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Louisville defeats Northern Iowa 66-53 as Terry Rozier leads all scorers with 25 points. The Cardinals advance to the Sweet 16 to face NC State. Thank you for joining me in tonight's game for play by play analysis and score!

2nd (:16) - Blackshear makes the free throw and the Cardinals are headed to a sweet 16!

2nd (:53) - Harrell is fouled and makes a single one.

2nd (1) - Washpun commits the offensive foul as the game looks about over. Mahmoud makes them both as it's 12 point lead.

2nd (1) - Harrell slams it on an ally oop slam and gets fouled during the play. He makes the free throw.

2nd (2) - Snider is headed to the free throw line and he missed it.

2nd (2) - Washpun draws the foul as he only made a single free throw. Pitino calls a timeout as Rozier stepped over the half court and they didn't call it.

2nd (2) - Rozier is fouled as the Cardinals lead 57-49 heading into a timeout. Rozier will shoot free throws.

2nd (4) - Buss hits a turn around jump shot as UNI gets the steal but Blackshear blocks the shot. Harrell has the monster slam on the other end.

2nd (6) - Buss hits a jump shot as it's now a single digit game.

2nd (6) - Mathiang gets a huge block as Louisville is looking solid.

2nd (7) - Rozier is headed to the free throw line as a timout is called. These free throws could push it back to double digits.

2nd (8) - Harrell misses the lay up as Buss came down and makes a shot. Pitino calls a timeout with the Cardinals leading by 8.

2nd (9) - UNI with a lay up as it's back to a single digit game.

2nd (10) - Snider with the driving lay up as he was untouched.

2nd (11) - Buss with the dunk as it's now a 10 point game as Pitino calls the time out.

2nd (12) - Blackshear hits the three as Onuaku commits the foul. Northern Iowa blocks the Harrell shot attempt as a timeout is called with Louisville up by double digits.

2nd (13) - Rozier drains the tear drop as Buss hits a 3 on the other end.

2nd (13) - Rozier hits the off balanced lay up as the lead is up to 10 then Tuttle turns it over on the other end.

2nd (14) - Harrell almost has the ally oop attempt but he's fouled and converted both free throws.

2nd (15) - Tuttle draws the foul as Mathiang is tagged with his 3rd foul. He is headed to the free throw line.

2nd (16) - Tuttle has the left handed finish as he now has 10 points.

2nd (17) - Rozier hits another jumper as the lead is back to 10.

2nd (18) - Harrell drains the mid range jump shot as UNI hits another lay up as the Cardinals are up by 8 points with an UNI timeout.

2nd (19) - Louisville opens the half with a backdoor lay up by Blackshear. UNI answers back with a three though.

Can the Panthers make up a 9 point deficit to defeat the Cardinals? They have to guard Terry Rozier better and not wait so long to take a shot.

End of first half: Rozier scores 16 points as Louisville leads Northern Iowa 36-27 in a fantastic first half.

1st (:42) - Levitch with the dime pass to Rozier for a lay up.

1st (1) - Johnson hits the putback lay up as the Cardinals are up by 9 points heading into a timeout.

1st (2) - Rozier hits the long two as they are ahead by 7.

1st (2) - Tuttle hits Harrell in the face as he looks shaken up.

1st (3) - Snider forces a turnover and UNI is looking bad right now.

1st (4) - Tuttle hits a lay up then Mathiang hits a jumper. A timeout is called as Louisville leads 30-23.

1st (4) - Snider hits another three as he is heating up.

1st (5) - No one blocks out Tuttle as Blackshear gets his 2nd foul. He converts both free throws.

1st (5) - Rozier is fouled on the three point attempt. He converts every one of them.

1st (6) - UNI hits a huge contested three to gain some momentum.

1st (7) - Rozier is fouled on the lay up attempt and is heading to the free throw line. Rozier is taking over the game right now and they have no answer for him.

1st (8) - Johnson draws the foul and made one but Rozier takes the ball back and converts.

1st (8) - Mitchell hits the lay up and is fouled by Blackshear.

1st (10) - A timeout was called after Louisville commited a foul. This is a high scoring shootout so far with Louisville up 17-13.

1st (10) - Blackshear hits an open three to get his 1,000th career point.

1st (11) - Harrell might have traveled but he got an offensive rebound and put it up for a slam.

1st (12) - Rozier hits a lay up to respond to an UNI 3.

1st (13) - Snider ties up the game as he gets an open lay up.

1st (13) - Shot clock violation by UNI, great defensive possession by the Cards.

1st (14) - Northern Iowa leads Louisville 10-8 as we head to our first timeout after a Panthers foul.

1st (15) - UNI hits another three as they are hitting all shots early but Snider hits a three to respond.

