Louisville's two seniors will be honored in a pregame ceremony before the 2 p.m. tipoff against USF today in Freedom Hall. For both Brandie Radde and Chauntise Wright, it was a long and winding road to get to this day.
Tise arrived on campus back in 2005 but was not able to play until the second semester. She appeared in 16 games in 2005-06 and highlighted the season with 23 point against St. Francis. Her sophomore year saw her as a steady backup to Jazz Covington at center...she played in all 35 games and hit double figures in ten of them. She slammed Syracuse for 25 points and 12 boards and finished the season with a 6.9 scoring average. As a junior, she moved into the starting lineup and led the Big East in shooting %, while tallying 11.4 points a game and hitting double figures in 24 of the 36 games. Much was expected of her 2008-09 season...but a preseason injury to her knee and being struck by a car while on campus meant surgery and her having to sit out the season. This year, she provided a valuable spark off the bench and a crowd favorite. The NCAA ruled her inelgible for the second semester but she still remained one of the biggest supporters on the bench and in the community for UofL women's basketball.
Brandie Radde came to Louisville a year after Tise and quickly became the Cards three point specialist her freshman year. She averaged 6.1 a game her first year and nailed 56 threes while starting 18 of the Cards 34 games. Her sophomore season saw her improve upon those stats...with 70 threes and a solid 8 points per game...starting 32 of the 35 contests. Last year, Radde played about 2/3rds of her junior year before taking a leave of abscence to concentrate on academics. Radde wanted to make sure she got into medical school and once those dreams were realized...she asked Walz if she could rejoin the team halfway thru this current season and has been a valuable contributor off the bench. She'll finish her career at UofL as the 6th leading three point scorer in Lady Cards history and her 70 connections in 2007-2008 ranks third for 3-point field goals made in a season.
Brandie and Tise are the final Cardinal connections to the Tom Collen era at UofL. Current juniors Laura Terry, Keisha Hines and Dez Byrd were recruited by Collen but never played for him.
Ironically, both Wright and Radde were absent as active players during the Cards march to the NCAA Championship game last year...but returned this season to give what they could to the Lady Cards. Each player's families will be in attendance today for the pregame ceremony. Cardinal fans will always remember Wright's dominating play in the paint and the sweet long distance accuracy of Radde's bombs from beyond the arc.
Two of Louisville's favorites make their final regular season appearance today at Freedom Hall. A special halftime tribute honoring the Lady Cards seasons in Freedom Hall will happen at halftime and the team and Coach Walz will address the crowd after the game.
We'll review the activities here on Cardinal Couple tomorow. Please make an effort to get out today and say goodbye to these key Lady Cards this afternoon if you can.
Written by Sonja
2/27/10
