Louisville and Notre Dame offered a stark contrast in styles, and they played tug of war early over the pace of the game. The Cardinals like to pressure the ball and convert turnovers into easy baskets. Notre Dame prefers to slow it down, protect the ball and play a half-court game. Both are normally very good at what they do, but it was the Cardinals who imposed their will Friday night.
Louisville came in ranked seventh in the nation in steals after forcing 26 turnovers, one shy of the Big East tournament record, in an 84-71 quarterfinal victory over second-seeded Marquette.
The Fighting Irish, steadied by a pair of dependable ball handlers in Atkins and Jerian Grant, were giving the ball away only 10 times per game, tops in the conference and third best in the country.
They finished with 12 turnovers in this one and were outscored 18-5 on second-chance points.
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