LEXINGTON, Ky. (WDRB) – For Jeff Walz, the problem was free throws. And he’s not wrong. In the fourth quarter of what would become a 71-61 overtime loss to Kentucky, Louisville missed three free throws. Make any one of those, and you might not have been staring at overtime against your rival and a sold-out Memorial Coliseum.
But there was another problem against the Wildcats on Saturday night. For the second time this season against a ranked opponent, Louisville had a lead late in the third quarter, then went stone cold from the field.
Against UCLA in the season opener, the Cards led by one with just under two minutes to play in the third, then missed 15 of their next 18 shots and their deficit went to 10. At Kentucky, Louisville took a seven-point lead with just over a minute to play in the third, then missed 15 of their next 18 shots the rest of the game.
Is it a coincidence or a trend? Who knows. I keep thinking of the game against another ranked team, N.C. State in the 2023 season, where the Cards led early in the third quarter, then missed 16 straight shots to start the fourth quarter. That was, largely, a different cast of characters.
And yet there’s a theme, perhaps. The offense looks just a bit rushed, as do the shots. On Saturday, Louisville looked insistent on getting to the rim to shoot over Kentucky’s shot-blockers instead of coming to a jump stop, taking the mid-range jumper or passing back out for open looks.
Louisville coach Jeff Walz shouts to his team during an overtime loss at Kentucky.
“We had some good shots, and then we just, it was the old rip and drive, but then jump stop, and throw back out, because when the help comes, don't try to just keep shooting over people,” Walz said. “And we got a little carried away there, and unfortunately, weren’t as disciplined as we needed to be. We had some good ones that that just didn't go in. And unfortunately, at the end there, you've got to be able to knock down a few of them. And we, we just didn't do that. I mean, like I said, it's a three-point game with a minute to go in overtime, and we just absolutely did not do what we had to do.”
Now, a team with nine freshmen isn’t going to be calm and disciplined at all times. But it wasn’t always the freshmen rushing up shots. Olivia Cochran finished the game 1-11 from the field. She and Nyla Harris went 0-5 in the fourth quarter. Louisville, as a team, was 13-of-25 on layups for the game.
“She had some shots she normally makes, you know, but unfortunately, the ball did not go in the basket,” Walz said. “But I thought she competed defensively, really, really hard. But yeah, you go 1-for-11, it's tough. But our biggest problem is we had some critical turnovers. Again, it's a three-point game in overtime with about a minute left, and I went with five guards, because that's how we scored at the end of regulation, and we turned the ball over.”
That’s the bad news. Despite all of that, Louisville had a good chance to win the game. If it makes its free throws, it wins anyway. If it makes a couple more open looks, it wins anyway. But what it does in the fourth quarter of games is probably going to be something Walz is working on with his players all season. Because if you’re good enough to build solid leads against good teams, it’s a shame not to finish those games out.
“It's our free throws,” Walz said. “Whatever you want to call it, you’ve got to make free throws. We gave the game away. So, I mean, it is what it is. It's OK. They played really, really hard. Kentucky point guard (Georgia) Amore is as good as there is. . . . I have a ton of respect for her. I always have. But we just gave the game away. Credit to them.”
Louisville coach Jeff Walz and Kentucky's Kenny Brooks before their teams met in Lexington on Nov. 16, 2024.
Kentucky got big offensive rebounds late. It forced some big turnovers in overtime. It made its free throws (9 of 10 in overtime, twice off of offensive rebounds).
For Louisville, the promising thing is this – the Cardinals have talent. Tajianna Roberts didn’t play one of her better games, but she’s been good all season. Ja’Leah Williams played her tail off for 39 minutes, was a standout defender and dished out six assists. Freshman Mackenly Randolph played her best game, as did Imari Berry, who scored 14 second-half points despite a sprained ankle that kept her out of practice all week.
““It’s Game 4,” Walz said. “They just need game reps.”
And if they want an example of the value of sticking with it and learning through mistakes, all they have to do is look at their opponent on Saturday. Both Walz and Kentucky coach Kenny Brooks, who came to Lexington with Virginia Tech, brought up the exact same play after the game, neither of them prompted.
It was Dana Evans’ steal of the ball from Amore with 10 seconds left that sealed a win at Virginia Tech and led Louisville to the ACC championship. Walz mentioned that Curry made Amore’s life miserable, but that Amore has persevered to be one of the top point guards in college basketball. Development takes time. Freshmen emerge. Brooks mentioned the same play in his postgame comments.
“Jeff doesn't get as much credit as he deserves,” Brooks said of Walz. “He's been a pioneer in that league (the ACC). He was somebody that I looked to for just advice. He talks all the time, so he'll give you something, he's going to give you a nugget somewhere. But all this stuff that he talks about is to grow the game, for the betterment of the game. So, I've always had so much respect for him and what he's done. They were the last team that we beat in the ACC. We beat all the other ones, and they were the very last team we beat, and I think we beat them a couple times now, but we understand the intensity that team is going to bring.”
The good news for Louisville – it’s always better to have talent in need of reps, than plenty of reps in need of talent.
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