Albuquerque Regional

NO. 4 LOUISVILLE VS. NO. 7 WEST VIRGINIA

* How they got here: Louisville def. Louisiana Lafayette, 68-62; def. Georgia Tech, 76-54; def. Washington, 93-79; West Virginia def. Creighton, 63-61; def. Wake Forest, 111-105 (2OT), def. Texas Tech, 65-60.

STARTERS

*--* Louisville Ht Wt Stat Pos School Ht Wt Stat Francisco 6-7 190 16.1 F Tyrone Sally 6-7 210 12.5 ppg Garcia ppg Juan 6-8 245 6.6 F Mike Gansey 6-4 205 12.1 ppg Palacios rpg Ellis Myles 6-7 245 9.3 C Kevin 6-11 250 41% 3-pt rpg Pittsnogle Taquan Dean 6-3 185 45.7% G J.D. Collins 5-10 180 3.2 apg 3-pt Larry 6-4 200 15.0 G Johannes 6-6 215 4.1 rpg O’Bannon ppg Herber

*--*

RESERVES

*--* Louisville Ht Wt Stat Pos School Ht Wt Stat Brandon 6-3 180 5.2 ppg G Patrick 6-4 205 8.2 ppg Jenkins Beilein Otis George 6-8 225 5.0 rpg F/C D’or Fischer 6-11 255 55.6% FG Lorrenzo Wade 6-6 200 4.1 ppg G Darris 6-2 180 3.0 ppg Nichols

*--*

* How they match up: Louisville is aiming for its eighth Final Four appearance, West Virginia for its second. The Cardinals have a surefire NBA prospect in Garcia. The Mountaineers have a bunch of anonymous guys. But West Virginia has prospered with a 1-3-1 zone and complicated version of the Princeton offense. Louisville Coach Rick Pitino’s team is excellent at driving to the basket and creating openings for three-point shooters.

* Keys to the game: Can the shorter Cardinals stay with Pittsnogle, who is equally comfortable inside or shooting from three-point range, and be patient defensively so they don’t get left behind while the Mountaineers are making backdoor cuts? And can the upstart Mountaineers play rough with the physical Cardinals, especially the bulky Myles, and keep pace with the well-schooled Garcia?

-- Diane Pucin