The team that the Pack will face this Friday night in the Sweet 16 is different than the team they played in February. Flashback to that game where the Cards lost at home to NC State by 9 points the Cardinals had Chris Jones who has since been dismissed from the team. On that night Jones played well torching the Pack for 20 points and drawing a number of fouls. Since Jones’ dismissal Pitino has inserted freshman Quentin Snider (4 star 2014) into the starting lineup and he has gained confidence in his stroke the last few games. In the two games Louisville played last weekend, Snider was 4-7 from three point land and a big reason why the Cardinals avoided a first round upset as he scored 16 points versus UC Irvine.

Let’s recap Louisville’s season to get a clearer picture of what the Pack will face this coming Friday.

Recent Form: 

In the last 12 games Louisville has compiled a record of 8-4. The four losses have been to NC State, Syracuse, UNC, and Notre Dame. In this 12 game stretch the Cardinals have not beaten any team of promise besides Northern Iowa if you can call that a good win.

Who to Watch: 

Terry Rozier #0 6-1 190 lbs. SG: Rozier has been the go to man for the Cards all season as he leads their team in scoring at 17.2 per contest. Louisville depends on Rozier to shoulder the scoring load from the outside; however, Terry has proven to be an inefficient scorer. Thus far he is shooting  42 % from the field and an even worse clip from beyond the arc at 31%. The way Terry scores is by attacking the paint and finding his way to the free throw line where he’s 78 percent shooter.  One thing that Rozier excels at is in his effort. He goes 100 percent every time he steps onto the court and his rebounding numbers support this fact as he averages a shade over 5 per game, despite being one of the smaller guys on the court. Louisville becomes a top 10 team when Rozier is in the groove but struggles offensively when he is kept in check.

Montrezl Harrell #24 6-8 240 lbs. PF: The emotional leader of Rick Pitino’s squad is without question Montrezl Harrell as he plays with outstanding energy and effort. He is ultra athletic playing above the rim and using his combination of quickness and leaping ability to hunt the paint as well as the glass. Louisville loves to use Harrell in different spots to make the most of his versatility. Don’t be surprised to find Harrell catch the ball at the top of the key for an isolation play or see Harrell ignite the fast break by bringing the ball up the court himself. On the season he is averaging 15.4 PPG and 9.2 RPG. One of Harrell’s weakness is that he sometimes settles for long jump shots which is not his strength; however, when his does not settle and is locked in few if any in the college ranks are more difficult to stop at the rim.

Rick Pitino: We cannot underestimate the effects that a leader who has won multiple NCAA Championships can have on a game with a week to prepare. Pitino become the first coach to win two NCAA Championships with two different schools and has used his uptempo style of play to wreak havoc on opponents for the past 30 plus years. The man’s sweet 16 record is an astonishing 11-1!

Style of Play: 

Louisville will not hide their cards as they will play their brand of basketball which is uptempo and packed with pressure. The Cardinals believe in speeding up their opponents through full court pressure and using the turnovers forced to create quick buckets. However sometimes their press has the opposite effect which can be just as crippling in the way it can slow a team down. Many teams that have faced Louisville this season have been so cautious in guarding against turnovers that they don’t attack the press for easy baskets. This can wear a team down mentally as they are just getting into their offense as the shot clock is at 25 seconds.

The two man game is a big part of their offense as Pitino likes to match Rozier and Harrell up on the pick and roll. These two are both equipped to score the ball and can create lots of space as Harrell must be respected as not only rolling to the basket but spotting up for a jump shot. As Rozier and Harrell garner so much attention in the two man game others must keep track of Wayne Blackshear who is an adequate spot up shooter from three. This team doesn’t have any cool hand Luke’s anymore but the others must be respected.

Summary: 

This Louisville team is not as dominat of a squad as Pitino has had in recent years but nonetheless a capable group with talent. On the season the Cards have compiled a record of 26-8 in large part because of their defense. The defensive end is where the Cardinals hang their hats as they rank in the top 20 in a couple of defensive team stats including RPG (38.2), SPG (8.3), and BPG (5.5). Louisville is more than capable of losing when teams attack their pressure with good guard play and take care of the ball. If a team is loose with the basketball it only fuels the Cardinals press and allows them to hide their less than stellar half court offense. The reason State beat Louisville in February is because they protected the basketball and looked to score against the press. It will be critical that the Pack come out focused and survive the first 10 minutes of the game come Friday.