Louisville Grits Out Win Against FSU 82-75

So many times this season Louisville has gone into the final minutes with a victory in reach and not quite been able to pull it off. Even today with three minutes to go and a 7 point lead the Cards committed several unnecessary fouls that kept the Seminoles in the game. However this afternoon with 25 seconds to go and a 2 point lead Hailey Van Lith made the clutchiest of clutch shots to seal the deal.

Coach Walz talked about HVL’s big shot, “Hailey’s shot with the shot clock running out... it’s what she does. I’ve got all the confidence in the world in her. I was so happy for her too because she was patient. This was the first team that really tried to deny her the ball and she just let it come to her.”

Hailey finished the game with 20 points but she also added 8 rebounds, 8 assists, and 5 steals. Olivia Cochran had 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. Morgan Jones returned to her old school and I don’t know what happened when she saw the Seminole and the Louisville jersey but she morphed back into the player who torched the Cards every season. She had her best game as a Cardinal with a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds.

Coach Walz singled out the play of Norika Konno, “I’ve got to tip my hat to Rik again. The 15 minutes she’s in the game we were plus 13. The offensive rebound she gets. The pass.... She makes a great shot fake move and drops it off and O scores. It was fantastic.”

Coach finished with, “What a great game. I was so happy for everyone. Even the ones who didn’t get a chance to play were engaged on the bench and that’s what you’ve got to have.” He added, “It’s a hard place to get a win. We’ve had Final Four teams who have come through here and couldn’t get a win so we’ll take it.”

Next up Louisville plays Boston College in the Yum on Thursday. The game is at 7PM and can be streamed on ACC Network Extra.