Some major college basketball teams claim to be everyone’s Superbowl when they go on the road. With President Bush, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, NFL Stars, and NBA stars in a packed house at Moody Stadium tonight and it being the hottest ticket in town I think this game would classify. The announcers while naming the list of celebrities in the building said this game was like the Oscars. The Cardinals overcame one of wildest crowds and raucous environments you’ll ever see in a college basketball game tonight and beat SMU 84-71. Pitino “this was a very difficult environment…obviously they serve alcohol here.” SMU had been a perfect 15-0 at home and had a +19.6 margin of victory at home until the Cardinals came to town tonight in what was considered their biggest game in school history. With this win Louisville (25-5, 14-3), is now leading the AAC conference by a half-game, and will host No.19 UConn on Saturday (3/8) at 2pm ET on CBS.

The Cardinals used some great defense, some great three point shooting and some solid free-throw shooting to overcome a hard charge and a 14 point lead by the Mustangs in the first half. The Cardinals had 17 steals tonight, scored 25 points off of 23 turnovers, hit 54% (13-24) from 3-point range and 70% (19-27) from the free-throw line.

I said in my post game article that Russ and Luke would have to step up tonight. While sick to his stomach for most of the game Russ had 26 points, 9-15 FG, 6-6 from 3-point, 6 rebounds, 5 assist, 2 steals, and 3 turnovers. Maybe one of his most courageous and gutsy performances of his career. Pitino on Russ being sick “(He said) put me in when you can..just let me throw up.” Pitino: “If you put a harness on Russ, you are not going to see greatness.” Well tonight we saw greatness from a great kid.
Cool hand Luke had 15 points, 3-10 FGs, 3-8 from 3-point, 3 rebounds, 4 assist, 1 steal, and 3 turnovers. Pitino: “I told Luke to go over to (George W. Bush) and just say, ‘It’s an honor that you’re here tonight. We’re so happy to see you.'” I still don’t think his game is where it was a year ago around this time, but he is showing signs that it is going in that direction. If his game is on it puts this team at a different level.

I also said in my post game that Montrezl would have to continue doing his thing and that it was time for Chris Jones to step up and have a big game. Montrezl had 19 points 7-9 FGs, 8 rebounds, 3 assist, 3 steals, and 2 turnovers in another beastly performance. After his abuse of the rims at Moody Stadium tonight he now has 80 dunks on the season. He is playing with the type of domination that a team could ride to a Final Four.
And Chris Jones did step up tonight and then some. He had 21 points, 6-14 FG, 4-7 from 3-point, 2 rebounds, 6 steals, and 2 turnovers. We found out after the game that he’s dedicating the rest of the season to his brother, Demetrius Ray, 24, who was shot and killed in Memphis Saturday. Jones on death of his brother: “I’m doing what he wanted me to do. He wanted us to win the whole thing, so I’m dedicating the season to him.” It’s unreal what some of these kids have to overcome on a daily basis. CardNation is behind you Chris.

This was a fun one tonight Cardinal fans. The great Paul Rodgers called it the “greatest road win ever” and he’s seen a lot of em. If our guys can build on this one and keep it going it won’t be our last trip to Dallas this season. I think you will start to see the same sentiment from a lot of the college basketball talking heads after this one. I know that I couldn’t be more excited. Only thing bad about tonight was knowing that in the next game we have to say good-bye to some of the most awesome kids to ever lace em up in the Cardinal Red. Saturday will be bittersweet…

The Women came out swinging last night but #1 UCONN proved to be the better team this time around beating the Cardinals 68-48. A Louisville program-record crowd of 22,163 had the KFC Yum center rocking as the Cardinals exploded out to a 7-0 lead which was the largest deficit this season for the Huskies. It looked like that there might be some magic on senior night, but trailing 22-21 with 11:57 left in the first half, the Huskies scored 11 straight points as part of a 22-7 run. Louisville went scoreless for 5:05. The score would be 43-31 UCONN leading at the half.

Louisville would have another scoreless stretch of 9:33 in the second half. The ladies just couldn’t get anything going their way missing 31 of their last 44 shots of the game and the Huskies weren’t giving anything up on their end and were playing great basketball. They out-rebounded the Cardinals 47-30 and had a season high 19 offense rebounds that lead to 15 second chance points. Tia Gibbs had 16 points (6-of-10 FG) to lead Louisville (28-3, 16-2) in the loss.

