The sixty-third edition of Wallpaper Wednesday.

I know it is Tuesday, but I wanted to get this out in time for the first game (even if it is only by a few hours). I’ll admit to slacking off a little on WW the past few months but it sure has been hard to be motivated by football. I won’t commit to a weekly release but you can count on a few more wallpapers this season :). As always click on the picture to get the full-size one.

Yeah a win.

The team has made great strides in a short time. Here are 63 pics from the Exhibition win.

The Halloween game may have been a little scary but at least it was a win.

Wasn’t pretty, but it never is against the tigers.
65 pictures from the Exhibition.

YEAH, Basketball is back.
78 pictures from the UofL scrimmage.

51 pictures from the UofL football Victory.

31 pictures from the UofL football Victory.

For more information, click on the link below…

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Are you ready for some football?

The EmpireBowl NFL league is entering its 8th season and by now is run like a well-oiled machine. Our commissioner Needabuzz is a fantasy vet and he’ll be using the free fantasy tools at foxsports.com for all scoring and stats. Right now there is no limit on the number of entrants so feel free to check out this thread if you’re interested. More information will be forthcoming as we get closer to kickoff.

Basketball season never ends.

Whether you’re just not feeling football this year or you’re just a hoops junkie like myself, you should check out our EmpireHoops BigEast Basketball league. We use only BigEast basketball players in this league which makes it a lot of fun for us Card fans. This will be our 2nd season and we had a blast last year. No outside websites are used so all scoring, stats, roster moves, trash talking etc. are done here at CardinalEmpire.com. Entry into this league is first-come, first-served so get in quick to assure yourself a spot when we start drafting players in October. For everything you need to know visit our fantasy hoops page in the forums.

45 pictures from the UofL football Spring Game.

The sixty-second edition of Wallpaper WednesdayThursday.

It’s a day late, but as I alluded to in my previous post, I am going to be a lot more lax on the schedule for WW’s during the summer. I was happy to receive a request for a Harry Wallpaper because I never made one with just him as the subject (although he is in a couple of them). So here is a wallpaper in honor of my man Harry who is in town for the Spring Game. As always click on the image to view full resolution at my Flickr archive.

The big seasons are over and I haven’t figured out what the WW schedule will be like over the “summer”. I had a few requests in my inbox I will try and knock out, but the stream is going to slow down this offseason. I apologize to anyone looking for their weekly dose.

–prudat

33 pictures from the UofL recruits at the game. 30 various other pictures including recruits for other schools.

first the UofL recruits

and now the other pics

29 pictures from the event.

The sixty-first edition of Wallpaper Wednesday.

A celebration of the Women’s Basketball 2008-2009 Season. They fell a little short of the ultimate goal but you can’t complain about the best season in school history. Photos were taken by Sam Hunter (www.flickr.com/photos/samhunter/). As always click on the image to view full resolution at my Flickr archive.

The sixtieth edition of Wallpaper Wednesday.

I was hoping to do two of these but alas only the Lady Cards are going to be representing in the Final Four. Photos were taken by Sam Hunter (www.flickr.com/photos/samhunter/). As always click on the image to view full resolution at my Flickr archive.

For the Louisville Cardinals, Friday’s meeting with Arizona in the Sweet 16 is more than just an opportunity for a second straight berth into the Elite Eight. Even if Terrence Williams and company can’t remember it (they were 7 at the time), Friday’s Sweet 16 meeting with Arizona is a shot at tourney vindication. It was in the 1994 West Regional that Khalid Reeves and the #2 seed Wildcats dispatched of the 10th-ranked Cards, ruining the postseason debut of Louisville’s black jerseys with an 82-70 drubbing behind Reeves’ 29 points. Fortunately for the Cards, a #1 overall seed ensures the home whites for at least one more game… and a shot at returning 15 years of postseason humiliation.

