. Everyone who’s reading this knows all about the Wildcats, a dream team fashioned of the top recruiting class in the country three years running, with last year’s class ranked among the top five all-time, headed by Davis, Kidd-Gilchrist and point guard Marquis Teague, all of whom start. They are joined by two holdovers from the previous year’s class, Doron Lamb and Jones, as well as by Darius Miller, a senior who was Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball in 2008. All six are averaging in double figures. The Wildcats rolled through the regular season, falling only at Indiana 73-72 on Dec. 10. Their only other loss came in the finals of the SEC Tournament, 71-64 to Vanderbilt. UK leads the country in scoring margin (17.4 ppg), fieldgoal defense (37.5 percent) and blocks per game (8.6), is ninth in shooting (48.7 percent) and rebounding margin (plus-7.3) and 23rd in scoring defense (60.4 ppg). UK will take on West Regional champ Louisville in the first semifinal Saturday night in New Orleans (6:09 p.m. EDT). The archrivals met on Dec. 31 in Lexington, with the Cats prevailing 69-62 after leading by 15 points early and by 13 late in the game. The Cards will have their work cut out for them but can be heartened by the fact that Vandy beat UK, and UofL beat Vandy 62-60 in overtime on Dec. 2. GUARDS The 6-2 Teague, whose college decision came down to UK and UofL, runs the show. He’s averaging 10.0 ppg, tied for fifth on the team, and leads with 4.8 assists per game. He’s shooting 41.2 percent overall, 31.2 on treys. He’s a fairly reliable ballhandler but not a great one, with his assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.78-1, 126th in the country. He had only four points against UofL on Dec. 31, missing 7 of 8 shots, with five assists and four turnovers. Lamb, a 6-4 sharpshooter, averages 13.6 ppg, second on the team, and is shooting 47.1 percent both overall and on treys. He’s a very good free-throw shooter at 85.2 percent. He had 10 points against UofL on Dec. 31 but made just 1 of 7 shots (he hit 8 of 9 free throws).
The 6-8 Miller, who’s listed as a guard but really is a swingman, averages 10.0 ppg and 2.7 rpg. He’s shooting 47.2 percent overall, 37.8 on treys. He had seven points on Dec. 31 but made eight turnovers. BIG MEN The 6-10 Davis is averaging 14.2 ppg and 10.1 rpg, both leading the team, and 4.57 blocks, which leads the nation. He also leads the team in steals at 1.3 a game. He’s shooting 63.3 percent overall, just 15 percent on treys (3 of 20). He had 18 points, 10 rebounds, six blocks and three steals on Dec. 31, when he made 12 of 13 free throws. The 6-7 Kidd Gilchrist is averaging 11.8 ppg and 7.6 rpg and is shooting 48.6 percent overall but just 26.0 on treys. He had 24 points and 19 rebounds on Dec. 31 in what was one of his best games of the season. Jones, a 6-9 sophomore, is averaging 12.6 ppg and 7.1 rpg and is shooting 50.1 percent overall, 33.3 on treys. He was recovering from an injury and scored just two points on Dec. 31, hitting only 1 of 9 shots. He did have 11 rebounds as the Cats demolished UofL on the boards 57-31. The top frontcourt sub is 6-9 freshman Kyle Wiltjer, who’s averaging 5.2 ppg and 1.9 rpg and is shooting 43.0 percent on treys. He’s a defensive liability, however. STARS Davis, to be sure, but so are Kidd-Gilchrist and Jones. TEAM STRENGTHS Balanced scoring and team defense, as reflected by the stats above. TEAM WEAKNESSES UK’s turnover margin is plus-0.4, which is 161st in the country. The Cats turned it over 21 times on Dec. 31. COMMON FOES In addition to Vanderbilt, which was 1-2 against UK, the Cats were 3-0 against Florida, which UofL beat in the West Regional final, while both teams beat Western Kentucky and St. John’s. TOURNAMENT HISTORY This will be UK’s 15th trip to the Final Four, and it has won seven national titles. HEAD COACH John Calipari , 53, is in his 20th season overall, his third at UK, where he is 100-14. Overall he is 503-152 after having four victories wiped out in 1996 and 38 erased in 2007-08 for using ineligible players. Both of those years he took teams to the Final Four (Massachusetts and Memphis), but those appearances were vacated. Both malfeasances could not be traced back to Calipari. He coached eight seasons at UMass and nine at Memphis, with two-plus seasons with the New Jersey Nets in between. ALL-TIME SERIES The Cards and Cats have met 42 times in a series that dates to 1913, with UK holding a 28-14 advantage. The only other times they met in the NCAA Tournament, UK won 79-68 in 1951 and 72-67 in 1984, and UofL won 76-61 in 1959 and 80-68 in OT in 1983, the schools’ first meeting since 1959.
2011-12 KENTUCKY BASKETBALL ROSTER no name 1 Darius Miller 3 Terrence Jones 4 Jon Hood 5 Jarrod Polson 10 Twany Beckham 12 Ryan Harrow 13 Sam Malone 14 Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 20 Doron Lamb 23 Anthony Davis 25 Marquis Teague 30 Eloy Vargas 32 Brian Long 33 Kyle Wiltjer
POS yr exp ht/wt hometown (SCHOOL) G Sr. 3V 6-8/235 Maysville, KY (Mason County HS) F So. 1V 6-8/252 Portland, OR (Jefferson HS) G Jr. 2V 6-7/215 Madisonville, KY (Madisonville HS) G So. 1V 6-2/185 Nicholasville, KY (West Jessamine HS) G Jr. TR 6-5/205 Louisville, KY (Ballard HS) G So. TR 5-11/155 Marietta, GA (Walton HS) G Fr. HS 5-11/190 Scituate, NJ (Scituate HS) G Fr. HS 6-7/232 Somerdale, NJ (St. Patrick HS) G So. 1V 6-4/210 Queens, NY (Oak Hill Academy) C Fr. HS 6-10/220 Chicago, IL (Perspectives Charter HS) G Fr. HS 6-2/189 Indianapolis, IN (Pike HS) C Sr. 1V 6-11/244 Moca, (Miami-Dade CC) G Fr. HS 5-9/150 Dumont, NJ (River Dell HS) F Fr. HS 6-9/239 Portland, OR (Jesuit HS)
Coach: John Calipari Overall Record: 503-152 (20th season) Kentucky Record: 100-14 (3rd season) Cats have won seven national titles
ANTHONY DAVIS
2011-12 SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT TIME NOVEMBER Nov. 11, 2011 Marist W, 108-58 Nov. 15, 2011 Kansas W, 75-65 Nov. 19, 2011 Penn State1 W, 85-47 Nov. 20, 2011 Old Dominion2 W, 62-52 Nov. 23, 2011 Radford W, 88-40 Nov. 26, 2011 Portland W,87-63 DECEMBER Dec. 1, 2011 St. John’s W, 81-59 Dec. 3, 2011 N. Carolina W, 73-72 Dec. 10, 2011 at Indiana L, 73-72 8-1 Dec. 17, 2011 Chattanooga W, 87-62 Dec. 20, 2011 Samford W, 82-50 Dec. 22, 2011 Loyola Maryland W, 87-63 Dec. 28, 2011 Lamar W, 86-64 Dec. 31, 2011 Louisville W,69-62 JANUARY Jan. 3, 2012 Arkansas-LR W, 73-51 Jan. 7, 2012 South Carolina W, 79-64 Jan. 11, 2012 at Auburn W, 68-53 Jan. 14, 2012 at Tennessee W, 65-62 Jan. 17, 2012 Arkansas W, 86-63 Jan. 21, 2012 Alabama W, 77-71 Jan. 24, 2012 at Georgia W, 57-44 Jan. 28, 2012 at LSU W,74-50 Jan. 31, 2012 Tennessee W,69-44 FEBUARY Feb. 4, 2012 at South Carolina W, 86-52 Feb. 7, 2012 Florida W, 78-58 Feb. 11, 2012 at Vanderbilt W, 69-63 Feb. 18, 2012 Ole Miss W, 77-62 Feb. 21, 2012 at Miss. State W, 73-64 Feb. 25, 2012 Vanderbilt W,83-74 MARCH Mar. 1, 2012 Georgia W, 79-49 Mar. 4, 2012 at Florida W, 74-59 Mar. 9, 2012 LSU W, 60-51 Mar. 10, 2012 Florida W, 74-71 Mar. 11, 2012 Vanderbilt L, 71-64 Mar. 15, 2012 Western Kentucky W, 81-66 Mar. 17, 2012 Iowa State W, 87-71 Mar. 23, 2012 Indiana W, 102-90 Mar. 25, 2012 Baylor W, 82-70 Mar. 31, 2012 Louisville 6:09 pm ET
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
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LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL
D efensive switch , other keys spark E lite E ight win
Cards ‘man up,’ muzzle Gators for Final Four berth
By Russ Brown PHOENIX -- Between posing for pictures with the West Regional trophy in the University of Louisville’s rollicking locker room in the U.S. Airways Center last Saturday afternoon, Peyton Siva clutched a small piece of the net. “I think I’m going to frame this,” said the junior point guard. “We’re going to New Orleans, babe! This is unreal.” On the other side of the locker room, Chris Smith wore a large strand of the net around his neck and suggested that he might wear it to bed that night. “I’ve got a lot of necklaces, but this is probably RUSS BROWN the most expensive one,” he said with a big grin. “I had to pay the price to get this one.” All the fourth-seeded Cardinals (30-9) paid a price, not only with long, tough practices over the last six months but also by rising to the challenge of switching to a rarely used defense to rally for a 72-68 victory over No. 7 seed Florida (26-11) to earn a trip to New Orleans this week for the Final Four. The Cards earned their ninth trip to the national semifinals Saturday (6:09 p.m. EDT) but their first since 2005 and set up a colossal battle with top-seeded and topranked Kentucky (36-2) in the Superdome. Ohio State (31-7) and Kansas (31-6), both No. 2 seeds, will meet in the other semifinal (around 8:45), with the winners advancing to Monday night’s championship game. Sometimes desperation moves can prove rewarding, and such was the case against Florida. The Gators came out firing, hit 8 of 11 three-point shots in the first half to forge a 41-33 halftime lead, and it looked as if they were poised to blow the Cards to Tucson. So in the locker room at halftime, UofL coach Rick Pitino delivered a surprising announcement: The Cards were going to abandon their 2-3 matchup zone that had carried them to the top defensive ranking in the nation and switch to a man-toman. There was basically no choice, other than to continue watching Florida play bombsaway from beyond the arc. “I can’t remember the last time we played that much man in a game, but at that point it was the only option for us,” senior forward Kyle Kuric said. “We could either stay in a zone and go from eight down to 20 down by them hitting threes, or we could suck it up, go man, try and get stops and whittle their lead down and get back in the game. “It was tough, but it was a situation where we couldn’t say we couldn’t do it. The Final Four was on the line. If we have to go man, we have to go man, that’s how it was. Whatever it takes to win at this point.” The move worked. Florida’s three-point rampage was over -- the Gators missed all nine of their trifectas in the second half and shot just 37 percent overall (10 of 27) after
Kyle Kuric guarded Florida’s Bradley Beal during Louisville’s full-court pressing defense. Kuric and the Cardinals wore Florida out by the second half and ended the game on an 18-3 run. - photo by Howie Lindsey
hitting 66.7 percent (14 of 21) in the first 20 minutes. “Everybody did a great job of containing their man and keeping them from shooting threes,” Siva said. “Coach believed in us, believed we could get out of our zone and play man. We wanted to keep on fighting and never give up. At halftime Coach P told us we don’t want to go home and regret not giving it our all on the court. We wanted to keep this roll going.” The players said they never even practice man-to-man defense except when going over their own man-to-man plays on offense. But UofL’s matchup zone involves many man-to-man principles, so the switch probably wasn’t as difficult as it might seem. “Guys on our team can guard anybody, really,” guard Chris Smith said. The game was eerily similar to the Cards’ 93-85 overtime victory over West Virginia in the 2005 West Regional final in Albuquerque when Pitino had to tear up the scouting report and change strategies after the Mountaineers built an 18-point lead by hitting deep threes. “When a team outplays you like that, like West Virginia did, it’s really difficult,” Pitino said. “We had to switch defenses because our guys wanted to go to a Final Four in the worst way. I kept telling them to just play aggressive man-to-man.” The victory had several other key ele-
ments, of course. Louisville’s bench, led as usual by Russ Smith, outscored Florida’s subs 22-5. A controversial technical foul on Pitino gave the Cards some extra juice, as did a fiery pep talk from an unlikely source -- the normally quiet and reserved Kuric. “They outplayed us for 32 minutes,” Pitino said. But the Cards took it to the Gators down the stretch. Still trailing 65-54 with 8:15 remaining, UofL closed the game on an 18-3 run, including a 12-1 spurt that pulled the Cards even at 66 with 3:06 left. When Pitino got a technical foul -- for yelling at Siva for picking up his fourth foul, he later said -- Florida hit four consecutive free throws for a 58-47 lead and things looked bleak for the Cards. That’s when Kuric, probably one of the quietest captains in the history of college basketball, spoke out. “Kyle never says much, but he’s a senior captain and we needed that,” said Chris Smith, also a senior captain. “Kyle said, ‘Fellows, we’ve got to rise to the occasion and fight through this adversity and get this win.’ Everybody went to work, and that’s what we did.” UofL also had to overcome serious foul trouble. Chane Behanan got his fourth foul with 12:22 left, Kuric played the final 9:04 with four fouls, and Siva fouled out at the 3:58 mark with Florida on top 66-64.
