Louisville Series Ends, for Now

The long-running series with Louisville ended Saturday, at least temporarily.

Since 1982-83, the Bruins and Cardinals had met every season except one, 1992-93.

But the teams will not play each other next year.

UCLA, looking to get other nonconference road games in hopes the in-person exposure will aid recruiting, will embark on a series of home-and-home contracts with schools.

Next season, for example, the Bruins will go to Syracuse, the follow-up to the Orangemen’s visit to Pauley Pavilion in late February, and North Carolina.

They will also have home games with Purdue and DePaul and play in the Pearl Harbor tournament in Hawaii just before Christmas.

The latter will come instead of a summer trip to Europe that had been considered.

UCLA, though, expects the Louisville series to resume at some point.

“We’ve already talked to them,” Coach Steve Lavin said. “We’ll just be off a couple years, but we will be back with them.”

Coming up: Thursday at Washington State, Sunday at Washington.