By Chris Brown & Allison Strickland
MEMPHIS, Tenn.–After an 85-61 win over the eighth-seeded TCU Horned Frogs, top-seeded U of L advances to the semifinal round of the Conference USA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The Cards move on to face the University of Alabama-Birmingham on Friday at 4:30 EST at FedExForum in Memphis.
In the first half of the game, Louisville pulled out 36 points over TCU, who the Cards held to only 19. “The defense was there. At this point in the season on a given night everyone knows what you do when you play league teams. Defense will help you win games and not offense,” said U of L head coach Rick Pitino of his team’s performance.
The Cardinals sustained their force into the second half, adding another 49 points to the scoreboard, and never trailing the Horned Frogs. The victory extended Louisville’s record to 16 wins in the last 17 games.
Pitino said the team’s success was largely due to efforts by Ellis Myles, including the senior’s triple-double, a first in C-USA tournament history and only the second in U of L history. The first triple-double was made by Samaki Walker against Kentucky in January 1995.
Myles was ablaze on the court, scoring 10 points, netting 10 rebounds, and grabbing 10 assists. “He does for me what Antoine Walker did for me when I was at Kentucky. [Myles] is coming on like our whole senior class is coming on — like seniors would,” Pitino said.
Myles made sure his teammates weren’t left out of the action, and their efforts combined together to rack up the point tally. Senior Larry O’Bannon, who led the Cards with 18 points, emerged as the team’s leading scorer. Junior Francisco Garcia, with 15 points, followed suit. Senior Taquan Dean in his first start since Feb. 12, hammered out 12 points. Senior Otis George had 11 points.
Though TCU trailed in the first half, the team could not overcome Louisville’s work in the second. The Horned Frogs, in their 19th loss of the season, return to the Lone Star State with yet another tournament disappointment. The Frogs have not made it passed the quarterfinal round of any tournament since the Western Athletic Conference in 2000.
As the clock ran down in the second half, Louisville secured its lead with a 3-pointer by Garcia and a 9-point scoring drive led by O’Bannon and Myles. “We are a dedicated team and just want to win,” said Myles.