When the two teams meet at Lucas Oil Stadium, similarities to that Sweet 16 matchup won’t be hard to find. Louisville enters the Sweet 16 as one of the most athletically gifted, physically imposing teams left dancing, putting studs like Williams, Earl Clark, and Samardo Samuels in places once occupied by Clifford Rozier, Greg Minor, and Dwayne Morton. But in talented guard Nic Wise and future NBA players Chase Budinger and Jordan Hill, the Wildcats have the horses to run past Louisville’s vaunted press and right into the regional final.

Can these Cards vanquish the demons of postseasons past? Will Nic Wise and Chase Budinger do their best Damon Stoudamire/Khalid Reeves impersonation for interim coach Russ Pennell? We dig in (and bury those old alternate road unis) for a look at the Wildcats of Arizona.

#12 Arizona Wildcats (21-13, 9-9 Pac-10)
Head Coach: Russ Pennell (1st season, 21-13)
Key Players: F Jordan Hill (18.4ppg, 11.0rpg, 54.5% FG), F Chase Budinger (17.9ppg, 6.3rpg, 3.4apg, 65 3-pt. FG), G Nic Wise (15.7ppg, 4.6apg, 64 3-pt. FG)
All-Time Series: tied, 2-2
Last Time: For seniors Terrence Williams & Andre McGee and juniors Earl Clark, Jerry Smith & Edgar Sosa, Chase Budinger and company should prove familiar faces Friday night. Budinger starred against many of the current Cards in the 2006 Jimmy V Classic, outplaying Louisville as a true freshman in Arizona’s 72-65 victory at Madison Square Garden. Budinger scored 17 points while C Ivan Radenovic posted a double-double (22 points, 13 rebounds). Williams added a double-double of his own (13-10) while Juan Palacios led the Cards with 15.
How They Got Here: For the most criticized at-large selection, the tourney gods sure shined a favorable light on their pod in week one. After drawing an overseeded Utah team in their opening round meeting, the Wildcats were the beneficiaries of Wake Forest’s opening-round no-show. Cleveland State’s Cedric Jackson couldn’t quite replicate his opening-round heroics against the Cats, sending them to their first Sweet 16 since 2005.

Required Reading
Surging Arizona Wildcats roll into Round of 16
Don’t be fooled by Arizona’s 12 seed
Chemistry, this year more than ever, key for Wildcats
Cats’ play rings a bell with Cards coach
Cats made mountain out of Hill
In Year 3, Budinger blooms into team leader
Arizona’s Budinger, Hill and Wise get rewarded
On Campus With ‘Cinderella’ Arizona

The Good
Cerberus Cats Much like the mythical dog of Greek legend, these Cats have their own three-headed monster waiting at the gate to the next round. In Chase Budinger, Jordan Hill, and Nic Wise, Arizona has a top trio that matches up well with any other triumvirate still playing at this point in the season. While Budinger’s early accomplishments at Zona have made him the face of this Wildcat team, it is the highly underrated Hill and Wise who will prove to be Louisville’s toughest match-ups. Hill is a lanky, athletic big man who burst onto the Pac-10 scene in 2008-2009. After an up-and-down sophomore campaign, the junior center for Zona has become a double-double machine averaging 18.4ppg and 11.0rpg for the Cats this year. Wise is a super-quick, strong player for his size (5’10”) who can beat you with his great court vision (4.6apg) or an equally adept long-range shooting eye (42.4%). Despite his lack of size, the diminutive floor leader draws an impressive 4.0 fouls per game (only Samardo Samuels draws more among the Cards) and earned 145 attempts from the free throw line this season.

Shoot ‘Em Up With Zona’s big three leading the way, the Wildcats are one of the best shooting teams you’ll find. As a team, Arizona shoots an effective field goal percentage of 53.4% (34th nationally) while ranking in the top 35 for three-point FG % (39.4%, 18th) and FT % (73.9%, 32nd). Hill (54.5%), Budinger (47.6%), and Wise (45.8%) all rank in the nation’s Top 175 for overall FG%. Louisville, by comparison, has only one (Earl Clark, 45.3%).

