Hey guys, the Cal women's basketball team tips off against #8 Louisville at 11:00 AM PST. Game can be seen live on ESPN3.com a.k.a. Watch ESPN.
Here are five things to look for going into the game.
#1. Louisville has a pair of solid sophomores: Sophomore forwards Mariya Moore and Myisha Hines-Allen led the team in scoring last season as a duo and guided their team to a Sweet 16 appearance.
#2. Louisville had a killer recruiting class for 2015: Louisville landed 5-star point guard Asia Durr, 5-star point guard Taja Cole, 5-star guard Brianna Jones, 4-star forward Samantha Fuehring, and 4-star center Erin DeGrate. With Moore and Hines-Allen as sophomore leaders and five outstanding freshmen, its little surprise this Louisville team is ranked in the top-ten.
#3. Cal has to get Courtney Range some help: If Cal wants to win this game, they need to have a balanced attack and not leave it all up to Courtney Range to bail them out. Kristine Anigwe will have to be really strong inside and Asha Thomas will need to go into attack mode more, get to the line, and get some easy points in addition to facilitating.
#4. The last time Cal beat a Top-10 opponent was January 13, 2013: The last time the Bears beat a Top-10 opponent, it was on January 13, 2013 at Maples Pavilion to upset #5 ranked Stanford. Perhaps this time it will be the Cardinals instead of the Cardinal going down on the road.
#5. Depth is a huge factor: The biggest advantage Louisville has over Cal is depth. They have more talent on the floor and more strength off the bench. With only 9 healthy players and only 6 in serious rotation, Cal could lose this game on the grounds of fatigue alone, let alone talent.
Prediction: I want to belive in Cal's ability to get the win on the road, but looking at what happened against Austin Peay, even though Cal won, I still have to predict that Louisville wins comfortably. I'm saying Louisville 80 Cal 60. But, I hope I'm wrong.
Here are five things to look for going into the game.
#1. Louisville has a pair of solid sophomores: Sophomore forwards Mariya Moore and Myisha Hines-Allen led the team in scoring last season as a duo and guided their team to a Sweet 16 appearance.
#2. Louisville had a killer recruiting class for 2015: Louisville landed 5-star point guard Asia Durr, 5-star point guard Taja Cole, 5-star guard Brianna Jones, 4-star forward Samantha Fuehring, and 4-star center Erin DeGrate. With Moore and Hines-Allen as sophomore leaders and five outstanding freshmen, its little surprise this Louisville team is ranked in the top-ten.
#3. Cal has to get Courtney Range some help: If Cal wants to win this game, they need to have a balanced attack and not leave it all up to Courtney Range to bail them out. Kristine Anigwe will have to be really strong inside and Asha Thomas will need to go into attack mode more, get to the line, and get some easy points in addition to facilitating.
#4. The last time Cal beat a Top-10 opponent was January 13, 2013: The last time the Bears beat a Top-10 opponent, it was on January 13, 2013 at Maples Pavilion to upset #5 ranked Stanford. Perhaps this time it will be the Cardinals instead of the Cardinal going down on the road.
#5. Depth is a huge factor: The biggest advantage Louisville has over Cal is depth. They have more talent on the floor and more strength off the bench. With only 9 healthy players and only 6 in serious rotation, Cal could lose this game on the grounds of fatigue alone, let alone talent.
Prediction: I want to belive in Cal's ability to get the win on the road, but looking at what happened against Austin Peay, even though Cal won, I still have to predict that Louisville wins comfortably. I'm saying Louisville 80 Cal 60. But, I hope I'm wrong.
