| Game Preview: Gonzaga | Date: Mar. 16, 2000 |
| Site: Tucson, AZ | Records: U of L: 19-11, Gonzaga: 24-8 |
|
| The Cards now have to put the disappointment of the conference tournament behind them, as they drew the 7 seed in the West Region and will face the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the first round. If the Cards advance, they are likely to face St. John's in the second round. Gonzaga made it to the tournament by winning the West Coast Conference tournament by beating Pepperdine 69-65 in OT. Gonzaga, of course, knocked off Minnesota, Stanford and Florida in last year's tournament to advance to the Elite Eight. They lost to eventual champion UConn in the Regional Final. |
| The Bulldogs are led by a starting five of all seniors, including leading scorer Richie Frahm, who averages 16.8 points and led the team in three-pointers with 84. Forward Casey Calvary scores 13.4 ppg and leads the team in rebounding with 6.4 rpg, while Matt Santangelo scores 12.9 points a game and leads the team in assists with an impressive 6.5 a game. One drawback for Gonzaga is the absence of Mike Nilson, a guard who was injured for the year during the WCC tournament. His loss gives Gonzaga a little less depth at guard, but they still have a strong backcourt. Gonzaga creates a challenge for U of L because they will not be adverse to running and playing an up-tempo game. |
Of course, the real issue here is the Cardinals. Will they snap out of the doldrums from the UNCC loss, or continue to wallow in misery and wilt under adversity? They talk a good game, but blew a chance to win the conference tournament with an uninspired performance. Considering their history in big games away from Freedom Hall in the last two years, a repeat of last year's Creighton game would not surprise anyone.  |
| Game Summary: Gonzaga | Score: Gonzaga 77, Louisville 66 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Marques Maybin (21) Gonzaga: Richie Frahm (31) |
|
| The Cards end their 1999-2000 season with their second straight lackluster effort, and their second consecutive first-round NCAA Tournament loss. Apparently the lessons of last year's Creighton loss were never learned, and the Cards are once again upset as a 7 seed. They were the only higher-seeded team to lose on Thursday. U of L let Gonzaga shoot an amazing 57% from the field, only the fifth time all year an opponent shot more than 50%. Their shooting included 8-16 from three-point range, including 4-8 from Richie Frahm, who led all scorers with 31. U of L, on the other hand, shot only 38% from the field after averaging 46% all season. It was their second-worst three-point shooting effort of the season, making only 2-17. In the second half, U of L shot only 28%. |
| The Cards led by one at halftime. 39-38, after having as much as a seven-point lead at 32-25. With the Cards trailing 49-45, Marques Maybin hit a three-pointer, then stole the ball and fed it to Quintin Bailey, who was wide open uder the hoop. Frahm came out of nowhere to block the shot, fed the ball back to Gonzaga's side where he eventually drilled one of his four three-pointers. After a Matt Santangelo jumper, the Cards trailed 60-52 at the 5:50 mark, and never got closer than six the rest of the way. Tony Williams went 0-7 from three-point range to end his career on a slump, and the Cards were once again confused by the zone defense. Although U of L forced 24 turnovers to only 14 of their own, and getting 22 more field goal attempts than their opponent, the Cards found yet another way to lose without any heart or inspiration. |