With Siva out, Russ Smith operated at point guard for the rest of the game and hit two pressure-packed free throws with 16.7 seconds left for a 71-68 lead. “I was actually pretty nervous because it was the first time I had handled the point in such a serious situation,” said Russ, who finished with a game-high 19 points and also had five rebounds. “It could have potentially cost us the season. Coach told me it was going to be OK, just listen, run this, run that. So I had all the plays planned so I wouldn’t be lost. Thank God we won.” Behanan gave UofL the lead for good at 69-68 at 1:04 with a turnaround jump shot in the lane over Florida’s taller Eric Murphy. Behanan finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, two blocks and a steal and was named the regional’s Most Outstanding Player. “They’re the best shooting team I’ve seen this season,” Pitino said of Florida. “We did two things great in the second half. We limited their threes, and we didn’t turn the ball over.” The Cards had a season-low six turnovers. Joining Behanan on the all-tournament team were teammates Siva and Gorgui Dieng, along with Florida guard Bradley Beal and Michigan State forward Draymond Green. DONOVAN PLUGS PITINO FOR HALL Pitino, who has been nominated as a finalist for the Naismith Hall of Fame, improved to 7-0 against Donovan, who was a star guard on Pitino’s first Final Four team at Providence in 1987 and later served as his assistant at Kentucky. They consider each other best of friends, if not family, and afterward Donovan said Pitino already should have been in the Hall of Fame. “I’ve never said this publicly, but I’ll say it here,” Donovan said. “I’m absolutely shocked he’s not in the Hall of Fame. It should have happened a long time ago, in my opinion. I don’t think there’s a coach in the country that’s done more with less. And believe me, I was on a team with a lot less. “I don’t think he’s always had great talent. I don’t think he’s always had the quoteunquote, best jobs. And I think where he’s gone, he’s done a remarkable job.” Pitino, 59, will be making his sixth appearance in the Final Four and seeking his second title. He is the only coach to take three different schools to the Big Dance and only the third in history to make the Final Four in four different decades, the others being Dean Smith and Mike Krzyzewski. The class of 2012 will be announced Monday at a news conference in New Orleans prior to the championship game. The class will be enshrined during ceremonies in Springfield, Mass., on Friday, Sept. 7. Other finalists are players Maurice Cheeks, Bernard King, Reggie Miller, Ralph Sampson and Jamaal Wilkes; coaches Bill Fitch, Dick Motta and Don Nelson; and referee Hank Nichols. Player Katrina McClain and team The All American Red Heads are finalists from the Women’s Screening Committee.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
COFFEE BREAK WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
These Cards just might have another rabbit in their hat Well, Cards fans, are you as overwhelmed as I am at the turn of events with this UofL basketball team? You know as well as I do the state of affairs on the last day of February when the Cards lost to South Florida at home, a game every devout fan had penciled in for a win. After all, Louisville had defeated USF 11 straight times since losing in Tampa in 2001, a season the Cards finished with a 12-19 record. Prior to this year UofL was 25-3 against the Bulls. Fans young and old thought that a post-season run was now out of the question, and it was “bring on spring football practice” to many. But this team wasn’t finished in spite of traveling a bumpy road. The 2011-2012 team has now won 30 games. Tell me you predicted that in January. I certainly didn’t. This Peyton Siva-led team joins an JACK COFFEE exclusive club of 30-win teams: the 1979-80 Darrell Griffith team that went 33-3 and won the national championship; the 1982-83 team of the McCray brothers that went 32-4 and lost to No. 1 Houston in the Final Four in Albuquerque; the 1985-86 Pervis Ellison-led national champions (32-7); the 2004-2005 Taquan Dean/Francisco Garcia team that went 33-5 and lost to No. 1 Illinois in the Final Four; and the 2008-2009 Terrance Williams/Earl Clark team that went 31-6 and lost to Michigan State, becoming the only 30-game winner not to reach the Final Four. But this team did and moves out of a tie with Indiana and Michigan State for seventh place all-time with nine Final Fours. Entering this tournament UofL was tied with Indiana but now moves into sixth place with 64 NCAA Tournament wins. IU won just two games in this tournament and is now seventh with 62 tourney wins. Don’t ask me how this happened. Like every other Cards fan, when the Florida game ended I just sat in stunned silence for a few seconds before erupting in high fives and hoorahs for the first time since 2005. As I looked back and evaluated this post-season run, I tried to pick out a dominant player who carried the team to victory. Siva, of course, has reformed his game and is the undisputed on-floor leader of this team, but against Florida he played only 26 minutes before fouling out with nine points. He did have eight assists to lead both teams. Gorgui Dieng had seven blocks and nine rebounds against Michigan State, and along with Chane Behanan dominated the Spartans’ celebrated big men inside. But there has been no dominant player during the eight Big East and the NCAA tournament wins. Six different players have led the team in scoring, and three in rebounding. Against Notre Dame Siva had eight rebounds to lead the team. Siva, Dieng and Kuric made the Big East all-Tournament team, with Siva named the Most Outstanding Player. Siva, Dieng and Behanan made the West Regional all-Tournament team, with Behanan the Most Outstanding Player. In every game but one Louisville’s bench outscored the opposition’s bench. These victories were a total team effort. The star of this team might be the man who weaves all of the parts together and creates a winning basketball team out of 15 moving parts -- coach Rick Pitino. As the stats would indicate (six players average between 9.1 and 12.7 points per game), this is not a team with one player who consistently can take over a game offensively, a fact not lost on Pitino. He has said since the season started that this team would win with defense, which was probably an understatement. In spite of having three top players out for the season, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame nominee stuck with his plan through the tough times and never wavered when criticized harshly for this team’s inability to score. But the object of basketball is to score more than your opponent, and that’s what the Cards have done. Pitino’s achievements have been noticed by others around the country. Jerry Brewer, Seattle Times, “Pitino, the aging mastermind, still has it;” Andrew Kuhla,bleacherreport. com, “Rick Pitino is a great college basketball coach.... I give a ton of credit to Pitino;” and Ryan Chiavetta, nesm.com, “Pitino proved that he is one of the best minds in college basketball.” So now the Cards head to another Final Four, sharing the spotlight with teams ranked much higher than them. They have silenced the naysayers (the Cards were very seldom picked to win throughout the tournament by the so-called experts) and are one of only four teams standing at the end. And they beat ranked teams to get there. In the eight games won by UofL since the end of the regular season, the Cards have defeated No. 8 Michigan State, No. 9 Marquette, No. 18 Notre Dame and No. 23 Florida. Can the Cards win a third national championship? The three other teams are in my opinion the three best in the country, and it’s going to be a mighty tall order. But stranger things have happened. Remember N.C. State in 1983, or Villanova in 1985?
