No. 5 Louisville Opens NCAA Tournament Against Robert Morris

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Louisville women's basketball (29-3, 14-2) opens NCAA Tournament play on Friday at 12 p.m. ET when they host Robert Morris at the KFC Yum! Center.

At 29-3 and No. 5 in the Associated Press and USA Today polls, Louisville is a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season and the second time in history.

Louisville is making its 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance and 11th in 12 seasons under head coach Jeff Walz. The Cardinals are marking their ninth straight NCAA Tournament and 14th in the last 15 years. Louisville is 31-21 all-time. They were 4-11 in their first 11 appearances and are 27-10 in their 10 appearances with Walz. They have moved on to the Sweet 16 eight times and advanced to the NCAA Final Four three times (2009, 2013, 2018). With three Final Fours in the last 10 years, UofL ranks fourth in the country behind UConn (10), Stanford (6) and Notre Dame (5).

Walz boasts a 27-10 record in NCAA Tournament games, which is 7th all-time in winning percentage and 4th among active coaches. He has directed UofL to a pair of national runner-up finishes (2009, 2013), three Final Fours (2009, 2013, 2018), four Elite Eights (2009, 2013, 2014, 2018), eight trips to the Sweet 16 and 11 NCAA Tournaments.

UofL played 15 games against teams that participated in this year's NCAA Tournament, boasting a 12-3 record (defeated: 2-UConn, 3-Syracuse, 3-NC State (twice), 5-Florida State, 5-Arizona State, 6-Kentucky, 8-Central Michigan, 9-North Carolina, 9-Clemson (twice), 13-Boise State; lost to 1-Notre Dame (twice), 4-Miami). Four (4-0) of Louisville's opponents advanced to the Women's National Invitational Tournament: (Miami (Ohio), WKU, Virginia Tech, Hartford).

The eight ACC teams (1-Louisville,1-Notre Dame, 3-NC State, 3-Syracuse, 4-Miami, 5-Florida State, 9-Clemson, 9-North Carolina) selected to the tournament match a league record (2014, 2015, 2018), and are the most of any conference this year. It's fifth time in seven years at least seven ACC teams have made the NCAA Tournament.

ABOUT THE COLONIALS

Robert Morris (22-10, 16-2 NEC) makes their sixth tournament appearance and third in four seasons after winning both the NEC regular season and tournament championships. The Colonials are riding a four-game winning streak into the tournament, capped off by a 65-54 victory over Saint Francis (Pa.) in the NEC title game.

Third-year head coach Charlie Buscaglia's team is led by All-NEC First Team junior center Nneka Ezeigbo, who was also named the league's defensive player of the year and tournament MVP. Ezeigbo averages 12.6 points per game and 7.8 per game, while also finishing fourth in the conference in blocks (1.38 per game) and eighth in steals (1.72 per game).

Freshman guard Isabella Posset was an All-NEC Rookie Team selection as she led the team in assists (2.8 per game) and steals (1.9 per game), while ranking second in scoring (7.8 points per game).

Robert Morris averages 62.9 points per game, while ranking 13th nationally in scoring defense by only allowing 54.8 points per game. The Colonials are also ranked in the top 25 nationally in turnover margin (25th, 4.25) and steals (25th, 321).

Series History: First meeting between the two teams.

Date: Friday, March 22
Time: 12 p.m. ET
Site: KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky. (22,000)
Radio: WKRD 790 AM, Nick Curran, play-by-play; Adrienne Johnson, analyst
Video: ESPN2, Beth Mowins, play-by-play, Nell Fortner, analyst
Last Meeting: First Meeting
Series History: First Meeting
UofL National Ranking: 5th Associated Press, 5th USA Today

Click here to purchase tickets or visit GoCards.com/NCAAWBB for more information.

All-Session Tickets

$37 lower level adult
$24 lower level youth/senior/college student

Single-Session Tickets

$21 lower level adult
$14 lower level youth/senior/college student
$40 Family 4 Pack (end zone seats only)
$10 group tickets, minimum of 10 tickets (end zone seats only)

All parking lots and garages around the KFC Yum! Center will be open on Friday afternoon, but spaces may be limited due to the game being played during a workday.

The following is a list of some of the many garages that will be open on Friday (availability subject to change):

Skywalk Garage (120 N. Third St)
Actors Theatre Garage (130 S. Third St.)
Witherspoon Garage (101 W. Witherspoon St.)
Courtyard by Marriott Garage (100 S. Second St.)
LG&E Garage (207 W. Market Street)
Humana Waterside Garage (201 N. Brook St.)
First and Main Garage (100 E. Main St.)
Cowger Garage (Fourth & Market)
National City Tower Garage (412 W. Main St.)
US Bank Garage (401 W. Market St.)
One Riverfront Plaza (401 W. Main St.)
Riverfront Garage (141 N. Sixth St.)

Parking information subject to change. For the most up-to-date information, visit www.LouisvilleKy.gov.

For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, follow the team's Twitter account at @UofLWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/UofLWBB.

University of Louisville Athletics

No. 5 Louisville Opens NCAA Tournament Against Robert Morris

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