Lady Cards 85 - Fla State 76 WBB

Saturday Cardinal COUPLE:

-Reid, Schimmel lead way in win over 'Noles

-Football notches seventh win, share of conference title

-WISE DAN takes Clark Handicap at Churchill

NOTE: UofL WBB game is at 4 p.m. today instead of 7 p.m. as previously mentioned.

The University of Louisville women's basketball team won on the road in
Tallahassee last night, withstanding two Florida State runs, to take a
hard fought 85-76 win over the 'Noles.

"For the first time this year, we played hard for 40 minutes." -Jeff Walz, head coach.

Shoni scored Louisville's
final five points of the first half.

Louisville started out the game in a flurry, running up a 7-0 lead on FSU when Cierra Warren scored in the paint and the Cards controlled the first ten minutes of action. Monique Reid sank two free throws to give Louisville a 15-6 advantage with 14:43 left in the first half and Reid scored from the paint to make it 27-16 with 10:50 on the clock. The Cards were still in control after Sara Hammond connected inside...giving Louisville a 35-26 edge at 5:35 in the half. From there, though...FSU went on a 14-4 run over the next four minutes and tied the contest at 39-39, thanks largely to the efforts of 6'4" center Cierra Bravard. The Cards had Reid and Warren on the bench with foul trouble and needed a spark.

Shoni Schimmel came through for UofL. After Sara Hammond scored to give the Cards a two point advantage, Schimmel scored the final five points of the half, including a buzzer beating jumper that concluded a 7-0 Cardinal run and it was 46-39 Cards at the break.

Reid was magnificent in the first half, coming off the bench to provide Louisville with 12 points in just eight minutes. Bria Smith added nine first half points and Schimmel, after nailing a game opening three, had eight for UofL. The Cards had a 18-14 edge in rebounds after twenty minutes.

The Cards started the second half in a hurry...Warren scoring first and Schimmel drilling another three and getting a steal for a layup to push the
Louisville lead to 53-41 after two minutes had ticked off the clock. That lead was still at 12 after another Shoni three at the 13:01 mark and it looked like the Cards might have FSU on their heels. The 'Noles were far from finished, though.

Bravard finished with
27 for the 'Noles

A 10-4 run drew FSU within six before Shoni found Reid with a half-court pass for two and it was 62-54 with 9:50 remaining. Florida State kept chipping away at the Cardinal advantage over the next five minutes and tied the game at 66-66 with 4:35 left. A Schimmel three broke the deadlock...but when Warren fouled out with 3:39 remaining, two free throws from FSU's Bravard made it only 71-70 Cards.

Reid and Asia Taylor went to work for UofL, though, and combined for a 7-0 UofL run to give the Lady Cards a 78-70 lead with 1:58 to go. FSU would get no closer than six the rest of the way and Louisville sank seven out of eight free throws down the stretch to preserve the win.

Louisville forced the 'Noles into 24 turnovers for the forty minutes, while creating only 17 miscues.

CARDINAL SCORING:

S.Schimmel 25 (in 40 minutes)
Reid           23 (in 24 minutes)
Smith         11
Burke           7
Hammond     6
Warren         6
Taylor          5
Dyer            2

Sherrone Vails and Antonita Slaughter both played but did not score. Shelby Harper and Jude Schimmel did not see action...but both will probably see extensive minutes Saturday night against Florida A&M, since Shoni logged 40 at the point tonight...a decision Jeff Walz said he made because of the 'Noles size and aggressiveness in the back court. Becky Burke played 37 minutes in the game.

WHAT WE LIKED ABOUT LAST NIGHT

-Louisville, faced with two opposition runs in front of an away crowd, came back and took control each time. They scored seven straight points to close out the first half after FSU tied it at 39-39 and went on a 11-3 run late in the second half after the 'Noles knotted it up at 69-69. Not folding on the road, a good sign of maturity and poise for the Lady Cards. 

-They're back! The 'Sho and Mo show' has returned and we're glad it's back on the airwaves. When Warren went to the bench in each half because of fouls, Shoni took over in the first half and both Shoni and Monique carried Louisville to the win in the second half...scoring 11 of the Cards final 14 points.

-Asia Taylor, with five clutch free throws down the stretch when Louisville had to have them. Her defensive work last night caused several turnovers and tied possessions also. She's becoming a spark off the bench like Mo and it couldn't happen to a harder working and more deserving player. Make 'em pay, A-Tayy!!

