The more 3s rain, the more Cards stay the same

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., -- The Louisville Cardinals are different than other Rick Pitino-coached teams.

They don't have much depth, so he can't run subs in and out like he would like. They also don't press because they don't have a bench. And they play zone, which even some of his players say has taken some getting used to.

Francisco Garcia shoots a torrid 5-for-8 from 3-point range in Louisville's win. (AP)

But -- and this is a big but -- they do something all Pitino teams have done and will always do: They shoot the heck out of the basketball, especially behind the 3-point line. What's more, they aren't afraid to shoot it.

Have guns will travel.

And these guns are only one game away from a trip to the Final Four.

The fourth-seeded Cardinals (32-4) took 26 3-point shots Thursday night, making 11 of them, as they rolled past top-seeded Washington 93-79 to advance to the Elite Eight. By comparison, the Huskies made 6 of 25 from behind the 3-point line as their season ended.

"Coach has the confidence in us," said guard Taquan Dean. "We have the green light. So we take them."

The Cardinals are a classic drive-and-dish team, and they used that to perfection in beating the Huskies. They made 7-of-12 from behind the arc in the first half, jumping out to a 47-35 lead.

What was more impressive about that halftime score was that the Cardinals actually trailed 25-18 at one point as they struggled to get going. But then the shots started falling, Washington got in foul trouble and Louisville went on a 19-2 run late in the first half to pull away.

The Huskies were crippled by fouls for much of the game. Top scorers Nate Robinson and Tre Simmons played six and seven minutes in the first half because both had three fouls. Simmons eventually fouled out with 10 points in 19 minutes, while Robinson had eight points in 26 minutes.

In foul trouble, they had problems defending the drives and dishes.

It was Dean and Francisco Garcia who got it going behind the arc. Garcia finished with a game-high 23 points, making 5 of 8 from behind the 3-point line. Dean had 19 points, hitting 5 of 10 behind the stripe.

Both seemed to come up with huge shots every time Washington made a run, even though they seemed to be dragging late in the game from playing a lot of minutes and because of the high altitude at The Pit.