Given that Sunday night’s upcoming halftime show (booked by both halves of football) will be nearby, hundreds of lead-in shows are coming from Alcatraz.
Beautiful scenery, I thought.
ACC Country is a long way from iconic prison, but there’s no doubt that L.A.’s 88-80 victory over Wake Forest was an escape.
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Of the painful variety.
Not Burt Lancaster, but what the heck, call the Cardinals the Birdmen of Winston-Salem.
Louisville finished 27/51 on FG. 53%.
They hit 10 of 25 triples. 40%.
The evolution of the FT shooting competition – where was the Elam finale when we really needed it? — Cardinals drained 24/31. 77%.
However. . . However. . . Against the freshly minted Demon Deacons, who had lost four straight games, shooting 6-of-7 and 8-of-10, the 15-point advantage L.A. had (which, frankly, should have been bigger) was completely gone with 4:44 left in the game.
80-80.
Why? Because while the Cards’ rocky performance was acceptable, their defense for most of Saturday afternoon’s tilt was, let’s put it kindly, simply, not tenacious enough.
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Before it is positioned, the moment of truth.
When Louisville scored the final eight points of that game.
Although there were no shots in the last 6 minutes and 38 seconds.
Because they kept all the important articles except one from the Financial Times.
At the same time increase their defensive intensity and keep the Dirk team away from the defensive line. (WF’s only two attempts in the closing stages failed.)
The home team was well over 50% on the field before a late skid in the game, but failed on their final 11 attempts.
Come to think of it, this escape was similar to the Elam finale, where U of L outscored WF by the necessary eight points at the end of the 4:00 minute mark.
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Just as important, the Cards never relinquished the lead they held on by a hair on their chin from a 7-1 start.
Kasean Pryor hit a 35-foot three-pointer early in the game to take a 78-75 lead.
This is huge.
But Wake scored five points in a row to tie the score at 78.
The last FT was even traded to 80-year-old Steven.
** ** ** **
While I understand what Coach Kelce’s final strategy was — put the ball in Kyle’s hands, time the clock, and assume he’ll make the play — that doesn’t mean Smart and I didn’t yell at the screen, “Move the fucking ball!!!”
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The University of Los Angeles escaped from a prison of its own making.
When the clue disappears, I tell my viewers, “I have a premonition.”
Fortunately, I was wrong.
But oh, those ill-timed missteps.
Oh, those ill-advised, no, poor passes.
How many times has Wake scored with just seconds left on the clock?
How many of Wake’s eight 3-pointers were uncontested?
** ** ** **
Brown offset his four giveaways with 8 dimes.
Sananda Fru scored 17 points for the Cardinals.
K9 gets 13 and 4.
Adrian Wooley worked hard and grabbed 5 rebounds.
Isaac McKneely shot 4/5 from the field.
J’Vonne Hadley once again proved indispensable despite a back injury. Wear a back brace during pine tree time.
Again, final: 88-80.
Next up: North Carolina.
— CD Kaplan