Junior Peyton Siva cut little bits of the net off the rim and tossed them to athletic officials and team personnel who helped the Cardinals on their run to the Final Four. Siva was saying, “There’s an assist, there’s an assist” with each one he tossed. - photo by Howie Lindsey
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MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 9
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL
Cards prove their toughness on way to Elite Eight
By Russ Brown PHOENIX – Ever since arriving in this desert oasis direct from Portland, Ore., a few days before their West Regional semifinal battle with top-seeded Michigan State, the University of Louisville basketball players had heard the talk about how they weren’t tough enough to hang with the bruising Big Ten champions. They couldn’t escape it. It was everywhere, including during pregame press conferences when one of the main lines of questioning was how were they going to RUSS BROWN contend with the Spartans’ big bodies and rugged style of play. Then the fourth-seeded Cardinals went out and did something about it, proving their own toughness by shutting down Michigan State 57-44 last Thursday with a suffocating -- and yes, physical -- defense on their way to an Elite Eight date on Saturday with seventh-seeded Florida. UofL even outrebounded the Spartans, 39-36. Although only Kyle Kuric and Jared Swopshire remain from the top-seeded team that was upset by Michigan State in the 2009 Midwest Regional final, the win provided a bit of redemption. Michigan State’s point total and shooting percentage (28.6) were both the lowest for a No. 1 seed in the history of the NCAA Tournament. Draymond Green, the Big Ten Player of the Year, was the Spartans’ only effective player, getting 13 points and 16 rebounds. But he hit just 5 of 16 shots and committed six turnovers, and none of his teammates scored more than four points. “Our conference (the Big East) is physical and the refs let calls go, so we were really prepared for it,” UofL guard Russ Smith said. “But that team is really just power, just strong people, so they’re able to get away with stuff without even trying to do it. The refs were letting us play, so we did a good job of matching their physicality. We were bumping them back, boxing out, hitting bodies on the rebounds.” UofL had nine steals and scored 16 points off 15 Michigan State turnovers. “We hadn’t played anybody who brought that kind of pressure in a zone,” MSU coach Tom Izzo said. “We came in with the mindset that we weren’t going to get punked,” UofL guard Chris Smith said. Added Kuric: “I don’t want to say we flat out outphysicaled them. But in all the games they lost, the other teams matched
Chris Smith and the Louisville bench leaped to the court from their seats when the final buzzer sounded and the Cardinals had officially advanced to the Elite Eight. - photo by Howie Lindsey
their intensity and toughness, and that’s what we needed to do.” Foremost in that department were a couple of youngsters -- sophomore center Gorgui Dieng and freshman forward Chane Behanan. Dieng recorded seven blocks to tie his career high and the school record for blocks in the tournament, matching Pervis Ellison’s total in an 83-69 Sweet Sixteen loss to Illinois in the 1989 Midwest Regional in Minneapolis. Dieng also grabbed nine rebounds and hit the first three-pointer of his career (he is now 1 of 3). Playing all 40 minutes for just the fifth time this season, he added three steals and five points. “We knew it was not going to be a nice game,” he said. “We came to a war, and we needed to be tougher than them to win this game. We knew if we played better defense we would win the game, and we did.” Michigan State’s defense, meanwhile, concentrated on containing Kuric, UofL’s leading scorer, and point guard Peyton Siva. The Spartans (29-8) were successful in that regard. Kuric hit just 1 of 5 threepointers while scoring seven points, and Siva made only 2 of 9 shots. He had a game-high nine assists but also committed five turnovers. Other Cards came through, however. Behanan scored all 15 of his points in the second half, Russ Smith came off the
bench to get 11, with three assists and only one turnover in 17 minutes, and Swopshire nailed two big treys. After making just 8 of 30 shots (26.7 percent) in the first half, UofL was 13 of 25 in the second period (52.0). “They did a great job keeping me out of the lane and staying home on Kyle,” Siva said. “But that’s the beauty of this team. We can score from different spots, and we’re not worried about offense. We did a great job in the second half of moving the ball and finding open shots.” “Gorgui played a brilliant game. Chane played a brilliant game,” said UofL coach Rick Pitino, who is now 10-0 in Sweet 16 games. “These guys are complete warriors. Chane ... without him we don’t win this game. He was a man-child in the second half.” One key was keeping Dieng, who has sometimes been prone to early foul trouble, in the game. He didn’t pick up his first foul until three minutes into the second half. “We wanted to protect Gorgui with our life,” Pitino said. “We felt if we could keep him in the game, we could beat them.” “Lottery pick,” Behanan said of Dieng. “That’s how he played tonight, like he wanted to get drafted.” Behanan took over when Michigan State was threatening to overcome a 13-point deficit, having closed within 49-
42 with 2:40 remaining. Behanan then scored on a putback and added two free throws to give UofL some breathing room. FILM BUFFS Pitino always has his players watch reams of film as part of the scouting report, but with plenty of time for preparation after flying to Phoenix late Saturday night following the victory over New Mexico in Portland, the film load was even more than usual. “Film, film, film,” Russ Smith said. “Since the day we landed, our off day was film, film that night, film the next day after breakfast, had a practice, film, then film for dinner.” “It was like watching movies all day, all day and all day,” Siva said. “But it was good for us. We learned a lot about them. Coach Pitino is an excellent teacher.” To show his players how good MSU could be, Pitino first showed them video of the Spartans’ victory over Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament title game. But then he worried because he didn’t want the Cards to be intimidated. So to show they could be beaten -- even dominated -- he had them watch IU’s late-season, 15-point victory. “When they watched the Ohio State game, I immediately felt very uncomfortable, because they were so strong and tough,” Pitino said. “So I immediately showed them the Indiana game at IU. We had to get their confidence going again.”
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
GAMEDAY PREVIEW - DAVIDSON
C O M M E N T A R Y
GOOD
It is GOOD to see this Louisville basketball team defy all the critics and naysayers and go on a post-season run. There were plenty of critics after the Cardinals lost four of their last six regular-season games, and one of the those two wins came in overtime at DePaul, but this team pulled itself together and went on a run not seen around here since 2005. A No. 4 seed in the West, Louisville beat 13 seed Davidson, 4 seed New Mexico and then dashed old demons with a 57-44 victory over top seed Michigan State last Thursday. Saturday’s come-from-behind win over Florida was fantastic. Contrary to what John Calipari said in early March, it appears conference tournaments actually do matter - or at least the Big East Tournament does. Louisville is the third consecutive Big East Tournament champion to reach the Final Four. The previous two, West Virginia in 2010 and UConn in 2011, ended Kentucky’s season. West Virginia beat the Wildcats in the Elite Eight, eliminating one of the most-talented teams in tournament history (five first-round NBA draft picks). Last season UConn went from a ninth-place finish in the Big East to a national title on the back of star guard Kemba Walker. The Huskies beat UK in the national semifinals.
GOOD
GOOD
Over the last three weeks Rick Pitino has displayed an amazing ability to squeeze top performances out of this team. With his team down by eight to Florida at halftime Saturday, Pitino laid out his second-half game plan and then told the team: “After the game, when you are cutting down the nets, I don’t want you to celebrate like this is it. There’s still a championship on the line.” Wow, what confidence! Not only was his team down, the Cardinals’ defense really struggled in the first half to contain Florida’s shooters. The Gators were 8 of 11 from three-point range. Pitino switched the defense in the second half, played mostly man-to-man and even started switching defenders before the Gators ran a pick play so a switch would result in a more properly aligned defense. Pitino and his son and assistant, Richard, coached a brilliant second half, but it all started with Pitino’s confident statement during his halftime speech.
GOOD
It was GOOD to see the close relationship between the Pitino family and Billy Donovan. The Florida coach played for Pitino at Providence, and the pair led the Friars to the 1987 Final Four. The fact that Saturday’s game between Pitino and Donovan was for a spot in the Final Four 25 years after their original Final Four was a weird coincidence. After the game, Donovan was introspective: “I personally, for me, am very happy for Coach Pitino. Certainly, emotionally going into the game it’s always a difficult situation like that, with our relationship, but I don’t think any coach enjoys losing in this type of situation. But if I had to lose, it would be to him, to have him towards the end of his career to enjoy this experience.” We can’t go an entire column without mentioning the BAD officiating by Karl Hess last Saturday. For the second time this season Pitino was nailed for a technical foul from Hess while he was merely screaming at one of his own players. After the game, the word was that Hess gave Pitino the technical because he was not in the coach’s box on the sideline. Are you kidding? Sure it was a point of emphasis for officials going into the tournament, but during the second half of an Elite Eight game with a Final Four on the line and he pulls that crap? After seeing him throw two prominent NC State alumni out of the gym during a recent game, we believe there is something actually wrong with Hess. He also was part of the crew that missed a blatant goal-tending call in a Big East game earlier this year. And then he gets assigned the Elite Eight? Are you kidding? Bad call, NCAA.
BAD
GOOD
Here’s a GOOD line from Pitino this weekend. He said he has enjoyed coaching the two foreigners this year. Two? “Gorgui (Dieng) is from Senegal and Russ Smith is from another planet.” Smith scored 19 against Florida and is consistently the toughest player on Louisville’s team to stop. Donovan, who is from the Pitino school of scouting your opponent to the nth degree, said Smith can’t be scouted because he freelances so much. Pitino said: “I kid around and call him Russ‑diculous, taking a page out of the Lin‑sanity stuff, but he is ridiculous, because he really came here averaging 32 points a game in high school, then goes to a prep school because he’s not recruited. He has a unique ability to score, but he has no clue how to play the game (laughter). So the first thing we had to do is, OK Russ, let’s go from eight ridiculous shots a game to five to three. Now let’s get ‑‑ because we’re going to the Final Four -- to one or two. And he’s done that. So he has bailed us out of more situations this year with his play.”
GOOD
We can’t wait to see what Pitino and company have in store for Kentucky this Saturday in New Orleans. Yes, the Wildcats are the
B Y
H O W I E
L I N D S E Y
heavy favorite, but if you give Pitino six days to prepare this deep into the tournament, typically good things happen. It is going to be a long week for Kentucky fans. Going into the game as the prohibitive favorite with all the pressure that goes along with it, and now you add in the pressure of possibly losing to your archrival and old coach? The pressure by gametime might just pop a few buttons. And what if Louisville wins? What if the Cardinals beat Kentucky? Pitino said it best: “They may have to put fences on all the bridges.”
GOOD
After the win over Florida sent Louisville to the Final Four for the second time in seven years, senior shooting guard Chris Smith told reporters he wanted to play Kentucky. Not only did he say he wanted to play Kentucky, he said the Cardinals will definitely play the Wildcats. “Oh, we will play Kentucky in the Final Four,” he said. “I have belief we will play them in the Final Four because I had a dream about it” His dream was right. The Wildcats jumped on Baylor, building a 20-point first-half lead before coasting to an easy win in the Elite Eight. That sets up Louisville and Kentucky’s first-ever game in the Final Four. It doesn’t seem right to call this GOOD, it is more like GREAT, but there was never a movie called the Great, the Bad and the Ugly. Louisville softball is off to a 27-0 start this season which, according to our owner Jack Coffee, is the longest winning streak in school history in any sport. And they aren’t just winning, they are on a roll. Since Feb. 20 the Cardinals have given up only 12 runs in 18 games. In those games the Cards have scored 111 runs. Six of the 18 games have ended early due to the mercy rule. Coach Sandy Pearsall is doing a tremendous job with this year’s team.
GOOD GOOD
One of the many things we like about Louisville is that the athletics department doesn’t just care about one sport. Vice President for Athletic Tom Jurich and his staff want to be nationally competitive in all sports. That has shown recently with individual national championships in men’s and women’s track and field, more national titles in cheer and dance, and with men’s swimming earning its first national title Saturday. Senior Carlos Almeida brought home the program’s first NCAA championship in swimming with a victory in the 200-breast. Louisville also had the highest team finish in school history, placing ninth. The women finished 24th.
BAD
This Final Four includes all big-time programs. That is great for the national appeal of the Final Four, but not great for fans hoping to score tickets. Here is a note received Monday from SeatGeek: “As you might expect with the teams involved, we’ve seen a sharp rise in demand since Kentucky, Louisville, Kansas and Ohio State clinched their spots in the Final Four. Over the course of last week, average prices hovered in the $300 range, but as recently as Friday the average price for a Final Four ticket was $279. Within the last 24 hours, however, the average price has been $521, or an increase of nearly 85 percent over what we were seeing on Friday (which was the lowest average price we saw on any day throughout the tournament).” SeatGeek also confirmed what many in this area believe about the love of basketball in Kentucky. SeatGeek said the site traffic from the state of Kentucky is 3-to-1 over the next closest state (Ohio). That’s remarkable considering Kentucky has only 3 million residents.
