WSU VS. LOUISVILLE PREDICTIONS AND PREGAME DISCUSSIONS

[forevershockerfan]

Here's the deal. The deal is this. Let's make a deal and WSU play Michigan or the Cuse first. Oh well. I remember the Wes Unseld days and he could clean glass. While we are use to playing teams with names of birds, these birds are a much better team than any of the other birds. Our battle cry must now be--"Who let the Shocks out--who, who who." This was not my creation but thought it was clever. The Cardinals have Dieng and Behanan inside and Siva and Smith outside. They all defend like nobodys' business. Smith is unbelievable at penetrating and Duke had no stops to be found. The Shox will have to play their A+++ game. We must and we shall. Armstud hits a 3 at the buzzer.

MTXE unsatisfied, hungry, angry playing Shocks 59

Louisville--------------------------------------58

[wsushox1]

Stop Louisville in transition, limit turnovers, and hold our own in the paint.

Do those things I like our chances.

Obviously, if L-Ville turns us over it is a looooong night.

[GoShockers89]

Gotta beat the best to be the best.

WSU 71
Louisville 64

[forevershockerfan]

A win here and we could proclaim--"the winning Shocks that was heard around the world." Again, not my invention but heard something like that today. This win could be our biggest win in Shocker History until the next win in Atlanta for all the marbles.

[newshock1234]

Amazingly our opponents has another off night and we shock the world yet again

Angry shox 64
Louisville 61

[shock-it-to-me]

I wonder what the record is for total seed count in the final four? I would think this one would be right up there with only one #1 and no 2's or 3's for a total of 18.

[ShockerPrez]

This is USA vs Soviets 1980.

I hate to pick against the Shox, so I won't gonns be a tough game. Will be great to see how we pull this one off.

[fairbanksfan]

Early 10 point dogs, so-called experts all picking Louisville, I just don't get it. It's obvious (to me at least) that the Shockers are in it to win it. Louisville this, Louisville that, how about Malcolm this, Ron Baker that, Carl this, Cleanthony that. Either way, we have a week to prepare and I have faith in this coach and this team. Shockers-72 Louisville-66.

[KC Shox]

This obviously is the toughest opponent the Shox will have played not just in the tourney, but in the entire season. After watching today's game, I was just amazed how athletic Louisville is. Now playing against Duke probably exacerbated this perception since Duke is just a better version of Creighton and Gonzaga, (non athletic, perimeter oriented teams). This was Duke's worst point differential loss of the season by the way. Duke beats Creighton by 18, Creighton beats us twice, Louisville puts the whoopin' on Duke. Does this mean anything?

In order to win, the Shox must continue to come out early and come out fast. Bust Louisville's nose right out of the gate and get out to a big lead demoralizing them. Problem is, when we got out big on Gonzaga and OSU, they made a run and we struggled to hold on. If this should happen to Louisville, yikes!

That said, asking the Shox to play the perfect game is what's needing to happen to get to the NCG. My only thought on containing Louisville is to make them struggle to score on the interior. Just like OSU, if they try to drive, pack it in low. Obviously, intermediate and 3-point shooting is the lowest percentage FG attempt. If we are successful in creating scoring problems down low and Louisville beats us with the jump shot, then so be it. We played the odds and good for them if they hit their shots.

Add in the fact their fans will probably outnumber ours 4 to 1 and they'll be emotional and inspired trying to play well for the Ware kid, getting the win will be daunting. But, we're still playing with house money, unfamiliarity might help, the pressure is all on them and I believe our guys will be focused.

This has been one hell of a ride, Shox 54 - Cards 67.

[ShockerPrez]

Hold on.


Okay. I just had to pinch myself. For a second, I thought we were talking about a Final 4 in which WSU was a participant!

Hahaha!

[Shockeriffic]

I'm not as worried about Louisville's pressure defense. The really good pressure teams like VCU, Southern Mississippi and Detroit didn't cause too many problems. I'm more worried about Dieng locking down the paint. If we hit our outside shots we win. Either way it's going to be closer than 10 points.