No Harm, No Foul Despite playing in a league known for its finesse style and quick whistles, the Wildcats are one of the least-called teams in the nation for holds, blocks, and reach-ins. Arizona commits just 15.7 fouls per contest, ranking them 23rd nationally among the least-whistled teams. Six different players have combined for just 11 total disqualifications on the season with only Nic Wise (3) earning more than one early evening on the bench from among the regular starters.
No paint for you! With 6’10” Jordan Hill patrolling the middle of Arizona’s match-up zone and long forwards Chase Budinger and Jamelle Horne on the wings, the area inside the three-point arc has been a regular no-fly zone for Wildcat opponents. While rare trips inside the arc have been successful for opponents (49.4% 2-pt. shooting), teams are still getting just 49.6% of their total scoring from 2-point land (266th of 344 ranked). Arizona is not even close to a shot-blocking threat (just 3 per game), meaning that teams just don’t bother entering the middle of the Louisville-like zone. Instead, Arizona opponents are taking 40.7% of all field goal attempts from behind the arc, settling for the triple instead of looking to make something happen in the paint.

The Bad
Arizona Wil_cats See, no D. Arizona has been not unlike its Pac-10 counterparts for much of the season, ranking in the middle of the pac(k) or worse in most every defensive statistic. Arizona allows a somewhat reasonable 68.2ppg (180th nationally) on 43.3% shooting (166th), but makes life too easy for teams who can get inside their match-up zone. Once Zona opponents have found a way inside the 2-3 look, players are shooting 49.4% inside the arc, ranking the interior Arizona defense 228th nationally. It all adds up to an effective shooting percentage of 50.4% for opponents, 228th amongst all DI teams.

Set Up A Perimeter Perimeter Few teams left dancing protect against the three-point shot worse than the Arizona Wildcats. In fact, none do. As a percentage of total points allowed, Zona allows 35.7% of its opponents’ points to come from behind the arc, worst among the Sweet 16 teams (Villanova is next at 34.8%). Arizona is middle of the pack protecting against a big shooting night, allowing opponents to connect on 34.5% of their three-point attempts (183rd nationally). But twelve different Wildcat opponents have gone off for big nights, hitting at least 5 three-pointers in individual efforts against the Zona zone. Of those 12 players, eight of them came in Arizona’s last 8 regular season games, capped by Cal’s Jerome Randle canning eight in the Bears’ 83-77 win.

The Ugly
Get ‘Em Bodied For all the length along Arizona’s front line, the Wildcats are not a very effective team protecting the offensive glass. While Hill is a glass eater on both ends of the floor, the rest of the Cats typically fall short when it comes to grabbing defensive rebounds. Teams this season have corralled 33.8% of all offensive rebound opportunities, ranking the Wildcat box-out unit 223rd nationally in protecting their own glass against second chance opportunities.

Basketball on Demand For teams facing the Arizona defense, hoops have been like on-demand TV… no interruptions. Arizona does not create much havoc for its opponents, coming up with just 6.2 steals per game (203rd nationally) and causing a turnover on just 18.2% of opponents’ possessions (300th). Once inside the lane, the rim is usually wide open against any threat of a third-row return to sender since Arizona averages just 3.0 blocks per game (185th) with Jordan Hill accounting for much of that threat (58 blocks on the season, a 1.7bpg average).

Go Deep! As previewed in the regional revue, Arizona may be the thinnest of all remaining tourney teams, getting next to nothing off their bench. The Wildcats are getting just 17.8% of their minutes played from the bench, ranking them 340th among 344 DI teams. In their two opening-weekend wins, the Cats got a grand total of 46 minutes off the bench, which turned into just 5 points and 3 rebounds (28 minutes and all 5 points came from sophomore G Zane Johnson).

The fifty-ninth edition of Wallpaper Wednesday.

Last (at least for the immediate future) of the superhero series; Preston Knowles. I know some of you were expecting a Sweet Sixteen Wallpaper but, call me spoiled, I hope to be making one a little higher on the food chain. As always click on the image to view full resolution at my Flickr archive.

