Pregame Notes:
Good afternoon Card Nation. Louisville takes on the Alabama Crimson Tide in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Cards got here by defeating the Vermont Catamounts 72-52 on Saturday. Mackenly Randolph led the Cards in scoring with 20 points and added 11 rebounds. Alabama defeated the University Of Rhode Island. Senior guard Jessica Timmons led the way for the Crimson Tide with 21 points and 6 rebounds. Junior forward Essence Cody added 18. Louisville needs to control the backboards in this game and keep Simmons in check to be Abe to move to the next round.
STARTING LINEUP: (NCAA TOURNAMENT)
Tajianna Roberts: (12 PPG, 4 APG)
Mackenly Randoplh: (20 PPG, 11 RPG)
Anaya Hardy: (4 PPG, 4 RPG)
Laura Ziegler: (12 PPG, 7 RPG)
Elif Instanbulluoglu: (4 PPG, 2 BPG)
1ST QUARTER:
Hardy scored the first basket on a layup, off a beautiful feed from Taj Roberts to give the Cards the early 2-0 lead. Both teams were deadlocked at 6 during the first media timeout. The Cards went on a 7-0 run and the offense was locked in, but a missed assignment on defense, followed by a turnover led to two consecutive 3’s by Alabama’s Austin to cut the Cards lead to 1 in a matter of seconds. Coach Walz wasn’t happy with the lack of attention to detail and focus from his players during that stretch. Both teams traded baskets in the final minute, as Louisville took a 15-14 lead into the second quarter.
2ND QUARTER:
Alabama took a brief 16-15 lead before Ziegler answered with a mid-range jumper to put the Cards back up 1 (17-16). After a first quarter that saw both teams combine for 3-12 shooting from beyond the arc, the teams combined for 8-16 from deep in the 2nd quarter. The defense for the Cards took most of the quarter off as the Crimson Tide shot over 57% from the field, including 55.6% from beyond the arc. Louisville trailed Alabama 35-34 heading nto halftime.
HALFTIME STATS:
Field goal %: 15-34 (44.1%)
3pt field goal %: 4-15 (26.7%)
Free throw %: 0-0 (0.0%)
Rebounds: 20 (8 offensive)
Assists: 12
Steals: 5
Turnovers: 7
Leading Scorer: Taj Roberts (11)
3RD QUARTER:
The Louisville offense looked like the offense they’ve showed most of the season. Louisville put together their best shooting percentage of the game (56.3%) and extended their lead to as many as 6 points (52-46) thanks to a mid-range jumper by Ziegler. Taj scored 7 points in the quarter, as she scored all of her points following a bucket by Alabama. After a hot first half, Bama’s freshman guard Austin was held to just 1 three-point field goal. Reyna Scott extended the Cards lead to 5 (54-49) with her first basket of the game. 54-49 was the score going into the final quarter.
4TH QUARTER:
With a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line, a pull up mid-range jumper gave Louisville their biggest lead of the game (56-49). Alabama however, did not lay down. The Crimson Tide fought and clawed their way back, using a 10-1 run to take a brief 2-pt lead (59-57). Istanbulluoglu’s 3-ball off the unselfish pass by Roberts helped the Cards regain the lead. After Randolph went 1-2 from the line, Alabama’s tied the game at 61. The Cards answered with a 6-0 to regain the lead, and never looked back. Alabama did cut the lead to 2 (65-67), but Berry (placed in a position she’s been in multiple times this season) stepped to the line with 8 seconds remaining with Louisville up 2. Berry swished both free throws, as she raised her hands in jubilation and relief. The Cards were up 4 before Alabama’s Weathers hit a deep bank 3-point shot to cut the lead down to 1 (68-69). Reyna Scott stepped to the line for Louisville, missed the first shot, and was instructed to miss the second. Alabama grabbed the rebound and took one last prayer, but the shot was wide right, and the Cards defeated Alabama 69-68. In a game that had 8 ties and 8 lead changes, Louisville escapes the YUM Center by the slimmest of margins in a 69-68 victory to advance to the Sweet 16.
Final Stats:
Field goal%: 27-60 (45.0%)
3pt field goal %: 7-26 (26.9%)
Free throw%: 8-16 (50.0%)
Rebounds: 41 (14 offensive)
Assists: 19
Steals: 7
Turnovers: 15
Bench Points: 10
Leading Scorer: Tajiana Roberts & Elif Istanbulluoglu (18)
POSTGAME NOTES:
For the 13th time under Coach Walz, the Cards will be back in the Sweet 16. The Cards battled in every way possible this afternoon. Elif and Taj led Louisville in scoring with 18 a piece. Elif, also registered a double-double with 11 rebounds to go with those 18 points. Louisville dominated Alabama on the glass, especially on the offensive backboard. Mackenly Randolph added 13 rebounds (7 offensive) to go along with her 9 points. At times the Cards left the door open for a Crimson Tide win, by not converting on their opportunities at the foul line. Louisville will now take on the 2nd seed in the Fort Worth bracket, March 28th at 12:30.