[Rlh04d]

WSU 75
Lousiville 62

Nick Wiggins scores 36 on 100% 3 point shooting to give us another new tournament hero. Andrew Wiggins immediately commits.

[shoxlax]

This obviously is the toughest opponent the Shox will have played not just in the tourney, but in the entire season. After watching today's game, I was just amazed how athletic Louisville is. Now playing against Duke probably exacerbated this perception since Duke is just a better version of Creighton and Gonzaga, (non athletic, perimeter oriented teams). This was Duke's worst point differential loss of the season by the way. Duke beats Creighton by 18, Creighton beats us twice, Louisville puts the whoopin' on Duke. Does this mean anything?

In order to win, the Shox must continue to come out early and come out fast. Bust Louisville's nose right out of the gate and get out to a big lead demoralizing them. Problem is, when we got out big on Gonzaga and OSU, they made a run and we struggled to hold on. If this should happen to Louisville, yikes!

That said, asking the Shox to play the perfect game is what's needing to happen to get to the NCG. My only thought on containing Louisville is to make them struggle to score on the interior. Just like OSU, if they try to drive, pack it in low. Obviously, intermediate and 3-point shooting is the lowest percentage FG attempt. If we are successful in creating scoring problems down low and Louisville beats us with the jump shot, then so be it. We played the odds and good for them if they hit their shots.

Add in the fact their fans will probably outnumber ours 4 to 1 and they'll be emotional and inspired trying to play well for the Ware kid, getting the win will be daunting. But, we're still playing with house money, unfamiliarity might help, the pressure is all on them and I believe our guys will be focused.

This has been one hell of a ride, Shox 54 - Cards 67.

I agree with your analysis (although predicting a 13 point loss after saying will be focused is a little weird) except two things: 1) Duke is not better than Gonzaga by a long shot and 2) Louisville may have more fans there than us but the other team's fans will be rooting for us-bank on it. Michigan would love to avoid Louisville and so would Syracuse.

[The Mad Hatter]

Siva and Smith rightly get a lot of attention, but for my money, Dieng may be their best player. He is averaging nearly a double double (10.2 pts, 9.5 rbs), averages 2.5 blocks per game, shoots over 50% from the field, and is a very good passer for a big man. His presence defending the basket is a big part of what gives Louisville guards the freedom to be aggressive going for steals. We need to control him on the glass and pull him away from the basket as much as possible.

I think you will see some similarity to how we approached Craft in how we approach Siva and Smith (particularly Siva), by playing off of them and making them jump shooters instead of penetrators. Siva and Smith are more likely to burn us as jump shooters than Craft was, but it is still preferable to allowing them to get to the basket.

Obviously, we need to protect the ball, which is easier said than done considering that they average almost 11 steals per game, but if we can do that, keep UL out of transition most of the night, and rebound well we have a chance. The good news is that the only team that ranks ahead of UL in steals and turnover margin is VCU and we showed that we could handle their pressure, and Detroit also ranked #5 in the nation in turnover margin. In addition, Pitt, likewise playing in the Big East, put up much better rebounding numbers than UL and we outrebounded them. In 4 out of their 5 loses on the season, UL has been either tied or beaten on the boards.

Also, like it or not, officiating could play a big role in this game. Louisville can commit a lot of fouls with their aggressive defense, but they also draw a lot of fouls with their penetration and in transition (and get to the line a whole bunch). We need to get to the line at least as much as they do. In 4 out their 5 losses, UL had the same or fewer free throw attempts as their opponents.

I've got nothing but respect for UL. They've had a great season and are a very, very good team. Should be a fun game to watch, especially with match ups like Siva vs Armstead and Smith vs Cotton.

[Downtown Shocker Brown]

Predictions:

Louisville will be a tough team to beat. Many have come close. Most have failed to seal the deal. We must #PlayAngrier!!

The key is again they have to stop us. We can slow them. We will be successful. We must take care of the ball, and play smarter than 2nd half of OSU game.

We are able to extend our might, winning 63-57. Louisville left the nets up in Indianapolis. They weren't satisfied. They should have. They now leave empty handed.

Michigan plays like a team that was given a 2nd chance. They try to make us run, and we run over them. 88-74.