THINGS TO IMPROVE ON:

-Defensive stops in the paint. FSU's Bravard pretty much had her way against Warren, Vails, Dyer and Taylor inside last night and finished with 27 points. She may be one of the best post players Louisville will see this year...but she won't be the last tall and athletic one they'll face. Gotta limit the bigs...

-Preventing the opponent's runs. Twice last night, Louisville had 12 point leads and had FSU on the verge of getting blown out. Both times the 'Noles
came back to tie it. Developing a stronger "killer attitude" wouldn't hurt at all.

-Fouls. With Reid and Warren getting in early foul trouble, it put two of the Cards best scoring weapons on ice. When Warren fouled out, it left Louisville scrambling to find someone to shut down Bravard. Sure, calls aren't always going to go your way on the road...but solid defense without fouling would only benefit UofL.

A quick turnaround for UofL...the girls face FAMU at 4 p.m. today. The Rattlerettes lost a close one to Nebraska Friday, so they'll be tired also..but still dangerous.

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Nice work by Teddy Bridgewater and the Football Cards, ending the regular season with a 34-24 win down in Tampa over USF. First victory ever there for Louisville. The Cards have a share of the BIG EAST championship now, and with West Virginia roaring back to defeat Pitt last night...the Cards could get the BCS bid with a little luck. They need Cincinnati to lose...and without starting quartereback Zach Collaros, that's entirely possible. 

"A lot of Cardinal fans are counting on
you to beat Cincy! Are you able?"

Seven wins for UofL this year...including beating Kentucky, West Virginia and South Florida. And, this is a very young Cardinal football team. If Teddy Bridgewater isn't the best freshman quarterback in college football, show me a better one.  

Louisville needs Syracuse to defeat Cincinnati today in the Orange Dome. Game is at noon on the BIG EAST Network...if you want to see it.

(Was a Mountaineer fan last night, and a Orange fan today. This time of year brings out some pretty strange scenarios. I even found myself humming along with the WVU fans last night when they sang the traditional post-game "Country Roads" by John Denver. I seriously need help....Sonja kept me from burning any couches)

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Sonja at Churchill with buddies
Norma and Alan.

WISE DAN roared down the Churchill Downs stretch under the guidance of first time jockey John Velazquez and defeated 12 rivals in the $500,000 Clark Handicap yesterday at Churchill Downs. He was the second betting choice and returned $11 to win for trainer Charles Lopresti.

He was part of a successful Pick 4 for CARDINAL COUPLE...defeating longshot Mission Impazible and favorite Flat Out.

Wonderful day at the Twin Spires yesterday for CARDINAL COUPLE. Joined by Bread Boy in the Turf Club and meeting up later with Tommy Boy, we had excellent food, great racing luck and a fun Friday afternoon watching the horses.

Our bartending buddy Jo-Ann

Churchill does it right on the big days, but one has to wonder what they're trying to accomplish by ending the Twin Spires Club in February 2012. The announcement of TSC Elite is a slap in the face to the occasional bettors who can't afford wagering $25,000 a year to qualify as members.

It's the average race track attendee, who might not be there every day...but still bumps up attendance and wagering numbers...that is getting the muddy end of the bridle here. Several people we talked to yesterday are upset that the track will begin to charge admission for those who can't throw down 1/4th. of $100,000 a year at the historic oval.

It'll affect attendance, concession stand sales and drive some across the bridge to Indiana off-track facilities...where food and beverage is cheaper, admission is free and there are separate smoking facilities indoors.  

The Downs already is faced with the absence of casino-style wagering on the facilities and purses for racing are diminished because of this lack of extra purse money. Now they want to sock it to the little guy.

Sonja and Jo-Ann

Reconsider, Churchill. Even though the Friday Night under the Lights promotions are popular....turning your back on the common man will result in sparse attendance on days where major events aren't happening.

You're competing for entertainment dollars in a economy where those are steadily diminishing. Jacking up your prices and assuming an elitist policy probably isn't the brightest concept you've ever come up with...

Fla. State, FAMU await Lady Cards

FRIDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

-Lady Cards in Florida for two

-Football Cards in Florida also

-Directions need to change in BIG EAST re-alignment?

Nothing better than heading to Florida for a few days after Thanksgiving, right? For the Lady Cards, another early season test against a ranked opponent might detract a bit from the sun and fun in the Sunshine state.