GOOD
It’s good that former UofL star running back Michael Bush has signed a free-agent contract with the Chicago Bears. Bush, who formerly was with the Oakland Raiders, inked a four-year deal for $14 million. Now that he’s with Chicago, local fans not only will get to see him on TV more often, they will be able to drive to his home games at Soldier Field. A former fourth-round pick of the Raiders, Bush had his best season in 2011, when he gained 977 rushing yards with Darren McFadden sidelined with an injury. Bush also scored seven touchdowns and posted 418 receiving yards. Also weighing an opportunity with the Cincinnati Bengals, Bush picked the Bears, noting he was impressed with coach Lovie Smith and his assistant coaches. All-Time NCAA Tournament Wins Kentucky 109 North Carolina 108 Duke 96 UCLA 95 Kansas 92 Louisville 64
Indiana Syracuse Georgetown
62 53 46
All-Time Final Fours North Carolina 18 UCLA 17
Duke Kentucky Kansas Ohio State Louisville Indiana Michigan State
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MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 11
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL PHOTO GALLERY - NCAA TOURNAMENT
Tom Jurich hugged his wife, President James Ramsey high-fived a fan and Louisville fans celebrated during the final seconds of the Cardinals’ 72-68 win over Florida Saturday.
Louisville native and Scottsdale, Ariz., resident Muhammad Ali was at the LouisvilleMichigan State game. He and his family were guests of Tom Jurich and James Ramsey. - all photos by Howie Lindsey
Vice President for Athletics Tom Jurich helped cut down the net in Phoenix after the Cardinals advanced to the Final Four.
Tom Jurich and Rick Pitino embraced as sports information director Kenny Klein looked on after Louisville beat Michigan State in the Sweet 16.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL PHOTO GALLERY - NCAA TOURNAMENT
Peyton Siva and Kyle Kuric posed with the NCAA West Regional championship trophy in Louisville’s locker room after the game.
Sophomore center Gorgui Dieng looked to pass from the top of the key against Michigan State. Dieng scored just five points but had nine rebounds and seven blocks. - all photos by Howie Lindsey
Senior Chris Smith held up a piece of the net as he waved to family in the stands Saturday. Coach Rick Pitino told Smith to bring the net down for his contributions to the team’s run through the tournament.
President James Ramsey, his wife, Jane, and former star LaBradford Smith enjoyed the Louisville games in Phoenix.
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 13
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL PHOTO GALLERY - NCAA TOURNAMENT
Senior Kyle Kuric called for the ball as Wayne Blackshear came down with the rebound in the closing seconds of Louisville’s win over Florida. A second later, after hearing the official’s whistle, Kuric punched the air in celebration. - photo by Howie Lindsey
Sophomore Russ Smith scored 19 points for the Cardinals against Florida. After the game, he laughed and smiled with reporters.
A large group of Peyton Siva’s family saw every game in Portland, Ore. From Seattle, Wash., a smaller, but every bit as passionate group was also on hand in Phoenix. Siva’s father is in the middle.
Louisville president James Ramsey raised his arms in triumph as Louisville beat Michigan State in the Sweet 16. The win was sweet, avenging a loss to the Spartans in the 2009 Elite Eight.
Members of Louisville’s cheer and dance teams posed under an empty hoop after Louisville cut down the nets in Phoenix. Their coach, Todd Sharp (top right), is considered the best in the nation.
Russ Smith, Chris Smith and Chane Behanan were among the players celebrating on the stage when Louisville was presented the regional championship trophy.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
CARDINAL FOOTBALL
Strong, Cards prep for Red-White Spring Game By Matt Willinger Coach Charlie Strong and the Louisville football team conducted their final open practice of the spring last Saturday as the Cards began preparation for the 2012 Spring Game on April 14 at 1 p.m. The team put on the pads for the first time Saturday in what was the last of three open practices. It was the final opportunity to see the Cards in action until the RedWhite Spring Game. “We were able to hit some today,” said Strong. “What was good, we were able to watch our guys play physical. We have to be a mentally and physically tough football team. It was more of a practice today. It all starts up front, and they have to play physical. We expect them to play that way. We are still in the process of getting guys to play that well, but I was pleased with the intensity out there today.” FIRST & 10 Having a veteran quarterback like Will Stein, who will be a senior next fall, to back up sophomore Teddy Bridgewater cannot be overstated. Stein knows the system, and his talent keeps the young group of receivers pushing forward. The coaching staff respects him, and as a guy who has paid his dues, Stein had a firm command of the huddle. ... Running back Dominique Brown, who will be a junior, looks ready to build on his breakout season. He’s added some muscle since the Belk Bowl and looks about 10 pounds heavier. Brown and junior Jeremy Wright will be the top two backs to start this spring. Wright made some impressive runs and managed to break one for a touchdown. ... While Brown and Wright anchor the top of the depth chart, the running back to keep an eye on is redshirt freshman Corvin Lamb. He looked very strong on Saturday, running hard and bowling over a few would-be tacklers. Lamb has good speed and is hard to bring down. He brings a new dynamic to the Cards’ backfield. ... Deiontrez Mount likely will earn a starting position this year on the defense, but it didn’t stop defensive coordinator Vance Bedford from constantly reminding the sophomore that he still has a lot to learn. Bedford took Mount aside for several “teaching opportunities” during Saturday’s practice. ... Several times the Cards lined up with two tight ends, featuring Chris White and Nate Nord. The two tight ends were mainly used for blocking, but White did manage to haul in a nice pass over the middle that would have been good for another ... Cards
first down! ... Former running back Vic Anderson was one of several former players spotted in the crowd at Saturday’s practice. The balmy weather produced a healthy crowd that needed something to do to take their minds off Saturday’s Elite Eight matchup on the hardwood. Due to nasty weather the previous day, the Cards practiced inside on Friday. ... It looked as if Devante Parker was in a more featured role in the offense. Either that or his raw talent just stands out. Parker was steady in working with both the first and second team. With Michaelee Harris limited this spring, Parker and Andrell Smith are seeing the bulk of reps. ... The Cards look to have picked up a bigtime talent in sophomore transfer Gerald Chistian. The 6-3, 245-pound transfer from Florida was used as a tight end and as a pass catcher out of the backfield. He has a big, bruising body and can put the hurt on defenders once he breaks through the line. He had four catches for 72 yards and a touchdown last season for the Gators. ... Sophomore safety Calvin Pryor continued his steady play and will be a major component in the secondary next season. He recorded an interception in drills and also broke up a pair of passes. ... Sophomore offensive lineman John Miller doesn’t look to have missed many meals since we last saw him. Big No. 70 is a huge presence on the line and spent the day running with the first team. Rotating on the line with Miller on Saturday were Jake Smith, Mike Romano and Alex Kupper. Restivo Named Secondary Coach Tommy Restivo was named secondary coach last Wednesday, having spent the previous two seasons as the defensive quality control assistant at UofL. He has been with the program for the last two seasons and was credited as a key factor in the Cardinals’ building a top-25 defense. Prior to joining the Cardinals, Restivo was a defensive graduate assistant at Florida under Strong, who was the defensive coordinator. Restivo replaces Larry Slade, who took on a new position in the program. Slade’s New Role Slade was named Director of Community Relations and Career Preparation. He will be in charge of community service projects and assisting players in preparing for life after football, including resume’ building, designing cover letters and working on interview skills. Slade was the Cardinals secondary coach the last three seasons.
Caption: Louisville coach Charlie Strong and linemen Josh Stearns (63) and Chris Acosta began practice last week in preparation for the Cardinals’ April 14 Spring Game.
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 15
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL
I nside duo has been big force in postseason run
Behanan, Dieng need to continue strong play vs. UK By Russ Brown Two of the major forces for the University of Louisville’s basketball team during its postseason run to the Big East Tournament championship and first Final Four since 2005 have been Gorgui Dieng and Chane Behanan. And when UofL (30-9) takes on Kentucky (36-2) Saturday in New Orleans in a rematch of the Wildcats’ 69-62 New Year’s Eve victory, those two frontline players will certainly have to perform better than they did in the first game in Rupp Arena for the Cardinals to have a realistic shot at an upset. Behanan was almost a non-factor on Dec. 31. The 6-6 freshman forward got three fouls just 3:40 into the game, the third one a technical, and wound up playing just 15 minutes. He finished with four points and five rebounds. The 6-11 Dieng also was hampered by foul trouble, although he didn’t foul out. The sophomore had six blocks, but only five points and five rebounds. Those two struggled at other times during the regular season, too, but since UofL’s postseason play began in the Big East Tournament, it’s been a different story. In seven games, Dieng is averaging 8.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and shooting 62.5 percent. He also has 26 blocked shots. Behanan has contributed 8.2 ppg and 6.5 rpg while shooting 52 percent. In the four NCAA Tournament games, Behanan is UofL’s leading scorer at 14.0 ppg and second-leading rebounder at 7.8. UofL coach Rick Pitino calls Dieng and Behanan “complete warriors.” They were particularly potent while helping the Cards to the West Regional championship in Phoenix with wins over top-seeded Michigan State (57-44) and No. 7 Florida (72-68). They combined for 45 points, 31 rebounds and 10 blocks. Against the Spartans, Dieng had seven blocks and 16 deflections, a season high for the Cards. MSU’s Draymond Green, the Big Ten Player of the Year, was the victim of several of Dieng’s blocks and came away impressed. “He was very disruptive coming in,” Green said. “We knew he averaged three and a half blocks a game, but we’re not going to back down from anyone. He pulled off some great blocked shots, and that’s what he does, that’s his strength.” Said Dieng: “Anybody on this team can score. We need somebody to do the dirty work, other little things to help this team win.” The Cards had to know it was going to be their day against MSU when Dieng, finding himself unguarded at the top of the key
Freshman Chane Behanan hit a big jumper in the final minute of Louisville’s 72-68 win over Florida Saturday. INSET - Behanan sat for a moment while his teammates ran onto the court in celebration after Louisville’s win over Florida. Behanan’s tears of joy quickly erupted into a smile and laughter shortly after this photo was taken. - photos by Howie Lindsey
with the shot clock ticking off the final seconds late in the first half, hit his first threepointer of the season. He is now 1 of 3 on treys for his career. “I was just open and shot it,” Dieng said. “I know Coach won’t say anything. He tells us if we’re open, shoot it. I was open, so I shoot it. I’m shooting it for next year because next year I have to shoot threes. Every time I get wide open, I’ll shoot like Kyle (Kuric).” Kuric believes Dieng is serious about next season. “For some reason, he practices that shot all the time and I’ll see him shooting threes over there and I’ll say, ‘What are you doing?’” Kuric said. “Then I’ll see the ball go in and it’s,’Well, do what you want to do.’” Said Pitino: “About a week ago after practice was over he kept shooting threes. I said, ‘It looks pretty good, Gorgui.’ He said, ‘Next year I’m shooting a lot of threes.’ I said, ‘No problem, as long as you make them.’” One key to Dieng’s postseason impact has been his improved ability to stay out of the foul trouble that plagued him too often during the regular season. How has he done it? “Just keep working with coach, not going for the first fake, staying on my feet,” he said. “Stay down and trying to block a
