The Confidential

The Forecast is Unclear

After a short hiatus, Louisville Basketball will attempt to resume play tonight (it’s up to you Mother Nature) by facing a nationally ranked Notre Dame team that has historically managed, along with the Cards, to create one of the great under-the-radar college basketball rivalries in all of college basketball.  Amazingly, seven of the last thirteen meetings between the two schools have gone to at least one overtime – hard to top that. And speaking of overtimes, it was the epic heart breaking 5 overtime loss to Notre Dame in 2013 that would inspire and somehow catapult the Cards into winning out the rest of their regular and post season schedule – ending with a third National Championship.

Now, let’s definitely not get too carried away with comparisons here. Will this 2014-15 Louisville squad find a way, regardless of tonight’s outcome, to win it’s second national title in just three years? Well, the odds certainly aren’t great. But if one would have told me with a straight face that UCONN, a team I watched UofL utterly destroy by 30+ points in it’s final regular season home game last season, was going to cut down the nets in 2014 then I would have told that same person that all Kentuckians hate bourbon.  So, in summary…..

The bottom line for tonight’s tilt is that the Cards will have to do a helluva job defending the perimeter to win. They will also have to find a way to keep the Irish’s leading scorer, Jerian Grant, out of the paint and away from the bucket as his offensive production is vital for Notre Dame. Aside from defense, the Cards will need to emulate the offensive performance they burst out with against Florida State this past Saturday.  Essentially, they will need bench production such as the coming out party Anton Gill (4-4 from the 3PT line) decided to have against the Seminoles. Outside the bench, it would serve Louisville well if senior Wayne Blackshear could match last Saturday’s showing by providing a jolt to the offense.  And as always, rebounding will be key.  UofL can ill afford to give the Irish second and third chances.  That simply means that guys outside of Montrezl Harrel, namely Onuaku and Mathiang, need to do their job in corralling the ball off the rim and keeping it up high so that pesky guards cannot rip it away.

Would a loss tonight be devastating to UofL?  Not necessarily, as many of the “experts” seem to think that the Cards are already locked into a NCAA Tournament 4 seed.  But, that seeding could potentially change and so tonight’s game is mighty big for UofL.  A win could provide momentum going into this Saturday’s clash with Virginia. In addition, beating ND could also help the Cards keep pace for solidifying a double bye in their inaugural ACC Tournament next week in Greensboro.  My forecast tells me that tonight’s game will be intense with a slight chance of drama.  I look for Terry Rozier to break out of a recent shooting slump to have a big night and I fully expect Montrezl Harrell to be, well Montrezl.

My novice predictions tonight: the Cards will rise up and finally play well on their home floor. The lids on the Yum! Center rims will seem wider than normal. And, the game will come down to a crucial possession or two.  Oh and als0 look for ND coach Mike Brey to coach his one millionth straight game without wearing a necktie – a sports event record currently held by the legendary Tom Jurich.

Cards 70  Irish 67 – no luck of the Irish tonight

For those traveling this evening be safe and smart. For those in the Yum! Center, please scream your arse off. I will be viewing from my living room where the line to the men’s restroom and the price of a beverage are very hard to beat.

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

In case you didn’t know, the gentleman above is named Chris Jones. Perhaps you’ve heard of him.  If not and you claim to be a Louisville Basketball fan, then you’ve either been hiding beneath a boulder for the past week or vacationing at the North Pole.  Regardless of your familiarity, the soap opera surrounding the talented yet tumultuous senior point guard finally reached it’s final episode this past Sunday, less than 24 hours removed from a much needed home win over Miami.  And this episode of As The Jones Turns would not have a warm, fuzzy ending.  Consequently, the chances of a sequel or spin off are as likely as me playing in the NBA next year.  No more coming back, no more second chances, no more Oscar nominated flops, no more clutch jumpers……end of story, roll the credits.

Ironically, Jones would play well in his final game wearing a Cardinal uniform, tallying 17 points and igniting a UofL offense that up until the start of the 2nd half had stunk worse than a 3 week old dead opossum roadside in July.  On the periphery, everything seemed in place: Jones was back on the team, back on the floor and back to helping Louisville win basketball games.

And then………

Upon first hearing the news about Jones’ final dismissal from the team on Sunday afternoon, most UofL fans, myself included, were like……

But after the initial shock set in, confusion slowly turned to aggravation and angst for Card fans (or perhaps I only speak for myself).