The Seminoles (3-2) are #24 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll. They've been playing a challenging schedule so far...with losses to SEC schools Arkansas and Florida and a win over Georgia State in their last outing at home. Home has been good to FSU when it comes to facing the Lady Cards...they've defeated Louisville the last five times UofL has visited and they lead the overall series 12-10 against the Lady Cards. 

Last meeting between the two schools was in the Tom Collen era...when they matched up in 2004 at the Lady Griz Classic in Missoula, Montana. FSU beat Louisville 69-54. 

After the Fla. State game, the Cards stay in Tallahassee to face Florida A&M. The Rattleretts are 1-2 on the season and play Nebraska tonight. The Lady Cards and FAMU have never met before.

-Hats off to Bria Smith for her theft capabilities. The freshman has 17 steals in five games. Only Sara Nord (21) and Angel McCoughtry (19) have started a season with more and both of them accomplished the pilfering as seniors.

-Becky Burke is 13-13 this year on free throws and 168-196 in her career. The .875 % puts her #1 in Cardinal history so far...narrowly ahead of Kristin Maddox (.852), who played at UofL from 1992-96.  

-When Louisville held Xavier to 12 first half points, it tied the record for second-least opponent points in a first half. The Cards held Houston Baptist to 8 last year in a 100-34 win. They also held Coastal Carolina to 12 in 1996.

-Shawnta Dyer set career marks with seven points and 10 rebounds against Xavier.

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Although the Football Cards are already bowl eligible, they're on a mission in Florida also...to record a first ever win against the South Florida Bulls in Tampa and stay alive for a shot at the BIG EAST title and BCS Bowl bid.

Remarkable accomplishments this year by Charlie Strong and his crew. The Cards were picked in the pre-season to finish seventh out of the eight teams that play football in the BIG EAST.

They stand a good chance today if USF quarterback B.J. Daniels can't play because of a bad shoulder. Daniels injured the should last week against Miami in a game USF lost 6-3. His playing status is a game-time decision, from what we've been reading...

Although football at 11 a.m. isn't exactly something WE get excited about...(3:30 has been and will always be our favorite kick-off time)...today's game holds a lot of implications for the near future of Cardinal football and we'll be watching and hoping Louisville can pull off a first-ever feat in Tampa.

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CARDINAL COUPLE reader Jason (Louisville, KY) sent us an interesting re-alignment proposal for BIG EAST football. He thinks the conference should go in a north-south direction instead of east-west. His proposed alignment is below...

NORTH DIVISION

Connecticut
Rutgers
Villanova
Temple
Marshall
Massachusetts (or Army or Navy)

SOUTH DIVISION

Louisville
Cincinnati
South Florida
Central Florida
East Carolina
Memphis

One of the things about his idea we like is short travel distances to away games. Trips to Texas and out west aren't something we're looking forward to if the BIG EAST includes schools out there.

It's the BIG EAST, so anything could happen...but we not so sure that football should be driving the train for all the other sports that Louisville participates in as a member of the BIG EAST. Television and the $$$ they throw around has ruined the landscape of college football, in our opinion, and it's time for the athletic directors and Universities to start dictating the terms to the networks, instead of vice-versa.


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Cards prepare for post-Thanksgiving road trip

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WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE:

-Lady Cards head to Florida for two

-Watson's column: Favorite foods for Lady Cards

After the turkey, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie has been cleared from the table Thursday...the Lady Cards head south for two games...Florida State on Friday and Florida A&M on Saturday. One stop covers both, since both schools are located in Tallahassee.

The Lady Seminoles are 4-2 on the season...starting with wins over Florida Southern College, South Florida and Minnesota, but losing to Arkansas and Florida. They got back on the winning track with their first home game of the year on Monday night...downing Georgia State 94-74. 

Bravard was pre-season
first team ACC and first
team Sporting News All-
American.

Junior forward Chelsea Davis came off the bench for F.S.U. and scored 25 points to lead the 'Noles to the win. Two more juniors...wings Alexa Deluzio (20 pts.) and Chasity Clayton (18 pts.) were also instrumental in the win. Strong post player Cierra Bravard added 11 for #21 Florida State.

"We're pretty deep into the season for it to be our first home game. We've learned a lot on the road. We've started a little slower than we hoped. We're patient. I thought Deluzio did a great job of running the show against Georgia State and Chelsea having a career night was huge for us as well." -Florida State head coach Sue Semrau.

