A postgame handshake line following Louisville’s 73-51 win over Texas in the NCAA Women’s Tournament on Tuesday led to an awkward matchup between two top players.
Cardinals leading scorer Hailey Van Lith tried to push her way across the handshake line when she was stopped by the first Longhorns player she met, Sonya Morris, who clung to the Louisville guard’s hand. , preventing him from continuing.
It’s unclear what the two said to each other or what the earlier issue was, but Morris appeared to be relaying a direct message to Van Lith, who responded by shoving the Texas senior aside. Clearly, Van Lith was still crooning to Morris as he continued to hit fives with the downed Longhorns players.
The Louisville guard was asked about the ensuing confrontation but did not offer a full explanation.
“I wouldn’t say there was a lot of squeak in the game,” he said. “I think it was a pretty fair game. You know, I respect the Texas players. I don’t really want to talk about what happened at the end because I don’t want it to diminish the fact that we played very, very well.
Cardinals leading scorer Hailey Van Lith tried (center right) to cross the handshake line when she was stopped by the first Longhorns player she met, Sonya Morris (center left), who clung to the hand of the Louisville guard, preventing him from continuing.
It’s unclear what the two said to each other or what the earlier issue was, but Morris appeared to be relaying a direct message to Van Lith, who responded by shoving the Texas senior aside. Clearly, Van Lith was still crooning to Morris as he continued to hit fives with the downed Longhorns players.
‘I have all the respect in the world for Texas, no hard feelings. You know, sports can get tricky and the minute you play in the heat, at the end of the day I’ll just let it slide. No hard feelings. I assume they will do the same, and yes, I am proud of our victory. I don’t want to focus on what happened at the end.
A Texas spokesperson declined to comment on the incident to DailyMail.com.
The evening was otherwise stress-free for Louisville.
Van Lith scored 21 points, delivering the first and then the last knockout punches for the Cardinals.
“Coach (Jeff Walz) said to us, ‘How many times can you calm the crowd down?’ Van Lith said.
Louisville did not host the first two rounds of the tournament for the first time since 2015, excluding the 2021 pandemic tournament played entirely in Texas. And from the start against Texas, the Cardinals pushed the co-champion of the Big 12 regular season and basked in the silence as the Longhorns unraveled.
Van Lith scored 21 points, delivering the first punches and the last knockout punches for the U of L
Texas guard Sonya Morris (11) looks for an open teammate for a pass against Louisville in a second round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament
Louisville guard Hailey Van Lith (10) drives Texas forward Taylor Jones (44) during the first half of a second round college basketball game.
Louisville (25-11) led as many as 27 early in the quarter. The win sends the Cardinals to Region 4 Seattle to play No. 8-seeded Mississippi, which defeated No. 1 Stanford on Sunday. Louisville reached the Final Four last season.
“We wanted to go out there and show that we’re the same Louisville badass that this show has been for a long time,” Van Lith said. He also scored 26 in Louisville’s first-round win over Drake.
In a matchup of two teams that started the season in the Top 10 only to drop out of the rankings before regrouping late, the Cardinals stifled Texas standout point guard Rori Harmon all night, extending a 14-point lead at halftime. time to 21 at the end of the third quarter.
Harmon missed the November matchup between the teams when Louisville beat the Longhorns in November, and was never a factor in the rematch.
Harmon scored 10 points, but was mostly close after the first quarter. The defensive rotations of Van Lith, Mykasa Robinson and Chrislyn Carr allowed Harmon three assists in the first quarter, but no more. Harmon also had five turnovers before limping off the court late in the fourth quarter with an apparent ankle injury.
“We really tried to wear her down,” Robinson said.
DeYona Gaston scored 12 points to lead Texas (26-10) after sitting out most of the first quarter due to an early foul.
Louisville guard Merissah Russell (13), guard Hailey Van Lith, center, and center Josie Williams, right, celebrate with fans after the team’s victory over Texas in a second-round college basketball game at the NCAA Tournament in Austin