shot when I can, but not all the time.” Senior guard and tri-captain Chris Smith and sophomore guard Russ Smith say they have seen vast improvement throughout the season by Dieng, who is eighth nationally in blocks with 3.18 per game. When UofL faces UK, it could be a block party because Wildcat freshman Anthony Davis leads the country with 175, or 4.61 per game, a national record for a rookie. “Gorgui is probably the best shot-blocker in college basketball besides Davis, and Gorgui is just going to keep playing and stay humble,” Chris said. “Gorgui is the type of guy who has learned a lot this season.” “Defensively, he does the little things, the intangibles,” Russ said. “He fills up the stat sheet with things that aren’t on the stat sheet. Gorgui is very necessary to our team.” Dieng, from Senegal by way of Huntington Prep (W. Va.), said he’s grateful to Pitino for helping him take his game to another level. A soccer player in Africa, he played only a few years of organized basketball before coming to UofL. “A lot of kids back home want to have that chance I have today,” said Dieng, who speaks five languages. “I came to this country into good hands. And Coach P, he always think like, ‘How can I get this kid
better?’ And he worked me so hard. My freshman year I was complaining a lot. I’m tired, my legs hurt. I thank him for that, he changed my whole mentality. He made me tougher, and he teach me how this game can do in your life.” Behanan’s arrival this season has given the Cards a one-two punch inside. Against Michigan State he got 15 points -- all in the second half -- nine rebounds and three steals. Then against Florida he collected 17 points, seven boards, two blocks and a steal to earn the regional’s Most Outstanding Player Award. “I’m all in,” Behanan said. “I don’t want to lose. I’m glad they put the ball in my hands and I made big-time plays. They believe in me.” Do they ever. “Chane’s a monster down there,” point guard Peyton Siva said. He’s grown up through the whole season. You could see him mature as the season went along. He’s playing great. He’s a gamer.” Said Russ Smith: “Chane’s an animal, he’s a beast. “He’s made for this. That’s him, and that’s what we have. He’s going to rebound, play hard, and I’m glad to have him on my team.” If both Behanan and Dieng can be beastly against UK Saturday, the Cards will have a fighting chance.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL
Quiet Kyle’s speech sparks a comeback
By Howie Lindsey Phoenix -- Louisville senior tri-captain Kyle Kuric is one of the quietest players Rick Pitino has ever coached. And on a team with such personalities as Peyton Siva, Chane Behanan, Russ Smith and Chris Smith, Kuric’s quiet voice usually sounds even softer. After games, a typical scene in the locker room would find Siva joking and hamming it up for the camera, Russ Smith holding court all around and Chris Smith and Chane Behanan making bold statements. Kuric? Not so much. But it was Quiet Kyle who spoke up loud and clear to spark LouisHOWIE LINDSEY ville’s 72-68 comeback victory over Florida last Saturday in the Elite Eight. Down 11 points with time draining off the clock in his college career, Kuric stepped into the huddle and spoke up. “After the technical foul I remember Kyle grabbed everyone together and said, ‘Listen, we’re going through adversity,’” Russ Smith said. “‘We’re down 11 ... calls aren’t going our way. They’re hitting ridiculous shots. And let’s just get some stops, because we’re facing adversity. And we’ve been here before.’ And ever since then, we took off. And came out with the victory.” Said Behanan: “I was shocked, really, because Kyle doesn’t talk like that. But he told us that we all need to step up because they won’t give it to us.” You couldn’t blame Kuric’s teammates for being surprised. During his first two seasons on campus, Kuric was chided by Pitino because he never spoke, even when he should be calling out defensive switches in practices and games. “He doesn’t say boo to anyone,” Pitino was fond of saying. Even after being named football Homecoming King as a junior, Kuric was still quiet and fairly reserved, speaking when necessary but choosing to watch his wilder teammates’ antics rather than create some of his own. But he spoke up when it counted, with 10:56 left in what could have been his final collegiate game. “That was the first time I’ve heard Kyle speak in a long time,” Chris Smith said. “But hey, he’s a senior captain, and we needed that.” After the game, with a Final Four hat sitting backward on his head, Kuric said he felt he had to say something. “We were down by 11, Peyton was in
Kyle Kuric pumped his fists after Chane Behanan hit a free throw in the final few minutes against Florida. - photo by Howie Lindsey
foul trouble, I was in foul trouble, and Coach P just got a technical,” Kuric said. “I said everything was against us, and we are going to have to go take it.” Pitino, who was near the scorer’s table discussing the technical foul assessed by referee Karl Hess, didn’t see Kuric pulling his teammates together and was shocked to hear about it later from assistant Richard Pitino. “I didn’t know Kyle did it,” Pitino said. “To be honest with you, I’m the most shocked person on the earth that it was him that did it. Because he really doesn’t do those things. So he stepped out of character at a much needed moment and showed that type of leadership.” Kuric was right about Louisville needing to be aggressive if they wanted to win. And that is what the Cards did. It didn’t happen right away. The Gators still led by 11 at 65-54 with 8:16 left, but the Cardinals closed within 65-64 at the 4:59 mark. They finished the game on an 18-3 run to win by four in one of the most dramatic comebacks of the season for a Louisville team that has had quite a few of them. It wasn’t just Kuric finally stepping into the spotlight in the timeout. It was Pitino making several masterful adjustments on defense - not the least of which was switching his defense from zone to man-to-man in the second half - and it was Louisville overcoming the loss of Siva to his fifth foul with just under four minutes left.
“We were, at that point in time, fighting as hard as we could fight in that basketball game,” Pitino said. “... But when we started switching everything and getting the right switches they started struggling a little bit. And in the second half -- I’m not sure, you can correct me -- I don’t think they made a three in the second half, am I correct on that? 0 for nine.” Pitino was correct. The Gators hit 8 of 11 three-point shots in the first half and missed all nine in the second. Louisville’s defensive pressure cranked up on the Ga-
tors’ shooters, and Pitino’s switching defense made all the difference. The Cardinals’ comeback sends Pitino to the Final Four for the sixth time and pushes his record against Donovan to a shocking 7-0 all time. And it means Louisville is back in the Final Four after six seasons, including a pair of close calls in 2008 and 2009. And Kuric, who agreed to go off scholarship as a senior to accommodate scholarship numbers, is going to the Final Four. He spoke up. He demanded that his teammates join him. And it worked.
Kyle Kuric’s mother, Judi, his father, Steve, and his sister, Katie, joined him on the court during the post-game celebration. - photo by Howie Lindsey
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 17
LOUISVILLE BASKETBALL
T hey ’ re the surprise team in F inal F our
Once written off, Cards have authored a new script By Russ Brown PHOENIX – Chane Behanan predicted it. Or at least promised it. After the University of Louisville had unexpectedly won the Big East Tournament championship in New York City, the brash freshman forward, who is nothing if not confident in his own abilities, pulled seniors Kyle Kuric, Chris Smith and Jared Swopshire aside and made a vow. “After the Big East Tournament, I told the seniors, ‘I promise we will get to the Final Four,’” Behanan said in the locker room following UofL’s 72-68 victory over Florida for the West Regional championship last Saturday. Really? “You can go ask them, because I was going to step my game up and I wasn’t going to let them down,” Behanan said. “I don’t want to lose, and I ain’t going to break my promise.” Is that true, Kyle? Forward Kyle Kuric smiled. “Chane said something along those lines, but nobody really believed him at the time. It was like, ‘OK Chane, whatever.’” Maybe in the future the Cardinals (309) will learn to listen to Behanan a bit more carefully now that they are, indeed, on their way to a Final Four date against top-seeded Kentucky (36-2) Saturday in New Orleans. Maybe Behanan isn’t surprised. Maybe his teammates aren’t either, although one suspects that if given a truth serum even the wildest dreams of the Cards didn’t extend to the French Quarter. Whatever the case, it’s certainly a given that outside the locker room, shock would be the best word to describe the reaction to UofL’s postseason surge, which now stands at eight in a row and counting. A litany of the Cards’ shortcomings during the regular season would read something like this: Can’t shoot. Can’t score. Can’t execute down the stretch. Can’t beat any Big East teams with a winning conference record. Can’t even win the final game in the KFC Yum! Center on Senior Night against a former league doormat (South Florida). This Final Four run came out of left field. So what happened after UofL lost four of its last six regular-season games and needed overtime to beat the worst team in the Big East, DePaul? Good question. The Cards say the answer has to do with amnesia, confidence and re-dedication. Coach Rick Pitino built his players’ confidence, telling them they could win the
With Peyton Siva fouled out for the final 3:58, Louisville turned to sophomore Russ Smith to lead them the rest of the way to the Final Four. Smith had 19 points during Louisville’s 72-68 win over Florida. - photo by Howie Lindsey
NCAA championship, and their self-assurance grew with each victory. “After we lost to Syracuse (in the regular-season finale) we knew nobody believed in us or would pick us to go this far,” point guard Peyton Siva said. “It was us against the world, and we came together as a team and that brought us closer. Coach P showed a lot of heart in us. He wasn’t just telling us what we wanted to hear; he believed in it. Nobody else believed him, but we really took it to heart and wanted to dig through.” “You know what, we started a new season,” senior guard Chris Smith said. “We forgot about the regular season. Once we won the first Big East game, that was a new season, new uniform, newlook Cards, and we just wanted to forget about the past and not talk about how people wrote us off.” Nevertheless, in his press conference after the win over Florida, Pitino called the upcoming trip to the Final Four “a total shock.” Going into the Big East Tournament Pitino and the players talked about becom-
ing this year’s Connecticut. The Huskies finished ninth in the Big East last season, then won 11 in a row to capture the national championship. UofL finished seventh in the league and has so far taken a similar path, although it needed to one fewer game in the conference tourney. “After every game people started buying in more and more to know we’re really confident, we’re going to deliver,” Kuric said. Aside from the confidence factor, though, there are more tangible reasons for the Cards’ surprising resurgence. They also took advantage of healthier bodies and superior conditioning to turn up the heat on their press to wear down opponents. They’re rebounding by committee, taking better care of the basketball by eliminating careless turnovers and executing better in the final minutes (four of their last five postseason wins have come by seven points or less). Sophomore center Gorgui Dieng and freshman forward Chane Behanan have improved considerably, and Russ Smith has been a consistent spark off the bench.
“Playing in the Big East Tournament and playing in the NCAA is completely different,” Kuric said. “The stakes are even higher, but it came at the right time. Everybody is playing well together, and we have a common goal. “It was kind of like, enough is enough, the last straw. Two losses in a row to end the season were enough, tired of losing like that, tired of walking around campus not being happy or excited. So everybody forgot about the regular season, really accepted how we needed to play to win, and once we got the first couple of wins in the Big East Tournament we started having fun and seeing the success we could have.” The players aren’t the only ones having fun. Pitino said often during the season that he has enjoyed coaching this team more than any other except possibly his first Final Four group at Providence in 1987. “They give me every single thing they have in their bodies,” Pitino said. “And they’re just the most incredible group to coach. I’ve had great confidence in this basketball team and its character. They remind me of the ‘87 team because of humility and the way they carry themselves. I wanted to get a Final Four for this team so badly. I am so proud of them. And now they’re going to get that experience. The only thing I’ve asked of them is not to be satisfied by just going.” One more thing. Now that you’ve fulfilled your earlier promise, Chane, any predictions about the Final Four? “No,” he said. “Just play now. No talking.”