Even though it was a losing effort the night still had its special moments as the Louisville fans honored seniors Tia Gibbs, Shoni Schimmel, Antonita Slaughter and Asia Taylor. It was also Native American Appreciation Night, to honor some of Louisville’s most dedicated fans. Native Americans, with 40 states including Alaska were represented in the Yum Center last night. Many were there to support Shoni Schimmel, and sister Jude, a Cardinals guard, both of whom are members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla in Oregon. It was hard to grasp the magnitude of the evening for college sports and the Native community. Glad I got to be a part of it.

Native American Halftime:

This group of seniors and women’s basketball team have provided many great moments over the last four years. They became America’s Sweethearts last year after pulling off the biggest upset in the history of the women’s tournament beating Baylor and making that magical run to the Final Four. During the post game last night Shoni Schimmel vowed that before the season was over that they would beat this UCONN team. I don’t think any of us doubt that could happen and I think these ladies still got some magic moments left.

After the game thousands of fans stood in line for hours to get player autographs. Just another testament of how much love and passion Cardinal Nation has for it’s women’s basketball program. It is really special. And the ladies stayed until the last person was through.

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Senior Night Ceromnies:
http://youtu.be/wJ3fDur14kg

UofL coach Jeff Walz after loss to No. 1 Connecticut;

UofL seniors after the UCONN game:

Tough loss today Cardinal fans and this one has a lot of us singing the blues. It’s ok to feel frustrated and ok to vent those frustrations. Only a true fan lets a loss ruin their whole day and just maybe the whole weekend. With the 77-62 win Memphis sweeps our beloved Cards this season, but we still got the overall lead 53-36. If that helps you any. Louisville could have taken the lead in the AAC today with the win, but they are now tied with Cincy for 1st with a 13-3 conference record and are now 24-5 overall.

The Cards were scrappy today and did hold their own against a very good team in a hostile environment. They played a decent defensive game, out rebounded them but they just didn’t execute down the stretch. The problem for our Cardinals in this game today wasn’t what happened between the lines as much as it was what happened between the ears. This group has got to learn how to be more mentally tough at the end of big games. Coach Pitino was really disappointed in the way his Team acted down the stretch saying: “I knew we were in trouble when we went up seven and our guys acted like a junior high kids (celebrating),” “We weren’t focused to put the team away.”

Montrezl Harrell scored a career-high 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. He was unstoppable yet never touched the ball in the final four minutes. Russ Smith scored 15 of his 19 points in the first half and fouled out in the final minute. He was a one man show in the first half and without his effort Louisville wouldn’t have come close to Memphis. Luke Hancock had 11. Luke has got to get that shot going in. Gonna be hard to make a run if he doesn’t. Both Russ and Luke have to step up at the end of games and be leaders.

It’s on to the next.., and our guys are going to have to shake this loss off fast and not let it snowball. Another big game and another hostile crowd awaits on Wednesday at #23 SMU. It’s bye-bye to the beards, but hopefully we can still make a run at Dallas. The Cards just have to get tougher at the end of tough games and on the free-throw line. The talent and effort are there.

U of L coach Rick Pitino after loss to Memphis:

Terry Rozier reacts to Louisville loss at Memphis:

U of L senior Like Hancock after a loss to Memphis:

Russ Smith talks to media following Louisville’s loss to Memphis:

Montrezl Harrell after Louisville’s 72-66 loss to Memphis:

(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

The Cardinals keep rolling right along tonight completing their 7th undefeated February in the last 100 years as they easily take care of business against Temple beating the owls 88-66. The Cardinals (24-4, 13-2) have now won seven straight and will be heading to #21 Memphis on Saturday.

This team is starting to look like a typical Rick Pitino team this time of year. Louisville fans have always enjoyed the month of February and March knowing they are going to see their team play the best basketball of the season. Our guys are playing with a purpose right now and are having fun in the process. Pitino on his team: “I think they like each other. I think they have a good time. We’ve been blessed with great chemistry for 3 years.” They are exciting from a fundamental standpoint as well. They had 9 turnovers tonight and this is the seventh game straight that they’ve had single digit turnovers. They have 14 single digit turnover games this season. Pitino: “This is not a selfish team in any characteristic. It’s what we believe in.” Tonight the Cards had 17 assist on 32 made baskets. Pitino: “It seems like we’re a better offensive team this year than last, and I’m not sure why that is.” The Cards shot 53% from the field and 40% from three tonight. They had great ball movement and it gave them some good looks.

