FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) 鈥� There will be a lot of sophomores who can shine when Michigan plays Louisville in the . That is exactly how both of these teams got this far into March.
Second-seeded Michigan’s top three scorers are sophomores who have started every game since getting to Ann Arbor. Third-seeded Louisville (29-7) has three sophomore starters, leading scorer Tajianna Roberts with forwards Mackenly Randolph and Anaya Hardy, in the lineup with two international upperclassmen.
鈥淵outh is wonderful because they don鈥檛 sometimes realize what they鈥檙e really doing, what they鈥檙e playing and what this means to be one of 16 teams left,鈥� said coach Jeff Walz, who has Louisville in its 13th Sweet 16 after early exits the past two NCAA Tournaments.
The game with a bunch of second-year players in the Fort Worth Regional 3 semifinals on Saturday will be followed by a Southeastern Conference rematch between top seed Texas (33-3) and Kentucky (25-10). The on Feb. 9.
Michigan sophomore guards Olivia Olson, Mila Holloway and Syla Swords all made their college debuts in the 2024-25 season opener in a 68-62 loss. They won a first-round NCAA game last season, were the Big Ten regular-season runner-up behind No. 1 seed UCLA this year and are now trying to get the Wolverines (27-6) to their second Elite Eight.
鈥淲e鈥檙e just really using our experience as fuel to keep going and accomplish our goals. We accomplished our goal of being able to host, and I think we鈥檙e taking great strides,” said Olson, the leading scorer at 19.2 points a game, ahead of Swords (14.8) and Holloway (12.6). “It鈥檚 been really cool to just be sophomores, but we don鈥檛 want to just be known as sophomores. We want to make it as far as we can.鈥�
The Wolverines are 12-3 since a 72-69 loss to Sweet 16 team Vanderbilt on Jan. 19, with the only losses in that span being 69-66 to UCLA and two by double digits to Iowa.
Texas and Kentucky meet again
This is the second year in a row that Texas is facing an SEC team in the Sweet 16, after beating Tennessee last March .
Aside from back-to-back road losses at Sweet 16 teams LSU and South Carolina in mid-January, the Longhorns’ other loss was 86-70 at Vanderbilt three days after beating Kentucky. Their 10-game winning streak since includes the SEC Tournament championship.
鈥淭o replace three starters from our Final Four team a year ago and for them to play the way they鈥檝e played, responded this year during just a little bit of tough times, they鈥檝e played really well most of the year. … They have just played really, really well here the last month,鈥� Texas coach Vic Schaefer said. 鈥淭hey are tough. They have played the game the right way.鈥�
Kenny Brooks has completely turned over Kentucky’s roster in two seasons since taking the job.
The Wildcats’ loss in Austin was their fifth in six games, but they are in their first Sweet 16 in 10 seasons after going 7-3 since. They lost 81-79 at Vandy and twice to South Carolina.
鈥淥bviously I think he’s a great coach,鈥� said 6-foot-5 junior center Clara Strack, who came with Brooks from Virginia Tech. 鈥淗e does a good job at getting a lot out of his players and then being able to, like, get us all to play together. We haven鈥檛 all played together for a long time, so I think (he’s been) able to build that chemistry with the team and then able to get a lot out of us.鈥�
Cards spread their scoring
Six different Louisville players have had 20-point games this season. Their top seven scorers average between 8.2 and 11.6 points per game, and all are capable 3-pointer shooters.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 our foundation. Like, we always are dangerous,鈥� said forward Laura Ziegler, the grad transfer from Saint Joseph鈥檚 who averages 11.2 points.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a relief in a sense. If I don鈥檛 have it going that night, my shot is not falling, my job is to get into the paint and get it to somebody who is scoring,鈥� Roberts said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 not been a day where all of us, all five of us, have been clicking, but there also hasn鈥檛 been a day where none of us are clicking.鈥�
Back in Fort Worth (and near Dallas)
Texas played a regular-season game at Dickies Arena on Dec. 14, when All-America forward Madison Booker had 27 points in an 89-54 win over Baylor in a top-15 matchup just under 200 miles from their campus.
鈥淲e knew that was a possibility to be here towards the end of the year,鈥� sophomore guard Jordan Lee said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a good advantage of having familiarity in being on the court. … We’re excited to be here, and especially in the state of Texas.鈥�
Louisville’s NCAA Tournament run last season ended in Fort Worth, on TCU’s campus only about 3 miles away, in a second-round game against the Horned Frogs.
Schaeffer and Kenny Brooks took their previous teams to Final Fours played about 35 miles away at the home of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks.
Schaeffer was Mississippi State’s coach in 2017 when the in the national semifinals in Dallas, then lost to South Carolina. Brooks’ team at Virginia Tech lost in the 2023 semifinals to eventual national champion LSU.
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