Heading to the second weekend for the second straight season, the Louisville Cardinals finally appear to have home court on their side. A year removed from an 83-73 loss to North Carolina in a regional final that was only “neutral” in name, the Cards head to Indianapolis and look to bring a heavy contingent of caravanning fans in tow. Can Louisville take advantage of the short drive and turn Lucas Oil Stadium into Freedom Hall north? Can Arizona continue to play to their talented potential with the pro trio of Budinger/Wise/Hill? Which team is likely to emerge from the other Midwest semifinal?

We find out in our Regional Revue.

Midwest Regional – Indianapolis, IN
#12 Arizona Wildcats (Pacific-10 Conference)
2008-2009 Record: 21-13 (9-9 Pac-10)
Key Players: F Jordan Hill (18.4ppg, 11.0rpg, 54.5% FG), F Chase Budinger (17.9ppg, 6.3rpg, 3.4apg, 65 3-pt. FG), G Nic Wise (15.7ppg, 4.6apg, 64 3-pt. FG)
Mini Preview: For interim coach Russ Pennell, Arizona’s Sweet 16 epiphany may have come at just the perfect time… even if it doesn’t do a thing for his job future. The man responsible for returning the Wildcats to the Sweet 16 is widely considered out at postseason’s end, in favor of any number of head coaches (ie, Rick Pitino) depending on your source. But while Pennell still holds the reigns of this team, he’s doing his absolute best to pull a Mike Davis and give the UA athletic department something to think about. With Nic Wise turning into an ’09 Mike Bibby and Jordan Hill doing his best Channing Frye impersonation, Zona has become the talented, dangerous team that their top three players suggested it should be all along. With Chase Budinger stuffing the stat sheet (35 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists in wins over Utah and Cleveland State), the Cats are anything but a 12-seed looking at their top trio. The problem for Zona lies in consistency and in depth, however. A considerable drop-off in production, talent, and experience follows Wise, Budinger, and Hill, with three freshman and two sophomores providing the remaining minutes and stats. Only four other players average double digit minutes for the Cats, with none putting up more than 7ppg, 5rpg, or 2apg. Arizona is just 2-9 on the road while going 14-3 at home this season.
Did You Know?: Only one Arizona reserve saw double digit minutes in the team’s opening-weekend victories over Utah and Cleveland State. Sophomore G Zane Johnson played 28 minutes and scored 5 points combined in those wins, accounting for every bench point from the Wildcats. Total bench statline in Rounds 1 & 2: 5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 0 blocks in 46 total minutes.

#2 Michigan State Spartans (Big Ten Conference)
2008-2009 Record: 28-6 (15-3 Big Ten Champions)
Key Players: G Kalin Lucas (14.6ppg, 4.5apg, 81% FT), F Raymar Morgan (10.7ppg, 5.5rpg, 55% FG), C Goran Suton (9.4ppg, 8.0rpg)
Mini Preview: The Spartans seem to be getting hot at just the right time… exactly the way head coach Tom Izzo likes it and usually does it. Already the Big Ten’s most potent offense (if that isn’t an oxymoron), MSU hit nearly 45% of its field goal attempts in dispatching Robert Morris and USC… including a big offensive afternoon from an unexpected source. Travis Walton (5.3ppg, 3.2apg in 27.9mpg), the light-scoring defensive stopper for the Spartans, scored a season-high 18 points Sunday in the team’s 74-69 win over Southern Cal. The Big Ten’s Defensive Player of the Year hit 8-of-13 attempts from the field to go with the usual shutdown D of USC’s potent guard duo, limiting Daniel Hackett & Dwight Lewis to “three shots” by his own post-game accounts. That was in addition to the shooting exploits of top reserves Chris Allen and Durrell Summers, who combined for 32 points in the pair of victories while connecting on 7-of-15 three-pointers. But unexpected scoring exploits aside, the Spartans still go as Kalin Lucas and Raymar Morgan do. The lead duo averaged just 20.2 combined points in the team’s 6 losses this season, more than five points below their combined season averages. When Lucas and Morgan are producing and big man Goran Suton is clogging the lane and dominating the glass (11.0rpg in last 5), Michigan State is a very tough out for any team. The Spartans will need to take better care of the ball this weekend with potential meetings with the high-speed Jayhawks and ball-hawking Cardinals on top for a team that ranks 198th in turnover percentage (20.7%).
Did You Know?: Tom Izzo has guided the Spartans to the Sweet 16 in 8 of the past 12 seasons. Only Duke has claimed more in the same time frame, moving to the second weekend 10 times in the past 12 NCAA Tournaments.