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
GAMEDAY PREVIEW - KANSAS
BREAKING DOWN THE JAYHAWKS By Rick Cushing Despite losing four starters who averaged 60 points (out of 81) from last year’s 35-3 team, the Jayhawks are 31-6 HEAD COACH BILL SELF and headed to their 14th Final Four. The second seed in the Midwest Regional, Kansas beat 15th-seeded Detroit 65-50, No. 10 Purdue 63-60, No. 11 N.C. State 60-57, and top-seeded North Carolina 80-67 in the regional final last Sunday. The Jayhawks, who finished on a 12-0 run and held UNC to 11.8 percent shooting on treys, will take on Ohio State in the second semifinal Saturday night (approximately 8:45 p.m. EDT) in New Orleans. The Jayhawks fashioned their success behind a stout manto-man defense and efficient offense. Opponents are shooting just 37.8 percent, second in the country, and they are scoring 61.4 ppg, 37th in the country. The Jayhawks average 5.7 blocks per game, ninth in the country, and 7.4 steals per game, 82nd in the country. They are scoring 73.9 ppg, 41st in the country, are shooting 47.6 percent, 21st in the country, and have a rebounding margin of plus-5.7, 23rd in the country. In its victory over North Carolina, Kansas was led by senior guard Tyshawn Taylor, the lone returning starter, with 22 points, six rebounds, five steals and five assists. Junior forward Thomas Robinson, last year’s top sub, had 18 points and nine rebounds, and junior center Jeff Withey had 15 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. All three made the all-Regional team, with Robinson taking home Most Outstanding Player honors. GUARDS The 6-3 Taylor is averaging 16.7 ppg, second on the team, leads in assists at 4.7 a game and is second in steals at 1.35 a game. He’s shooting 48.2 percent overall, 38.5 on treys. He had been in a scoring slump in the NCAA tourney until Sunday. In the previous three games he scored just 26 points combined. The Jayhawks start three guards. Elijah Johnson, a 6-4 junior, averages 10.0 ppg, third on the team, and 3.1 rpg. He’s shooting 42.5 percent overall, 37.5 on treys, and he leads the team with 65 treys (on 194 attempts). He also leads in steals at 1.46 a game. The third backcourt starter is 6-5 junior Travis Releford, who’s averaging 8.5 ppg and 4.2 rpg. He’s shooting 50 percent overall, 31.2 on treys and is third on the team in steals at 1.16 a game. The top backcourt sub is 6-6 senior Conner Tehan (5.7 ppg, 2.1 rpg).
BIG MEN The 6-9 Robinson is averaging 17.7 ppg and 11.8 rpg, second in the country. He’s shooting 51.2 percent overall, 50 percent on treys, although he’s tried just 14. The 7-0 Withey, who was heavily recruited by UofL, is averaging 9.2 ppg and 6.2 rpg and leads the team in blocks at 3.49 a game, fifth in the country. He’s shooting 54.8 percent and has not tried a trey. He’s not very mobile. The top interior sub is 6-8 junior Kevin Young (3.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg). STARS Robinson and Taylor. TEAM STRENGTH Defense, as reflected by the stats above. TEAM WEAKNESSES The Jayhawks are just average from behind the arc, both offensively and defensively. They average 34.6 percent on treys, 142nd in the country, and make just 5.8 a game, 195th in the country. They allow opponents to shoot 34.3 percent on treys, 178th in the country. They also make just 68.9 percent of their free throws, 183rd in the country. HEAD COACH Bill Self is in his 19th season overall, his ninth at Kansas. He is 475-157 overall, 268-52 at Kansas, which he has led to one national title (in 2008). He started his head coaching career at Oral Roberts, where he stayed for three years and resurrected the program, spent three years at Tulsa and then three years at Illinois before taking over at Kansas in 2003. He has had 14 straight 20-win seasons. NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY Kansas has won three national titles – 1952, 1988 and 2008 –and has been runner-up five times. The Jayhawks, with Wilt Chamberlain, lost 54-53 in three overtimes to North Carolina in the 1957 title game. Sorry, UK fans, but that had to be a better game than UK-Duke in a 1992 regional final when neither team played any defense (104-103 in OT). COMMON OPPONENTS Both UofL and Kansas lost to UK, Kansas beat Georgetown and USF, both of whom beat UofL, and Kansas lost to Davidson, a team UofL beat in the NCAA Tournament. ALL-TIME SERIES UofL and Kansas have met 11 times in a series that dates to 1959, with the Jayhawks holding a 6-5 advantage.
KANSAS
2011-12 KANSAS BASKETBALL ROSTER no name 0 Thomas Robinson 1 Naadir Tharpe 2 Conner Teahan 4 Justin Wesley 5 Jeff Withey 10 Tyshawn Taylor 15 Elijah Johnson 20 Niko Roberts 21 Christian Garrett 22 Merv Lindsay 23 Ben McLemore 24 Travis Releford 25 Jordan Juenemann 31 Jamari Traylor 40 Kevin Young
POS yr exp ht/wt hometown (SCHOOL) F Jr. 2V 6-9/237 Washington, DC (Brewster Academy) G Fr. HS 5-11/170 Worcester, MA (Brewster Academy) G Sr. 3V 6-5/212 Leawood, KS (Rockhurst HS) F So. RS 6-8/200 Fort Worth, TX (North Crowley HS) C Jr. 2V 7-0/235 San Diego, CA (Horizon HS) G Sr. 3V 6-3/185 Hoboken, NJ (St. Anthony HS) G Jr. 2V 6-4/195 Las Vegas, NV (Cheyenne HS) G So. 1V 5-11/175 Huntington, NY (St. Anthony’s HS) G Fr. HS 6-3/170 Los Angeles, CA (IMC Academy) G Fr. HS 6-7/205 Moreno Valley, CA (Canyon Springs HS) G Fr. HS 6-5/185 St. Louis, MO (Christian Life Center) G Jr. 2V 6-5/207 Kansas City, MO (Bishop Miege HS) G Sr. 3V 6-3/195 Hays, KS (Hays HS) F Fr. HS 6-8/215 Chicago, IL (IMG Academy) F Jr. TR 6-8/185 Perris, CA (Perris HS)
Coach: Bill Self Overall Record: 475-157 (19th season) Kansas Record: 268-52 (9th season) Jayhawks have won three national titles
THOMAS ROBINSON
2011-12 SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT TIME NOVEMBER Nov. 11, 2011 Towson W, 100-54 Nov. 15, 2011 at Kentucky L, 75-65 Nov. 21, 2011 Georgetown W, 67-63 Nov. 22, 2011 UCLA W, 72-56 Nov. 23, 2011 at Duke L, 68-61 Nov. 30, 2011 Florida Atlantic W, 77-54 DECEMBER Dec. 3, 2011 South Florida W, 70-42 Dec. 6, 2011 Long Beach St. W, 88-80 Dec. 10, 2011 Ohio State W, 78-67 Dec. 19, 2011 Davidson L, 80-74 Dec. 22, 2011 at Southern Cal W, 63-47 Dec. 29, 2011 Howard W, 89-34 Dec. 31, 2011 NORTH DAKOTA W, 84-58 JANUARY Jan. 4, 2012 Kansas State W, 67-49 Jan. 7, 2012 at Oklahoma W, 72-61 Jan. 11, 2012 at Texas Tech W, 81-46 Jan. 14, 2012 Iowa State W, 82-73 Jan. 16, 2012 Baylor W, 92-74 Jan. 21, 2012 at Texas W, 69-66 Jan. 23, 2012 Texas A&M W, 64-54 Jan. 28, 2012 at Iowa State L, 72-64 FEBRUARY Feb. 1, 2012 Oklahoma W, 84-62 Feb. 4, 2012 at Missouri L, 74-71 Feb. 8, 2012 at Baylor W, 68-54 Feb. 11, 2012 OK State W, 81-66 Feb. 13, 2012 at Kansas State W, 59-53 Feb. 18, 2012 Texas Tech W, 83-50 Feb. 22, 2012 at Texas A&M W, 66-58 Feb. 25, 2012 Missouri W, 87-86 MARCH Mar. 3, 2012 Texas W, 73-63 Mar. 8, 2012 Texas A&M4 W, 83-66 Mar. 9, 2012 Baylor L, 81-72 Mar. 16, 2012 Detroit W, 65-50 Mar. 18, 2012 Purdue W, 63-60 Mar. 23, 2012 NC State W, 60-57 Mar. 25, 2012 at N. Carolina W, 80-67 Mar. 31, 2012 Ohio State 8:49 pm ET
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
PAGE 19
GAMEDAY PREVIEW - OHIO STATE
Coach: Thad Matta Overall Record: 323-95 (12th season) Ohio State Record: 221-64 (8th season) OSU has won one national title
jared sullinger
2011-12 SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT TIME NOVEMBER Nov. 11, 2011 Wright State W, 73-42 Nov. 15, 2011 Florida W, 81-74 Nov. 18, 2011 Jackson St. W, 85-41 Nov. 21, 2011 NORTH FLORIDA W, 85-50 Nov. 23, 2011 VMI W, 107-74 Nov. 25, 2011 Valparaiso W, 80-47 Nov. 29, 2011 Duke W, 85-63 DECEMBER Dec. 3, 2011 TX Pan Am W, 64-35 Dec. 10, 2011 at Kansas L, 78-67 Dec. 14, 2011 South Carolina W, 82-58 Dec. 17, 2011 at South Carolina W, 74-66 Dec. 20, 2011 Lamar W, 70-50 Dec. 22, 2011 Miami-OH W, 69-40 Dec. 28, 2011 Northwestern W, 87-54 Dec. 31, 2011 at Indiana L, 74-70 JANUARY Jan. 3, 2012 Nebraska W, 71-40 Jan. 7, 2012 at Iowa W, 76-47 Jan. 10, 2012 at Illinois L, 79-74 Jan. 15, 2012 Indiana W, 80-63 Jan. 21, 2012 at Nebraska W, 79-45 Jan. 25, 2012 Penn State W, 78-54 Jan. 29, 2012 Michigan W, 64-49 FEBRUARY Feb. 4, 2012 at Wisconsin W, 58-52 Feb. 7, 2012 Purdue W, 87-84 Feb. 11, 2012 Michigan State L, 58-48 Feb. 14, 2012 at Minnesota W, 78-68 Feb. 18, 2012 at Michigan L, 56-51 Feb. 21, 2012 Illinois W, 83-67 Feb. 26, 2012 Wisconsin L, 63-60 Feb. 29, 2012 at Northwestern W, 75-73 MARCH Mar. 4, 2012 at Michigan State W, 72-70 Mar. 9, 2012 Purdue W, 88-71 Mar. 10, 2012 at Michigan W, 77-55 Mar. 11, 2012 at Michigan State L, 68-64 Mar. 15, 2012 Loyola Maryland W, 78-59 Mar. 17, 2012 Gonzaga W, 73-66 Mar. 22, 2012 Cincinnati W, 81-66 Mar. 24, 2012 at Syracuse W, 77-70 Mar. 31, 2012 at Kansas 8:49 pm ET
By Rick Cushing The Buckeyes, who lost to Kentucky by two points in the Sweet Sixteen last season as the overall No. 1 seed, came into this season with a returning superstar, Jared HEAD COACH Sullinger, and intentions of reaching the THAD MATTA Final Four. Mission accomplished, as they beat top-seeded Syracuse 77-70 last Saturday in the final of the East Regional in Boston behind Sullinger, who had 19 points and seven rebounds despite sitting out almost 14 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble. Sullinger had surprised a lot of people by declining to leave for the NBA after an outstanding freshman season (17.2 ppg, 10.2 rpg, first-team All-American). Only one other starter returned – senior guard William Buford – but he is a good one, and top sub Aaron Craft, the Big Ten’s Sixth Man of the Year, also was back. They were joined by sophomores Deshaun Thomas, a forward who averaged 7.5 ppg as a freshman, and guard Lenzelle Smith Jr., a highly ranked recruit whose freshman season was compromised by injury, and two McDonald’s All-American recruits – center Amir Williams and guard Shannon Scott. That gave OSU five McDonald’s All-Americans in all (Sullinger, Buford and Thomas also were McDonald’s All-Americans). OSU concluded its regular season on a down note, losing three of its final seven games, although the Buckeyes won at Michigan State in the finale to forge a three-way tie for the league title. That left them with a 25-6 record and a No. 7 national ranking. They then lost to Michigan State, 68-64, in the Big Ten Conference Tournament final and received a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Buckeyes advanced to their 11th Final Four by beating 15th-seeded Loyola (Md.) 78-59, No.7 Gonzaga 73-66, No. 6 Cincinnati 81-66 and Syracuse. They will meet Kansas in the second semifinal game Saturday night in New Orleans. OSU lost at Kansas 78-67 on Dec. 10. GUARDS Craft, a heady 6-2 point guard, makes the Buckeyes’ threeguard offense go. He averaged 8.9 ppg, fifth on the team, in the regular season, but led in assists (4.7 a game) and steals (2.5 a game). He was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. He has upped his totals in NCAA Tournament play, averaging 10.3 ppg, 5.75 apg and 3.25 steals. He shot 54.1 percent in the regular season, 52.4 in the NCAA tourney. Buford, a 6-5 senior, is the team’s top outside threat, but he is not shooting as well in the tourney. He shot 43.4 percent overall during the season but is just at 29.5 percent in the tourney. He remains OK on treys, 36.1 percent during the season, 37.3 percent in the tourney. He averaged 14.6 ppg during the season, 11.8 ppg in the tourney. He also averages 5.5 rpg. He had 13 points against Syracuse but made just 3 of 12 shots. He will need to pick up his game in the Final Four. The 6-3 Smith averaged 6.8 ppg, in the regular season, 11.3 ppg in the tourney. His shooting also has improved, overall from 45.6 percent to 53.8, on treys from 32.5 percent to 46.7.He had 18 points against Syracuse. The 6-2 Scott, Georgia’s Mr. Basketball last year, is the top backcourt sub but averaged just 0.6 ppg during the season,
