For all the imperfections Ville’s 70-61 loss to The family in The basketball tournament quarter finals, it was a perfect night for Louisville basketball.
The fact that The Ville, a team made up mostly of U of L alumni, had to watch most Kentucky alumni which made up La Familia, advancing to Philadelphia for the semifinals was secondary.
Monday night in Freedom Hall it was the appearance of the unit.
The Cardinals can move forward with images of a KFC Yum! Center that defined the last two seasons. They can move on from having a fractured fan base last season that was torn between rooting for one of their own, former coach Kenny Payne, and being ready to let go of him.
Apathy for the program is no longer greater than support for it.
Not after returning home in July.
Freedom Hall was at times as loud as the last time the Cards and Cats played here in 2009. It was just as hot, too.
Former U of L players who played for Hall of Fame coaches Denny Crum and Rick Pitino, as well as those from the younger generation, came to watch on the court, from Darrell Griffith to Jordan Nwora.
The game, with perfect timing after live basketball recruiting ended and before football camp began, allowed women’s basketball coach Jeff Walz and football coach Jeff Brohm to be in the building.
Former athletic director Vince Tyra had a courtside seat, as did current AD Josh Heird.
Even mascot Louie the Cardinal dressed up for the event, even though he is technically not affiliated with the university.
It was a game to see and be seen.
The record attendance of 13,509 — which nearly doubled the previous best TBT of 7,202 in Wichita last year — would have been the second-largest crowd at a U of L men’s basketball game this season. Only the crowd of 17,293 against Kentucky was larger.
TBT knew the game was big when they reached the bracket. Chris Paul, co-owner of the league, flew in from Winston-Salem, NC, to watch in person. TBT also brought in key college officials, including Jeff Anderson, who called nine Final Fours and officiated Connecticut’s victory over Purdue in April’s national championship game.
It’s clear that the U of L-UK rivalry played a big part in the game attracting so much interest. A little more was nostalgic.
The Cards’ program hasn’t had much to root for since before the pandemic, when it last played in an NCAA tournament. And The Ville came stocked with some of the guys who performed best on the 2013 national championship team.
But none of them were in championship shape.
The play reflected a hastily assembled team that hadn’t practiced much or played together much.
Ville missed its first seven shot attempts to start the game. During a first-half transition, Omar Prewitt stepped up for an open shot, but the ball slipped out of his hands and flew back toward the crowd.
There was even a glitch on the videoboard, which was displaying the Fox Sports broadcast, as it was a little behind the live action.
None of this will be remembered much. But what U of L fans could take away leaving Freedom Hall was the anticipation of a new season with a new coach. And the hope that the fun and feeling they experienced while supporting The Ville on TBT will return to the Cards at KFC Yum! Center.
This column will be updated.
Contact sports columnist CL Brown at clbrown1@gannett.comfollow him on X in @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to your newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never lose one of your columnS.
This article originally appeared in the Louisville Courier Journal: The Ville vs. La Familia game was the unifier needed for Louisville basketball
