It's been nine years since IU and Louisville squared off. According to Louisville Coach Rick Pitino, that drought needs to end.
"I said to Tom (Crean), whenever he's ready and he gets back to where he wants to be, we'd love to play," Pitino said. "So it's strictly his call. I'm sure he's got enough tough games on his schedule that may or may not want to do it. Certainly we'd love to do it."
Pitino's Cardinals, along with Crean's Hoosiers, represent the only two power-conference schools in Portland for the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament. Pitino said he predicted IU would see this type of success this season.
"I said to most of the Louisville media at the beginning of the year they would be back this year, there was no question in my mind they would," Pitino said. "I'm really happy for Tom and happy for IU that they are back. Because they had to do it the old\0x2011fashioned way. They started with a decimated program, no players. And they did it the right way.
"They did it with fundamentals, they did it with proper recruiting, they did it with integrity. So it's back and it's back for good."
The Cardinals can also speak of a recent resurgence after crawling into the Big East Tournament with four losses in their final six regular season games. Louisville's Big East Tournament title bumped the Cardinals all the way up to a No. 4 seed, which IU also boasts.
Though both squads will begin regional action tomorrow at the same site, the only chance the teams have to make Pitino's wish come true in the NCAA Tournament would be if they met in the Final Four.