1.0 ppg in the tourney. Backcourt depth is a problem for the Buckeyes. BIG MEN As the 6-9 Sullinger goes, so go the Buckeyes. That’s usually not a problem because the 6-9 forward is very good. During the regular season he averaged 17.6 ppg, 9.1 rpg and shot 53.1 percent overall, 45 percent on treys, although he was just 9 of 20. During the tournament his numbers are about the same – 18.0 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 46.7 percent overall shooting, 60 percent on treys (3 of 5). Late in the regional final he was calling for the ball on the low post and scoring or getting fouled. He made 9 of 12 free throws. The 6-6 Thomas has significantly raised his level of play in the tournament. During the season he averaged 16.1 ppg, second on the team, but in the tourney he is averaging a team-leading 21.8 ppg. He shot 33.3 percent on treys during the season but is at 52.2 percent in the tourney. Overall shooting remained about the same, 53.1 and 52.2. His rebounding also is up, from 5.5 rpg to 8.5 rpg. Frontcourt depth also is a problem for the Buckeyes. Their three top frontcourt subs – 6-8 junior Evan Ravenal, 6-7 freshman Sam Thompson and the 6-10 Williams -- averaged only 6.0 ppg and 5.7 rpg combined during the season, 4.0 ppg and 4.1 rpg in the tourney. STAR Sullinger, although Thomas has emerged as a star in the tourney. TEAM STRENGTHS The Buckeyes are strong all around. They hold the opposition to 59.7 ppg, 18th in the country, to 40.6 percent shooting, 45th in the country, and have a rebounding margin of plus-7.7 a game, sixth in the country. They average 75.0 ppg, 33rd in the country, shoot 48.0 percent, 18th in the country, and have a turnover margin of plus-3.0, 24th in the country. TEAM WEAKNESSES After leading the country in three-point shooting last season at 42.3 percent, the Buckeyes are shooting just 33.3 percent on treys this season, 204th in the country. They average just 5.0 treys a game, 280th in the country. HEAD COACH Thad Matta, 44, is in his 12th season and is 323-95 overall. His teams have 20 or more victories in all 12 seasons and have been to the NCAA tourney in 11 of those 12 years, reaching the Final Four in 2007 before losing in the title game The year he did not make the NCAA tourney, 2008, OSU won the NIT. He was 24-8 in one season at Butler (2000-01), his alma mater, 7823 in three seasons at Xavier (2001-04), and 221-64 in eight seasons at OSU. NCAA TOURNEY HISTORY Although this will be OSU’s 11th trip to the Final Four, it has just one championship. That came in 1960 behind sophomores Jerry Lucas and John Havlichek (and with a reserve named Bobby Knight). That team lost title games to Cincinnati the succeeding two seasons. OSU also finished second two other times, in 1939 and 2007. ALL-TIME SERIES The Cardinals and Buckeyes have met eight times, with the series tied at four victories apiece.
2011-12 OHIO STATE BASKETBALL ROSTER no name 0 Jared Sullinger 1 Deshaun Thomas 2 Jordan Sibert 3 Shannon Scott 4 Aaron Craft 10 LaQuinton Ross 12 Sam Thompson 15 J.D. Weatherspoon 23 Amir Williams 30 Evan Ravenel 32 Lenzelle Smith Jr. 44 William Buford 55 Trey McDonald
POS yr exp ht/wt hometown F So. 1V 6-9/280 Columbus, OH (Northland) F So. 1V 6-7/225 Fort Wayne, IN (Bishop Luers) G So. 1V 6-4/185 Cincinnati, OH (Princeton) G Fr. HS 6-1/180 Alpharetta, GA (Milton) G So. 1V 6-2/190 Findlay, OH (Liberty Benton) F Fr. HS 6-7/230 Jackson, MS (Life Center) F Fr. HS 6-7/190 Chicago, IL (Whitney Young) F So. 1V 6-6/215 Columbus, OH (Northland) C Fr. HS 6-11/220 Birmingham, MI (County Day) F Jr. TR 6-8/260 Tampa, FL (Brandon) G So. 1V 6-4/205 Zion, IL (Zion-Benton) G Sr. 3V 6-6/220 Toledo, OH (Libbey) C Fr. HS 6-8/225 Battle Creek, MI (Central)
OHIO STATE
BREAKING DOWN THE buckeyes
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SWIMMING
C ards net top - 1 0 national finish
Almeida is first UofL swimmer to win an NCAA championship By Howie Lindsey Carlos Almeida became the first University of Louisville national champion in swimming when he won the 200-breast in 1:51.88 at the 2012 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships at Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Wash., last Saturday. Almeida qualified first in the event by half of a second but was in a horse race throughout the final as five swimmers bested his qualifying time. Cal’s Trevor Hoyt and Kevin Cordes HOWIE LINDSEY and Carl Mickelson from Arizona were within arm’s length of him throughout the race, and Cal’s Martin Liivamagi finished just 0.8 back. “I was just watching the replay on ESPN3.com, and as soon as the race is over you can see our team explode with celebration,” coach Arthur Albiero said. “You cherish that moment. That was just an awesome moment to see that No. 1 by his name.” In a three-way race in the final yards, Almeida out-touched Hoyt (1:51.90) and Cordes (1:51.97) to bring home the national title. Almeida’s time was the fourth-fastest in NCAA history, and just 0.02 seconds ahead of Hoyt and 0.09 seconds ahead of Cordes. “I just kept thinking about all the people who have supported me, and I had to get into the wall for them,” Almeida said. “I didn’t want what happened yesterday to happen again when I was out-touched in the 100.” Said Albiero: “There are so many story lines: his senior year, his final race, and he got beat by 0.07 the day before to finish second. For him to come back the next day and win it was just fantastic. All I saw was No. 1 by his name, and we celebrated, but then I go back and see his time and for him to swim 1:51 is his lifetime best. That’s a big-time swim.” In the 100-breast finals on Friday, Almeida, Cordes and Liivamagi were all within inches of each other as they neared the finish, but Cordes out-touched Almeida by 0.07 seconds. “It is hard to be disappointed in that because it was his lifetime best,” Albiero said. “And the guy that beat him set an American record in the prelims. Carlos swam a great race and was just touched-out at the end.” Almeida scored 37 points with his goldmedal performance in the 200-breast and silver in the 100-breast. DE LUCCA TOP 10 Sophomore Joao De Lucca finished third in 200-free Friday with a new school record 1:33.49. His finish was nearly a second
Louisville’s Carlos Almeida won the NCAA championship in the 200-breaststroke Saturday. - photo by Howie Lindsey
faster than his lifetime best qualifying time. The following night DeLucca finished seventh in the 100-free in 42.75 seconds. He scored 28 of Louisville’s 156 total points in his individual events. HIGHEST FINSH EVER The Louisville men finished ninth in the 39-team field, the highest finish in school history. The Cardinals finished with 156 total points, just a single point behind swimming powerhouse Florida, 16 points better than rival Indiana (10th) and more than 10 spots ahead of regional rivals Kentucky (21st) and Tennessee (22). “This is my ninth year, I felt like this was a special place from the beginning,” Albiero said. “The bottom line, there’s not a whole lot of shift in the top 10 each year, but we showed that with a lot of work we can make that happen.” The team took a record 13 swimmers to the national championship meet, and that large group paid off in the highest finish in school history. The Cardinals also benefited from having three relays qualify for the championship final. “It was great to hear ESPN’s (commentator) Rowdy Gaines say that ‘Louisville is here to stay,’ and that we are ‘taking NCAA
swimming by storm,’” Albiero said. “We returned everybody back from the last year, and we said right then and there that the next 364 days we would prepare every day for breaking into the top 10 this season. And that is what we did.” Louisville beat the Hoosiers in the final standings despite Indiana outscoring Louisville 71-0 in the men’s diving events. Still, the Cardinals brought it home in the swimming events, pushing into the top 10 for the first time ever. “It’s a paradigm shift for our program,” Albiero said. “I think we are a team that is here to stay. We have built a solid foundation with a lot of hard work, and we have phenomenal support from (athletic director) Tom (Jurich) and (associate AD) Julie (Hermann) and President (James) Ramsey. We believe we are going to be a national program from here on.” Louisville’s previous high finish was 17th last season. Of the Cardinals 13 qualifiers this season - Carlos Almeida, Brendon Andrews, Caryle Blondell, Alex Burtch, Kameron Chastan, Tim Collins, Joao De Lucca, Samuel Hoekstra, Albert Lloyd, Riley Martin, Pedro Oliveira, Michael Pryor and Matt Schlytter - six were seniors. Freshman
Aaron Young traveled as an alternate. The NCAA invited 270 swimmers total. LOUISVILLE WOMEN FINISH 24TH Sophomore Giselle Kohoyda made school history at the 2012 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship when she placed fourth in the 200-breast with a time of 2:07.87. She became the first Cardinal woman to place in the top five Saturday night at James E. Martin Aquatic Center on the campus of Auburn University. The Cardinals placed 24th, the highest finish in school history. The team title went to Cal-Berkley, which edged Georgia for the crown. USC was third. Freshman Tanja Kylliainen swam in the B-finals and posted a time of 1:55.23 in the 200-fly, bettering her qualifying time by four-tenths of a second. “These were great swims and a historic night for Cardinal swimming,” Albiero said. “I am very proud of the way our ladies competed here. Senior Fanny Lilliestrom finishes her UofL career with three lifetime best swims. Freshman Tanja Kylliainen and sophomore Gisselle Kohoyda showed they are major competitors on the national level. This weekend is another step in development of our program.”
