Louisville experiences culture of Team USA

Cardinals watch two practices, compete in exhibition against National team

Louisville women’s basketball didn’t want to miss an opportunity to compete against some of the best competition in the world. In lieu of having a weekend without a game in the middle of their conference schedule, the Cardinals agreed to host USA Women’s Basketball in an exhibition at the KFC Yum! Center Feb. 2.

The national team practiced for two days before playing its fifth and final exhibition against a college team as part of the USWNT’s collegiate tour in preparation for the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Tokyo. Louisville coach Jeff Walz called the experience for his players to watch the national team practice and then compete against them remarkable.

Team USA defeated Louisville 97-54 in the exhibition. Walz said his players went against opponents that they don’t see every day at the college level.

“It’s something that you can watch games on TV,” Walz said. “You can sit there or go to an NBA game, and you think you understand how strong someone is, how fast they are. You really don’t get that full appreciate until you step out on that court and compete with them, which is what took place today.”

The national team visited with players and talked one-on-one, sharing stories about their experiences. Walz said the culture of USA Basketball sets a high standard, so players can take away valuable lessons from the experience.

“It’s something that they are going to be able to take with them, because a lot of them have aspirations of hopefully playing professionally and see ‘this is what I have to work on, this is what I have to get better at,’” Walz said.