LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – The Louisville women’s basketball team had a familiar look in Monday night’s 73-51 NCAA second-round win at Texas. It looked like a Final Four team.
There’s a lot of basketball to be played to determine that, but Louisville played like a team that has put the pieces together in Texas, and it has some quality pieces.
“I wouldn’t say they’re pitching a perfect game, but it’s Nolan Ryan-esque here in Texas,” ESPN announcer Eric Frede said midway through the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals completely dismantled the Big 12 champions before a crowd of 5,430 on their home court, holding the Longhorns scoreless for more than five minutes of the third quarter to open a 21-point lead, before coasting to a statement win and sixth consecutive Sweet 16 berth for the program.
No. 5 seed Louisville will face No. 8 seed Mississippi on Friday or Saturday in Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena.
"We played exceptionally well tonight," said Louisville coach Jeff Walz, who improved to 26-2 in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. "And we did a great job defensively of making sure we knew the matchups, we knew who we were guarding even when we got switched, what that person does, and we played about as dialed-in defensively as we have this entire season. Now we've played pretty darn well the past month defensively, but tonight was exceptional."
Texas forward Khadija Faye (20) and Louisville forward Liz Dixon (22) reach for a rebound during the first half of a second-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament in Austin, Texas, Monday, March 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
This was a vintage Louisville tournament performance. Games were elevated. The Cardinals executed flawlessly on defense in the third-quarter run, and grabbed eight consecutive rebounds.
Texas looked stunned, and it played as if it were stunned. The Cardinals continued their run to open the fourth quarter. By the time Hailey Van Lith drove for a basket with 8:16 to play, their run grew to 22-4 and their lead was 62-35.
Texas coach Vic Shaefer was forced to call a timeout to try to awaken his team. But it was too late.
Van Lith had 17 points by that point. Louisville was up 14-6 in points off turnovers. It was up 32-16 in points off the bench. And most important, it was up 23-6 in bench points.
More than anything, Schaefer said Louisville was the tougher team. He used the word at least a half-dozen times after the game. And Louisville players agreed, they had but an emphasis on toughness. And not just physical toughness, but the mental toughness required to finish off an opponent once getting a lead.
"A lot of people have questioned our toughness this year," Van Lith said. "Last year, we were an extremely tough team -- like we were known, that was our thing. We were tough. We were going to guard. This year, we've let big leads get away from us. We've let defenses punk us a little bit. So that's been a question of whether we were tough, and you know, we kind of got tired of hearing it. So we wanted to go out and prove that were the same Louisville tough that this program has been for a long time now. So that I would say that's where it comes from."
Bench contributions were major. Josie Williams came in and scored five first-half points. Morgan Jones had 10 off the bench on 5-for-5 shooting. Marrissah Russell had five points off the bench, and Liz Dixon had five points and a game-high 10 rebounds off the bench.
Louisville did it without big scoring nights from Chrislyn Carr and Olivia Cochran. But Carr got it going in the second half, and Cochran was outstanding on defense.
Over the past 2 seasons, Louisville's Hailey Van Lith has averaged 20.3 points per game in the NCAA Tournament, scoring 20 or more in 6 of the 7 games. pic.twitter.com/1Q8aDnsNbl
— Eric Crawford (@ericcrawford) March 21, 2023
And Van Lith was there when the Cards needed baskets. The No. 5 scorer in Louisville NCAA Tournament history finished with 21 points on 8 of 15 shooting. She has scored 20 or more points in 6 of her past 7 NCAA Tournament games, averaging 20.3 points per game in the past two seasons.
"The kid is a baller," Walz said. "The kid is in the gym, she works on her craft. She takes great pride in it. . . . But what I'm most proud of her for is these past two ballgames. You know, it's been the past month, month and a half, she let the game come to her. . . . She's been patient, not hunting shots. I'm really proud of her. I think the kid's an All-American."
After the game, Schaefer apologized to the state of Texas for his team's performance, and said of Louisville, "You have to give those kids credit at Louisville for their toughness and their competitive spirit today. And I don't want to take anything from those kids. That's a good basketball team. That's probably not a 5 seed. And they probably need to be ranked. But it is what it is."
And now the Cards are headed to Seattle. They're 9-2 in NCAA Tournament play since COVID. And the two losses came to the eventual national champions. They haven't been ranked in the Top 25 for much of this season, but they're playing like a top team when it counts.
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