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
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LOUISVILLE SOFTBALL
CARDS NOW 27-0, LAST UNBEATEN TEAM IN THE COUNTRY By Rick Cushing Like the mighty Mississippi, the University of Louisville softball team keeps right on rolling along. Now at 27-0 after going 5-0 last week, the Cardinals are the only undefeated team left in the country. They Cards also rose one spot to No. 13/14 in the national polls last week, the highest ranking in school history. That ranking is sure to improve this week. UofL began last week with a doubleheader sweep of visiting Ohio State on Tuesday, then swept a three-game series with Pittsburgh over the weekend. It was the Big East Conference openers for both teams. Of her team’s 27-0 start, coach Sandy Pearsall termed it “kind of amazing.You usually stumble somewhere along the way. “It’s been a really great team effort – pitching, defense, and when we need some offense, we’ve been getting it…. We’ve been getting offense from the whole lineup, all nine spots. And even when I go to the bench I find hitters. That’s a big plus. We just keep plugging away. It’s a credit to this team.” The stumble almost occurred Sunday against Pitt. The Panthers scored a run in the top of the sixth to take a 1-0 lead, and the Cards had just three hits up to that point. Then they found a way to win. Katie Keller led off the bottom of the sixth with a single. Taner Fowler reached on an error, Alicja Wolny walked to load the bases, and Jordan Trimble stroked a two-run double to give Louisville a 2-1 lead. Tori Collins came on to work a scoreless seventh inning as the Cards prevailed 2-1. SWEEP OF PANTHERS Sunday’s victory epitomized Pearsall’s description of a “team victory.” The Cards got good pitching from starter Caralisa Connell (2 1/3 shutout innings), Chelsea Leonard (one run and two hits in 3 2/3 innings) and Collins (one hit batsmen in one inning), good defense (third baseman Katelyn Mann relayed a throw from left fielder Jennifer Esteban to nail a runner at
Senior pitcher Tori Collins is 12-0 this season. - photo by Howie Lindsey
the plate in the second inning) and timely hitting (sixth-inning rally). Pitt fell to 15-12, 0-3. Leonard (6-0) got the victory, Collins the save. The Cards had only five hits, with no one getting more than one. The Cards won 3-1 and 4-3 on Saturday. In the first game Pitt scored a run in the first but the Cards got three in the fourth, highlighted by Maggie Ruckenbrod’s tworun double. Fowler got the inning started with a double to the center-field wall. Freshman Kirsten Straley entered the game to pinch run for Fowler, the catcher, and took second on Wolny’s base hit. Trimble’s infield single plated Straley, and Ruckenbrod’s two-run double made it 3-1. In the top of the seventh Pitt loaded the bases with two out, but Leonard recorded a strikeout to end the game. Collins (12-0) picked up the victory, allowing one run and five hits and striking out five in four innings. Leonard earned her third save, allowing only one hit and striking out four in three scoreless innings. Ruckenbrod was 1 for 3 with a double and two RBIs, Trimble was 1 for 3 with a run and an RBI. Pitt registered six hits, UofL five. It was the first time an opposing team outhit the
Cardinals this season. In the nightcap, freshman Whitney Arion’s three-run home run in the fourth keyed the 4-3 victory. The Cards took a 1-0 lead in the first, but the Panthers went ahead 2-1 in the third. Just as in the first game, the fourth inning proved to be productive for the Cards as they scored three times thanks to Arion’s three-run homer. Trimble led off with a single and Ruckenbrod reached on a fielder’s choice to set up Arion’s fourth home run of the season, a shot over the left- field fence. Pitt scored in the fifth to make it 4-3, but Leonard then came on and worked 2 2/3 scoreless innings to notch her second save of the day and fourth of the season. Connell (9-0) got the victory, allowing three runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings. Arion was 1 for 2 with a home run and three RBIs, freshman Kayla Soldes was 2 for 2, and Trimble and Austin each was 2 for 3 with a run. The Cards had nine hits in all. SWEEP OF BUCKEYES Collins (11-0) notched her third complete-game shutout as the Cards won the opening game 7-0, and Connell (8-0) pitched five innings of shutout relief in a
7-2 victory in the nightcap. “We were happy to get two wins over a tough Ohio State team,” said Pearsall. “…We came out ready to play and did a tremendous job in every area.” In the opener, Collins scattered six hits and struck out three, Esteban went 4 for 4 with two runs, an RBI and a stolen base, and Keller was 3 for 4 with an RBI. It was the Cards’ 12th shutout of the season. In the nightcap, Connell allowed three hits and fanned two in five innings of relief, while Keller went 2 for 3 with a home run, three runs and two RBIs, and Wolny went 2 for 2 with two RBIs. After the Cards scored three runs in the first, highlighted by a two-run home run by Keller, the Buckeyes (14-10) got two runs in the second to end Leonard’s day. She surrendered three hits and hit a batter. Connell then shut the door, and the Cards got one run in the third and three in the fifth. In that frame, the Cardinals used an error and three hits, including Wolny’s two-run double. Keller drew a leadoff walk and Fowler reached on an error to set up Wolny’s double to center field. Trimble’s RBI single plated Wolny to make the score 7-2. Leonard surrendered two runs and three hits and fanned three in two innings. Fowler was 2 for 3 with two runs. CATS UP NEXT UofL will travel to Lexington Wednesday for a game against archrival Kentucky (5:30 p.m. EDT), then travel to Chicago for a three-game series against Big East foe DePaul this weekend (two games Saturday, single game Sunday). The Cards will entertain Kentucky next Wednesday at 6 p.m. EDT. Admission will be $5 for reserved seating, with no charge for children ages 2 and under. Berm seating will be free. Tickets can be purchased by calling 502,8525151, at the Student Activities Center or at the Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium ticket office, which is open weekdays from 9 to 5. Fans are encouraged to wear red, and UofL is hoping to top the attendance record of 1,134 at Ulmer Stadium.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
HOWIE LINDSEY’S
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Cardinal Stars OF THE WEEK
ALMEIDA
CARLOS ALMEIDA - MEN’S SWIMMING The senior from Lisbon, Portugal, won Louisville’s first NCAA swimming title Saturday with a time of 1:51.88 in the 200-breaststroke. He also finished second in the 100-breast Friday (51.58). Almeida individually scored 37 of Louisville’s 156 total team points and also helped the Cardinals score points in the relays. He is a member of Portugal’s national team and broke the Portuguese national record for the 100m breast last summer in Shanghai, China (1:02.13). Almeida likely will represent Portugal in the 2012 Olympics in London.
DE LUCCA
JOAO DE LUCCA - MEN’S SWIMMING The sophomore from Rio de Janeiro finished third in 200-free Friday with a school-record time of 1:33.49. His time was nearly a second faster than his lifetime best. The following night De Lucca finished seventh in the 100-free in 42.75 seconds. He individually scored 28 of Louisville’s 156 total points. De Lucca could be heading to London to represent Brazil in the Olympics. He anchored Brazil’s 4-by-200 relay in Shanghai, China, last summer.
WOLNY
ALICJA WOLNY - SOFTBALL The junior from El Dorado Hills, Calif., is hitting .426 through Louisville’s first 27 games. Wolny, who has played in 20 games, has 23 hits in 54 at-bats with six doubles, four home runs and 17 RBIs. Her .759 slugging percentage leads the team. She also has a .979 fielding percentage with just two errors at first base. Wolny started all 58 games for Louisville last season, hit .375 and was named All-Big East first team.
FOWLER
TANER FOWLER - SOFTBALL Her .381 batting average is tremendous, but her .413 on-base percentage is even better. The sophomore catcher from Morganfield, Ky., has started each of Louisville’s 27 games and has seven doubles, a triple and five home runs. Fowler‘s work behind the plate this season has been stellar, and she’s struck out only two times in 84 at-bats. She started 52 of 58 games for Louisville last season playing catcher and designated player.
MARCH 28, 2012
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CHELSEA LEONARD - SOFTBALL The sophomore right-hander from Lexington, N.C., continues to foil opponents at the plate this season. While helping her team to a program-best 27-0 start, she is 6-0 with a 0.82 ERA in 17 appearances. Through 51 1/3 innings she has given up just six runs and 23 hits with 66 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .134 against her and have only four extra-base hits (all doubles). LEONARD
STURGEON
ENGEL
COLE STURGEON - BASEBALL With four hits and five RBIs, all career highs, the sophomore from Owensboro, Ky., helped Louisville sweep a series with Cincinnati last weekend and run its winning streak to seven games. The Cardinals have won 12 of the last 14 games against the Bearcats. During Louisville’s four games last week Sturgeon hit .538 (7 for 13) with seven RBIs. He also struck out three batters in pitching 1 2/3 innings, allowing one hit in six at-bats. He is hitting .351 this season with two doubles, two triples and 15 RBIs, and he has a 1.80 ERA through four appearances and five innings pitched. Sturgeon was a two-time All-State selection in baseball in high school and also earned four letters in basketball and two in football at Owensboro Catholic. ADAM ENGEL - BASEBALL With a single in the first inning of Sunday’s win over Cincinnati, Engel has now hit safely in a career-best 13 straight games. The Loveland, Ohio, native is hitting .343 through the first 24 games this season. He has 34 hits in 99 at-bats and has scored a team-high 28 runs. He has two doubles, a homer and eight RBIs. He has a .411 on base percentage and is 18 for 19 on stolen-base attempts.
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
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LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT
MARCH 28, 2012
LOUISVILLE SPORTSREPORT’S CARDINAL KIDS
The first game at the Yum! Center for Addison and Carli.
Twins Parker and Carter Beam posed for a picture with the Louisville Ladybirds.
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Friends Halle, Lindsey, Hannah, Sarah and Max hanging out at halftime.
The next issue of the Louisville SportsReport will go to press, April 3. That edition will be published digital only (not mailed) unless Louisville wins the national championship. Fans can see all the digital editions of the Louisville SportsReport at www.louisvillesportsnews.com
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Hadley Gruner, 2 months old