#3 Kansas Jayhawks (Big XII Conference)
2008-2009 Record: 27-7 (14-2 Big XII Champions)
Key Players: G Sherron Collins (18.9ppg, 5.0apg, 75 3-pt. FG), C Cole Aldrich (14.8ppg, 11.0rpg, 60.3% FG)
Mini Preview: A year removed from Mario Chalmers’ clutch 3-pointer and thrilling overtime national title victory, Kansas is hardly the defending champs based on its current roster. At least Bill Self wants you to believe that. Without a single returning starter and only two contributors back (Collins, Aldrich), the Jayhawks have returned to the second weekend as Big XII champs in a season that surprised even the biggest Kansas fans. After a shaky OOC schedule which saw losses to Syracuse, UMass, Arizona, and Michigan State, the Jayhawks ran off 8 straight victories to open the conference slate and propel the team to its fifth straight Big XII title. With Sherron Collins becoming a star (57 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists in wins over North Dakota State and Dayton) in the Kansas back-court and Cole Aldrich (18ppg, 16.5rpg, 6.0bpg in the tourney) looking like the Big XII’s version of Hasheem Thabeet, Kansas suddenly has the most formidable inside-outside duo left standing in the tournament. Much like Arizona, however, Kansas struggles to find a supporting cast behind their two-headed monster and is susceptible to big problems should either have an off night or encounter foul trouble. Collins and Aldrich have combined for 65% of the team’s scoring in the tournament so far, with no other Jayhawk scoring more than 12 points total in the first two games. In 6 of the team’s 7 losses this season, Kansas failed to score more than 65 points (nearly 12 below their season average of 76.8) while Collins and Aldrich combined to average just 27.4ppg (6.3ppg below their combined season average). Freshmen Marcus Morris and Tyshawn Taylor seem most likely to come up with a big game, but the jitters of playing on the big stage as first-year players makes them a shaky proposition with a Final Four berth potentially on the line.
Did You Know?: Cole Aldrich’s triple-double versus Dayton was the first official triple-double in Kansas basketball history, although Wilt Chamberlain has been credited by some historians with two triple-doubles before blocks were an official statistic. Aldrich’s 3-2 was the first in the NCAA Tourney since Dwyane Wade put up 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists in an 83-69 Elite Eight victory over Kentucky in 2003.

Picks: Cards over Arizona, Kansas over Michigan State

Louisville’s run at protecting their top overall seed and bid for a third national title will have a familiar feel to it Friday evening in Dayton, OH. That’s because the postseason will begin just as the regular season did, with a de facto home game against Morehead State. Terrence Williams made his ’08-’09 debut coming off knee surgery, scoring just 2 points to go with 11 rebounds in 26 minutes of a 79-41 victory. A much healthier Williams looks to give the Eagles a more representative display of his talents while his teammates make a first-round statement that the Midwest Regional is theirs to lose.

But what can the Cardinals expect to see from the improved Eagles and team leader Kenneth Faried? Will Morehead State show a better shooting eye to go with the effort they exhibited in their play-in game victory over Alabama State? Can Faried and Leon Buchanan battle with Williams, Earl Clark, and company on the glass? And is there anyone on the roster who can handle the four-headed press monster that is Louisville’s guard rotation? We get to know the Eagles in our debut Pod Preview.

