The University of Louisville basketball team's second-half implosion against Cincinnati on Wednesday night was of the self-inflicted variety. The Cardinals let a 12-point lead slip away and fell 69-66 to the Bearcats in the second round of the Big East Conference Tournament in Madison Square Garden.

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by Brett McMurphy

Filed under: Cincinnati, Louisville, Big East, NCAA Tournament, Big East Tournament

FanHouse Big East senior writer Brett McMurphy is in New York breaking down every game of the Big East tournament.

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UL'S HOUSE OF CARDS COLLAPSES DOWN STRETCH

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NEW YORK -- Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin isn't concerned about the NCAA tournament bubble talk. He said his club has more immediate concerns.

"I'm sure that the [NCAA tournament] bubble talk will begin again," Cronin said after Cincinnati rallied past Louisville 69-66 Wednesday night in the second round of the Big East tournament. "We've been through all that so much. Our guys really -- it's funny they'll tell you -- they're not even interested in that. They want to win the Big East championship."

 

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“I’m actually looking forward to going away to college,” said Indiana offensive lineman Kiaro Holts. “I’ve lived here my whole life and want a new experience.” During his spring break, Holts plans on visiting Mississippi, North Carolina and Wake Forest, all of whom have offered. “I’m looking forward to going out there and seeing them. I’m gonna try to visit and see as many schools as I can...”

A pair of free throws by Deonta Vaughn with 5.9 seconds left put Cincinnati up 69-66, and Louisville's final possession ended in a turnover as Edgar Sosa was stripped by Vaughn just before time expired. The 11th-seeded Bearcats improved to 18-14 on the season and advanced to Wednesday's Big East semifinal round for the first time in school history

via lh5.ggpht.com

 

So, that sucked.  After Saturday, everything was supposed to be gravy.  I know that in three weeks and three years and thirty years, we will remember Saturday over everything else (more so than even the 2008 Elite 8 run, I would bet).

But tonight.  Ugh. 

No Jerry + no defensive rebounding (block out!) + missing tons of shots in the 2nd half  + not playing fast/loose in the 2nd half + missed free throws + Knowles going 1-12 = horrible, horrible loss. 

It seems so simple, but when we shoot well, we are really good.  When we shoot poor to average, we are terrible.

See everyone Sunday.

Once a perennial loser and laughing stock of the NFL, the Arizona Cardinals have recently reversed those fortunes. Arizona has enjoyed two consecutive winning seasons and playoff berths but is now experiencing the ramifications of its recent success. Several now former Cardinals have cashed in on lucrative contracts with new teams leaving Arizona searching for answers at multiple positions.

Edgar Sosa's 28 points led the Cardinal, but it wasn't enough to overcome Louisville on Wednesday night.

One More Homecoming Wreck For Edgar Sosa

One could see it coming early.

Edgar Sosa pumping his chest, waving him arms, winking at the camera, the kind of stuff players usually do when a game is in the bag.

Doing it in the first half, acting as if a 10-point lead was 25, and it was only a matter of time before Rick Pitino would clear the bench.

Just another bad night for Sosa in Madison Square Garden. This is the one that will hurt the most.

The Louisville basketball team was playing well in the first half, probably one of the better halves this season, sticky quick on defense, challenging every pass, every shot, every defensive rebound.

Feeling good about themselves. Real good. Especially Edgar Sosa.

Danger time. That’s when bad things begin happening for this team.

Second half, different Sosa, over-confident, making circus passes, NBA-distance three-point attempts. Throwing the ball to wrong people — Terrence Jennings and Jared Swopshire — at the worst possible times, neither of them known for hitting shots at clutch time.

Sorry, Sosa, no Kyle Kuric around for much of the second half to bail anybody out this time around. His hot shooting hands relegated to the bench. Pitino’s most predictable decision this day.

Sosa with 20 points in the first half, lucky to get eight in the second.

Still, just another bad night for Sosa in Madison Square Garden. This is the one that will hurt the most.

...

There will be a new Big East champion this season. Louisville surrendered a 12-point second half lead against underdog Cincinnati and fell 69-66 to the Bearcats in the Big East Tournament second round Wednesday night.

USC has offered a larger number of out-of-state prospects than in years past, but that’s mostly because Lane Kiffin and his staff at Tennessee had been evaluating many of them before taking over at USC.

The No. 14 University of Louisville men's tennis team beat No. 21 Virginia Tech 5-2 Wednesday afternoon at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center.

Offensive line is a priority each year among college football teams and the Florida Gators are no different. One offensive lineman in the state of Florida that is starting to get attention is 6-3 290-pound left tackle James Elliott.

Senior Melissa Roth's one-out home run sparked a three-run eighth that also included freshman Alicja Wolny's first collegiate homer as the No. 18/20 University of Louisville softball defeated host Kentucky 3-0 Wednesday night.

Glad the observer qualified Rick Pitino’s remarks about Peyton Siva starting. The coach is again doing the opposite of what he said Tuesday he would do. Looks like he’s going with Preston Knowles at second guard and staying with Edgar Sosa at the point. At least, RP is consistent.

...

To quote Mo Udall, "The people have spoken, the b***ards."  The most controversial nickname vote on CardChronicle since the infamous "T-Far v. The Candyman" debate of 2006 (of course, with a much smaller readership, the final vote was 7-4) has ended with Kyle "The Kure" Kuric as the leading vote-getter.

The Kure's reaction, when reached with the news, via www.courier-journal.com

Here are the final results:

Nickname Votes Percentage The Kure 144 21% Special K 118 17% K2 102 14% Others Doesn't matter Doesn't matter

 

Anyway, in order to prevent a rebellion, the CardChron staff has made the following decisions:

1)  You can call Kyle whatever you want, even if his "official" nickname is The Kure

2)  You must call Mike: Batman.

 

Good luck tonight K2 and The Ruth.  Play and live-blog like champions!

Wayne Lyons, the 4-star safety out of Dillard HS is one of the top safety prospects in the country, and last weekend took a trip to Tampa for USF junior day. Read on and see what the No. 5 ranked safety in the country thought about the visit.

Jabari Gorman is one of the more sought after recruits in the Miami (FL) surrounding area. To see what the buzz is all about, click below.

Griffin (Ga.) safety Corey Moore and Powder Springs (Ga.) Hillgrove linebacker Jabari Hunt-Days stood out from the crowd on Sunday at Schuman's National Underclassmen Combine. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Barry Every breaks down the standout