On Saturday, the Lady Cards will travel a few miles and face the FAMU Lady Rattleretts. They're 1-2 on the season, having lost to FIU 79-64 last time out and will face Nebraska before taking on the Cards.  

Obviously, the Lady Cards will have their hands full in stopping Bravard, a 6'4" post that plays the power game in the paint. Louisville can't concentrate on just stopping her, though. The Noles have shown they have several scoring options. Look for Louisville to try and get FSU out of their half court offense with full court pressure and kick the transition game into high gear. Arkansas survived against the 'Noles by hitting a buzzer beater three to win 55-52 and FSU likes the pace and tempo in the 50-60 point range...where two of their four wins have ended up. 

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(David Watson is a special contributor to Cardinal Couple. This time of year, his thoughts turn to food. We've seen him in action, the man can clear a plate of delectables faster than Bria Smith can cut to the baseline and bank one in.)

I like turkey. Oven roasted, smothered in giblet gravy and ample portions of white and dark meat. Not so big on ham for Thanksgiving, but I won't scrape it off my plate if it's served. I also like mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, rolls and pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving. This means I better get busy in the kitchen, since my wife and kids have no desire to slave over a hot stove and prepare these things. We don't spend Thanksgiving with relatives because my wife usually works the weekend at the hospital. I enjoy cooking on Thanksgiving. I've prepared turkey several ways over the years. Deep fried it outdoors, oven-baked it, put it on a rotisserie and oven baked is still the best.

I got my UofL women's basketball media guide recently and started looking at what the Lady Cards favorite foods are. Here's what I discovered - with my usual smart aleck comments :

Becky Burke - Steak and Potatoes (Can't go wrong there. Porterhouse and twice-baked potato will definitely get my attention.)

Set me a bottle of A-1 down and back off !

Monique Reid - Sapporo (I'm assuming not the beer, but the Japanese grill and sushi restaurant in Louisville.)

Tia Gibbs - Zaxby's. (Never been to the chicken fast food place but they have sweet potato fries, a plus.)

Shelby Harper - Steak and potatoes. (She's such a little girl, I bet she gets the petite filet mignon.)

Asia Taylor - Mama's home cooking. ( That's never a bad choice. I still drool when I think of my dearly departed mother's pot roast.)

Shoni Schimmel -  Sapparo's (I wonder if she and Mo go there and plot strategy for UofL games? Looking at Sho-time's shooting % this year, maybe she's referring to the beer.)

Antonita Slaughter - Sushi. (That table at Sapparo's is getting crowded!)

"The Reid party,  your table is now available."

Charmaine Tay - Chipotle burrito (They probably don't serve that at Sapparo's but maybe Mo, Shoni and Antonita drop her off at Los Azteca's on the way to Sapparo's.)

Sherrone Vails - Sizzlin' Bacon. (OK, this is the most interesting one I've read so far. Hopefully, she waits until it's out of the skillet.)

Cierra Warren - My godmother's pasta. ( Being a huge noodle fan myself, I gotta know. White or red sauce? I'm a red guy.)

Shawnta Dyer - Cheesecake. (She's got some good choices in Louisville. Homemade Pie Kitchen and Adam Matthews.)

Dig in, Sara...it's three layers

Sara Hammond - Giant chocolate wedding cake. (OK, we've got a new leader for most interesting response. I wonder if she dresses in a bridal gown when she consumes this?) 

Jude Schimmel - Kwongs. ( I had to Google it. It's a Chinese restaurant in Pendleton, Oregon. I might recommend August Moon in Louisville, a lot shorter drive for you and excellent Chinese-Mongolian fare.)

Bria Smith- Lobster. (Typical New York girl. Fancy tastes and I'm guessing she likes it pre-cracked and served with warm, drawn butter and a shrimp cocktail appetizer.)

I've probably made you hungry after reading this and, if so, mission accomplished. As far as my favorite thing to eat goes, I fell in love with prime rib years ago and like it medium-rare, with a baked potato and tossed salad.

So...good dining to you and yours this Thanksgiving holiday and I hope you have the best of weekends. If you get bored, stop by and help me with potato peeling and bird basting. If Paul and Sonja offer me the vacant food editor postition at CARDINAL COUPLE, I just might accept. After dinner, of course.

(David Watson actually was a short order cook in college for a couple of years, a part time job that he still has the grease burns from. Waffle House has his picture posted in their break rooms with the caption: DO NOT RE-HIRE).
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