How does a kid who was just reinstated following a suspension manage to get booted off the team again so swiftly?  But the more important question for some is why has UofL had so many discipline issues in previous years – all issues that ultimately kept critical players off the floor? Finger pointing and excuses are meaningless when it comes to trying to resolve that issue, yet it still leaves even the average Louisville fan searching for answers and grasping for straws. Look no further than the likes of Derrick Caracter, Carlos Hurt, Chane Behanan and now Chris Jones to best illustrate the “what could have been” storyline for other Louisville basketball teams.  Perhaps a separate blog should be crafted to discuss what I personally find to be some of the key issues contributing to the occasional off the court disarray.  But for starters, here’s one…

So in closing, Chris Jones now takes his next step in life.  As a fan, I am disappointed and borderline perturbed.  As a human, I am saddened and concerned.  Although short lived, Jones’ time at UofL will probably be remembered in both good and bad terms.  Was Jones a fan favorite, a lovable icon, or a Peyton Siva’esque figure that fans adored?  Louisville supporters both young and old would plausibly say “No”.  On the flip side, was CJ a tenacious defender, someone who played his tail off, and a player that single-handedly lifted the Cards to a few wins earlier this season (insert Wake Forest)?  Undoubtedly yes.  I wish Chris Jones a better, brighter future as I hope other UofL faithful will as well.  There is no need to take jabs and second guess his actions.  Besides, who are we to judge?

Life without Jones won’t be easy, especially for this particular UofL squad.  Want proof?  It came in the form of an epic struggle on the road at Georgia Tech last night.  A struggle that somehow resulted in a win so ugly that my eyes are still hurting from watching.  More about the ‘Tech/Ville game tomorrow, I’m calling it a day and hoping that more good news as opposed to bad await this group of Cards.

L’s Up

Disaster Avoided

After a week when Mother Nature decided to wreak havoc on the residents in the Kentucky area, it only made sense when a group of Hurricanes dropped into downtown Louisville and the Yum Center yesterday afternoon looking to cause major damage. This particular storm came in the shape of a Miami men’s basketball team that sat firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble entering Saturday’s slugfest. Miami, a team that decidedly beat Duke on their home floor earlier in the season, entered yesterday as a team that was hungry, looking for something to eradicate. And, for 20 minutes Rick Pitino’s squad looked like the ideal victim – ripe for the picking.

Louisville’s first half display of basketball on Saturday afternoon was one of the ugliest performances in many moons – a highlight reel for viewers who enjoy poor shot selection, selfish one on one play and bad energy. The only thing that saved Louisville yesterday from being severely battered and washed away was a mandatory storm shelter – halftime.

So fifteen minutes came and went, and out from behind the clouds and wreckage sprang a second half Louisville team that showcased energy, teamwork and positive vibes. After opening the second half on a quick 8-0 spurt, the Cards had risen from the ashes and enabled themselves to strap on enough seat belts to endure a half of basketball that looked far more like the old school Big East brand of hoops than the present day ACC…..bodies on the floor, players banging on every trip down the lane, each shot being highly contested.  And in the spirit of not reviewing each single possession from yesterday, I’ll cut to the chase…..the game literally went to the buzzer when Angel Rodriguez’s last second game winning 3pt attempt blew to the right and UofL fans went from…..

To…….

…..in a matter of seconds.

Montrezl Harrell played huge for UofL (sound familiar?) particularly in the paint and most surprisingly from the free throw line where he hit 3 of 4 attempts inside a minute of regulation to help the Cards avoid losing their 4th out of their last 5 contests. Chris Jones found his way off local milk cartons and the missing person’s campaign to also play a major role in the win with his energy and timely offense down the stretch.  Terry Rozier had an off night and struggled from the field but his bucket inside the final two minutes and his deflection just inside a minute were irreplaceable.  All that to say: Cards 55, Canes 53.

But hold up, wait a minute……it’s worth noting that oddly enough, arguably the biggest story from yesterday’s game was not the fact that UofL managed to rip victory from the jaws of defeat, but instead how Montrezl Harrell looked like Peyton Manning (or insert your favorite QB) when accurately drilling Miami’s Tonye Jekiri square in the forehead on an overhead pass after coming down with the ball following a 1st half defensive rebound.  Enter a new American conspiracy that shall be labeled “Head Gate”

I won’t cast opinions either way, good or bad, just to say that the play itself was as strange as any in-game one I have seen in a couple years.  And to add to the awkward story line of whether Harrell did or did not intentionally pong Jekiri, Miami Coach Jim Larranaga reportedly informed the three game officials following the incident that Jekiri had suffered a concussion as a result of the play and would not return.  Yet, he made his way back to the court early in the second half and played the rest of the way…..Miami must have one helluva team physician.

Up next for the Cards is a road tilt at current ACC bottom feeder Georgia Tech. But despite the Yellowjackets’ current league standing the Cards will absolutely have to show up in Atlanta with a sense of urgency and a desire to play team-oriented basketball for 40, not 20 minutes.  The ACC doesn’t offer any nights off, a lesson Louisville must continue to grasp and carry well into March.