Remembering the Louisville Cardinals 1980 National Championship run

The Tony Branch shot and the LSU game

Mar 24, 1980; Indianapolis, IN, USA; FILE PHOTO; Louisville Cardinals players Poncho Wright (44) and
Mar 24, 1980; Indianapolis, IN, USA; FILE PHOTO; Louisville Cardinals players Poncho Wright (44) and | Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
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My daughter asked me the other day if the best days of Louisville basketball are behind us. We talked about a lot of great memories and games. I told her that I surely hope there are better days ahead. This is part one of a two-part series about “great memories and games.”

Indianapolis, Indiana. Market Square Arena. March 24, 1980. Louisville 80, Duke 76. National Championship secured. That was the ending we all wanted and it was magical. Mike Sullivan said in the Courier-Journal pull-out special, “It ended as it had begun, as a kid’s action tale. The Hardy Boys were down to their last clue.”

There are two games that were key to this run to the first championship for the Cardinals.