By Derek DeBurger
After a long break for the holidays, No. 19 Louisville will barely get to ease back into things when they head to Coral Gables to face the Miami Hurricanes.
Sunday’s matchup will tip off ACC play for Louisville with one of the tougher teams in the conference. The Canes only have one loss on the year, that loss being to top-10 Baylor. The Cards will play yet another game where points will be very difficult to come by—Miami only gives up 53.3 points per game, ranking 22nd in the country.
Miami has a very short bench, something else very similar to the last handful of opponents the Cards have faced. Ten total players have seen the court for the Canes all season long, and not every player has played in every game. If the Cards can effectively force touches in the paint to Olivia Cochran and Nyla Harris, they could get players in foul trouble and force the Canes to go deeper into their bench than they would like.
Getting the ball into the paint might be tricky, however, as Miami is great in perimeter defense; they average 10.6 steals per game. Miami is also a great rebounding team—grabbing 39.3 boards a game—due to their height at the center position and an infectious grit that seems to spread among Katie Meier-coached teams.
Like most teams that prioritize defense, the offense is a compliment. Miami’s offense is to slow the game down and bleed the clock to limit possessions but remain efficient on offense. Unfortunately for the Canes, they turn the ball over 16.3 times a game. Louisville prides itself on nonstop pressure, so it should force a plethora of turnovers and capitalize on them.
The Cards will have a tough test on New Year’s Eve, but I have confidence that their experience against similar styles of play will assist them, and get to 12-2 on the year.