1st (17) - Mitchell hit a fast lay up as they have hit 3/4 of their shots early.

1st (18) - Harrell hits the long jumper to tie the game until UNI hits a three but Rozier hits one back.

1st (19) - Louisville gets the tip as Tuttle goes with the spin move for a lay up.

The tip has been changed to 9:48 EST and all starters seem to be the same as usual.

Game time is almost here! The Cardinals are going to have a tough time stopping Seth Tuttle. He has to get going early for UNI to stay in the game.

Follow this article for live play by play analysis and score of tonight’s NCAA tournament game. Everyone enjoy the game at 9:40 as the Louisville Cardinals take on the Northern Iowa Panthers!

X-Factors and Predictions: This will be a slugfest throughout the entire night. Northern Iowa is a great shooting team that can shut you down defensively. Seth Tuttle has to play like the best player on the court to get double teams from Louisville. They are capable of utilizing their bench more because of how deep they are compared to the Cardinals. Rick Pitino is one of the greatest NCAA tournament coaches and will have Louisville prepared for whatever gets thrown at them. Terry Rozier has to play like the best guard on the court and get some pressure off of Snider. Montrezl Harrell has to go aggressively at Seth Tuttle to force early foul trouble. Snider has to get another 12 or more points to get some attention on him and to boost his confidence. Louisville will win this game because of a few things; Pitino has a great game plan to contain Seth Tuttle, there is no one on UNI that can hold Rozier, and Harrell will have another 20 points and 10 rebounds game. My prediction is Louisville 61 Northern Iowa 56.

Can anyone else go off other than Seth Tuttle? : Only two UNI starters were in double digits against Wyoming but three guys came off the bench and scored a combined 39 points. Everyone knows Tuttle will get his share of points but everyone else has to step up around him. Louisville has to allow the other players to beat them and not Seth Tuttle. He is the only player on Northern Iowa that averages double digit points so they play great team basketball. Most preferably there has to be a guard that steps up and matches Terry Rozier shot for shot. If everyone else has an off night and Tuttle is the only player scoring then UNI will be in trouble throughout the entire game.

Louisville’s new game plan: Rick Pitino hinted in starting Jaylen Johnson at power forward and Montrezl Harrell at center to try to contain Seth Tuttle. Johnson has reportedly made big strides in his game but hasn’t got much PT because of Harrell. Since UNI does not play a true center, this could become a great thing to do for Louisville. Snider will have more confidence in his game after Friday’s great performance and will be a bigger part of the offense. Blackshear might also get some time at the power forward spot if UNI goes small. Snider and Johnson will be key components for Louisville’s game plan tonight.

How Northern Iowa can win: The Panthers are one of the deepest teams in the country and is led by All-American Seth Tuttle. UNI only has a single player that averages double digit points but they have a very deep bench. The Cardinals are very thin in the impact players department which could give UNI the advantage. UNI doesn’t have another player that can make an impact like Seth Tuttle.  A guard will have to contribute in stopping Rozier and Snider, hoping that neither goes off. The Panthers are an outstanding defensive team that makes a lead feel larger than it really is. If Tuttle can attack Montrezl Harrell early and get him into foul trouble then they are in great position. Louisville is one of the worst transition defensive teams in the country and it could come into factor if UNI gets into the fast break. If Seth Tuttle gets his points and two other players score in double digits then they will get an easier victory.

How Louisville can win: The Cardinals are going to have to play a much better game than Friday even though they aren’t going against another 7’6 monster. Rozier and Harrell are going to have to be most consistent tonight since they are their two best players. There is no one on UNI that can contain Rozier once he gets going on the offense side. Seth Tuttle is going to be on Harrell for most of the game, and Harrell can advantage of that by using his athleticism to get Tuttle in foul trouble. Snider is also a big key for Louisville, as long as he maintains his focus he should have another great scoring game. Blackshear came up clutch for the Cardinals and has to hit open jumpers the entire game. UNI is also a horrible rebounding team so the Cardinals should crash the board to get offensive put backs. If Louisville can contain Seth Tuttle and get some bench production the game is theirs for the taking.

The Louisville Cardinals and Northern Iowa Panthers both advanced to play each other in the Round of 32. The Cardinals only won by two points over UCI and UNI won a very solid game winning over Wyoming. The tipoff is scheduled for 9:40 P.M EST in Seattle, Washington for a spot in the Sweet 16 in Syracuse. As of right now, Northern Iowa is favored by 2.5 points over Louisville. Follow this article for live play by play analysis, predictions, and a preview on tonight’s game.

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About the author
Phillip Steinmetz
Huge Louisville Cardinals fan. Avid follower of the NBA, NFL, and college basketball. I have been writing for almost three years and plan to for the rest of my life!