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Louisville basketball: Teams Cards don’t want to see in NCAA tournament first round

By Presley Meyer

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - FEBRUARY 08: Lamarr Kimble #0, Malik Williams #5 and Dwayne Sutton #24 of the Louisville Cardinals huddle during the final seconds of the game against the Virginia Cavaliers at KFC YUM! Center on February 08, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - FEBRUARY 08: Lamarr Kimble #0, Malik Williams #5 and Dwayne Sutton #24 of the Louisville Cardinals huddle during the final seconds of the game against the Virginia Cavaliers at KFC YUM! Center on February 08, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images) /
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WICHITA, KS – FEBRUARY 06: Jaime Echenique #21 of the Wichita State Shockers blocks the shot attempt of Mika Adams-Woods #3 of the Cincinnati Bearcats during the second half at Charles Koch Arena on February 6, 2020 in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
WICHITA, KS – FEBRUARY 06: Jaime Echenique #21 of the Wichita State Shockers blocks the shot attempt of Mika Adams-Woods #3 of the Cincinnati Bearcats during the second half at Charles Koch Arena on February 6, 2020 in Wichita, Kansas. (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /

Wichita State

Wins over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Memphis

Since their magical run in the 2013 NCAA tournament that ended in a close defeat to Louisville, Wichita State has been a team that teams don’t want to face based on name alone.

Gregg Marshall has done a tremendous job of taking a program that was little-known and transforming it into one of the best non-Power Five squads in the country year in and year out.

Last season was the first that the Shockers didn’t make the NCAA tournament since 2012, but they appear destined for another trip to the big dance, and just like their upset-minded 2013 season, they may end up starting out in the First Four.

Should Louisville drop its final two regular-season games, it would not be “Shocking” to see the Cards draw a 6/ 11 or 5/ 12 match-up with a Wichita State.

Or, should the Shockers stumble down the stretch, they could draw a 4/13 game with the Cards.

Either way, this is a team the Cardinals simply want to avoid.

Mashall has been a fantastic game planner, particularly in the postseason, and he has a team this year that is deep and balanced. Seven players average between 7 and 12 points per game, and eleven different players have started a game.

The Shockers got off to a fantastic start, but have stumbled in conference play. Should they gain their footing, as they normally do, and remain healthy, there’s no reason to think that they can’t push for a second-weekend run.

Louisville wants to avoid a solidly-coached team like WSU if they can.

Editors note: Wichita State has a big man named Isaiah Poor-Bear Chandler, and I really was about to write a full synopsis on this guy until I realized my man’s name was not “Poo Bear”- Which would be infinitely cooler.

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