Morehead State Eagles (Ohio Valley Conference)
2008-2009 Record: 20-15 (12-6 OVC)
Key Players: F/C Kenneth Faried (13.9ppg, 13.1rpg, 68 blocks, 66 steals), F Leon Buchanan (15.1ppg, 6.4rpg, 80.2% FT), G Maze Stallworth (12.0ppg, 4.1rpg, 83 3-pt. FG), G Demonte Harper (10.8ppg, 3.5apg, 4.1rpg)
All-Time Head-to-head: Louisville leads, 30-11
Last Meeting: 79-41, Louisville

Required Reading
Morehead State, Louisville Not All That Close
Cards’ Holloway Glad “to be along for this ride”
Pitino Takes Time Out for Tyndall

After a shaky start to the 2008-2009 campaign, which included sacrificial trips to Vanderbilt, Drake, and Louisville, the Morehead State Eagles finally got their season on track heading into the Ohio Valley Conference schedule. Following a 1-6 start to their out-of-conference schedule, Kenneth Faried in company appeared to be in for a long season ahead. But for all the accolades handed to Faried and Leon Buchanan as the team’s power interior duo, it may be the addition of a little-discussed guard that turned the year around. Junior Brandon Shingles joined the roster after sitting out MSU’s first 9 games, finally taking the starting point guard job against Tennessee Tech on January 8. And all the Eagles did from that point is go 14-6 and grab the OVC Tourney title.

With Shingles, Morehead State gained a heady playmaker who dished out five or more assists nine times on the season, including five assists each in the team’s OVC title game and in its NCAA opener against Alabama State. While attempting less than four field goals a game and scoring just 5ppg, Shingles has undoubtedly become the engine behind MSU’s first tourney appearance in 25 years. His 3.9apg are a team-high and have allowed fellow guard Demonte Harper to focus more on putting the ball through the hoop (10.9ppg, 3.5 TO’s/game since Shingles return, 10.7ppg, 4.9 TO’s/game without Shingles).

But for the Eagles, the bread is still buttered with their inside duo of Faried and Buchanan. In the usually undersized but rarely outworked pair, the Eagles have one of the nation’s top rebounding one-two punches. While fellow Big East big man DeJuan Blair gets accolades as the nation’s best offensive glass eater and one of the best period, it is Faried who shows up 6th in kenpom.com’s offensive rebounding percentage leaders nationally and 2nd among defensive rebounders. Only Blair, Faried, and Santa Clara’s John Bryant can boast matching Top 10 positions on both ends of the floor.

It certainly doesn’t hurt to have Buchanan on the other side of the rim, either, where he must draw a body or two himself to stay away from second chance opportunities. The 6-5 senior is averaging 6.5rpg to go with his team-high 15.1ppg, twice notching double-doubles this season and failing to reach double digits scoring just six times this season. With the dynamic rebounding duo leading the way, MSU is one of just two mid-major teams to rank in the Top 35 nationally for both offensive rebounding % and defensive rebounding % (Xavier).

As a unit, the most glaring deficiency for Morehead’s attempt at the first 1 v. 16 upset is a lack of quality shooters. Maze Stallworth has connected on 83 3-pointers this season at a 37.6% clip, but no other Eagle marksman is better than 35% from the perimeter. Only four other tourney participants, in fact, shoot the ball with more brick-laying competency than the Eagles. Their 48.0% effective field goal ranks 212th nationally while a 32.6% clip behind the arc ranks them 238th. And despite Shingles’ commandeering of the point guard spot, Morehead still doesn’t take great care of the ball. A turnover percentage of 22.9% ranks them 296th, ahead of only Cal State Northridge among tourney participants.

Overall, Morehead’s run to the NCAA Tourney and victory over Alabama State should be lauded – especially in a year when fellow state school Kentucky finds itself playing in the NIT for the first time in 18 years. But this Eagles team does not shoot the ball with the kind of proficiency usually seen in scrappy double-digit seeds who give top 4 teams a run deep into the second half. Morehead State relies too much on dribble penetration and transition buckets, two areas that Louisville is especially prepared to shut down. Faried will assuredly put on another show to prove he could play for any of the Kentucky schools, but the Cards’ combination of size and defensive pressure will once again overwhelm Morehead into an early concession.

Louisville 85, Morehead 57