The Cards had three guys in double figures tonight. And these guys were 25 of 34 from the field and nearly outscored Temple all by themselves. Russ lead the way with 24 points, 3 assist and 4 steals. He moved to eighth on Louisville’s all-time scoring list tonight, and also passed Darrell Griffith in career steals tonight for 2nd place all-time. He is stepping up and leading this team at the right time.
Montrezl continues his great play and had 21 points, 6 rebounds and 2 blocked shots. He has provided a big lift to this team with his aggressive play, but will need to improve on his performance at the free-throw line. He was just 3-7 tonight.
Terry Rozier has been getting better and better and continues to look like one of the best freshman in the country. Tonight he was 8-10 from the field and scored a career high 19 points. This was his fourth straight game scoring in double-digits, averaging 14.8 points per game the past four games. He has a 5:1 assist to turnover ratio, and has played over 530 minutes this season and only committed 15 turnovers.
Chris Jones is another player that deserves a mention. It’s great to see him finally settling into his role in this team. It had to be a hard transition from being the star of the show at the Juco level to just another good player on a team full of them. He had 9 points and 8 assist tonight. Pitino on Rozier and Jones: “They both have tremendous upsides and they were both outstanding tonight.”

It’s all coming together Cardinal fans. Momentum is building and it’s looking more, and more like this team is going to make a decent run at this thing again. The team has taken a huge step forward in the last few weeks, but it’s what they do in the next 3 games that will say a lot about just how far they can go. I know it’s been a lot of fun and I’m excited for the post season. My beard is itchy but it’s all worth it. No Shave Till Dallas! Go Cards!

Coach Pitino after the game:

Chris Jones after the game:

Russ Smith after the game:

Luke Hancock after the game:

Terry Rozier after the game:

Montrezl Harrell after the game:

(AP Photo/Al Behrman)

It was the end of the regular season rivalry between Louisville and Cincinnati. And the 99th meeting between these teams would not disappoint. Joining the football team the Cardinals basketball team took the final game on Cincys home turf beating the Bearcats in an instant classic 58-57. The regular season series ends with the Cardinals leading 56-43 spanning the Metro Conference, Missouri Valley , Conference USA, Big East and AAC. Cards now move into first place in the AAC at 12-2 and 23-4 on the season.

When we look back on this season it is that 9 day lay-off that was the turning point. Before that break the Cardinals were struggling to find their defensive identity, players weren’t certain of their roles and they were struggling to find any consistency. Since that break they are 4-0, players have settled into their roles on the team, they have moved back into the top 10 of offensive and defensive efficiency ratings, and have been playing with a sense of purpose. A team that we were wondering if they could win a few games in March now looks like a group that could defend their title.

I said from day one when Terry Rozier committed to play for the Cardinals that he was going to be something special. I’ve followed this kid on his journey to Louisville and he has lived up to every expectation I had. He was the difference maker today and without him on the court Louisville wouldn’t have won this game. This kid is one of; if not the premiere freshman in college basketball. He leads the Louisville offense like he’s played for four years. After today it is very clear that he is our best option for point guard going forward. He played 22 minutes today shot over 60%, had 11 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, two assist(including game winning) and didn’t have any turnovers. In 536 minutes played this season he only has 15 turnovers. Unreal for a freshman. I get giddy when I think about this kid as a sophomore.

Last but certainly not least is the player that I’ve had more enjoyment following and watching than any other in my lifetime Russ Smith. I am a firm believer in Karma and today our Hero got some good as he was able to hit the game winning shot. This guy has given his heart and his soul to the University of Louisville and in a era of the one and done has proven that it can still happen the old fashion way. He epitomizes the Louisville First brand and he deserved that moment today more than anyone. I am really gonna hurt when we have to tell him good-bye in a few weeks but it’s been a helluva ride. He finished today with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assist, and 3 steals.

Man what a game! A fitting end to what has been an incredible series. Our grandfathers, fathers and now we have got to watch the Cardinals and Bearcats do battle. I hope that this rivalry can continue in the future so my son can also watch these teams go at it. College sports are all about rivalries and this is one of the best.

The beards keep growing and it’s on to the next as the Cardinals look to run the table and possibly still claim that number one seed. This was a great win today folks. Enjoy the rest of this day and wear that Cardinal gear with pride. No Shave Till Dallas!