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Misfiring in finale, Lofton went out the wrong way
By John ClayHERALD-LEADER SPORTS COLUMNIST
There was just under 13 minutes left in Thursday night's East Regional semifinal when Tennessee's Chris Lofton launched one of his patented three-pointers from just to the left of the key.
But just after the ball left Lofton's fingertips, out of nowhere came Louisville's Earl Clark, a 6-foot-8 sophomore with a wicked wingspan.
Clark swatted Lofton's shot away.
After all his points, all his glory, all he had done for Tennessee basketball, this was not the way Chris Lofton should have said goodbye.
Fifteen shots.
Three makes.
But that's how it ended, Lofton's history-making career and Tennessee's stellar season, with Louisville rolling to a 79-60 victory over the Vols.
Yes, ain't nothing like the real thing. Tennessee's Bruce Pearl might be the new Rick Pitino, but it's the original version that is one step closer to his sixth Final Four. No. 3 seed Louisville will meet top seed North Carolina at 9:05 p.m. Saturday for a trip to San Antonio.
Ricky P. had some old friends there for support. Bill Keightley was in the crowd at the Charlotte Bobcats Arena. The UK equipment manager and longtime Pitino friend enjoyed a prominent seat in the U of L section. Larry Ivy was there, too. The ex-UK athletics director even sported a red dress shirt.
"How do you think I got the tickets," he said, smiling.
And Louisville continued the giving once the game started. The Cards turned the basketball over 14 times in the first half, twice more than they turned it over the entire 40 minutes of their 30-point, second-round win over Oklahoma last Sunday.
But if Louisville gave Tennessee chances, it didn't give the Vols many opportunities. Google Maps couldn't have led Tennessee to the basket. Not without a thicket of Cardinals in the way, anyway.
And when UT attempted those bombs from the perimeter, Louisville got more than a hand up. The Cards got a hand on the ball.
"It was a tough night for us, all night long," said Pearl.
No one could remember the last time Lofton had his three-point shot blocked. Much less twice in the same game. Or three times. He took 11 shots from beyond the arc. He made two.
"I think one of the keys to our defense all season has been changing it up," Pitino said. "And we extend our zone almost like a half-court trap."
And, oh yeah, "They did a great job of getting out on JaJaun (Smith) and Chris," said Pearl.
"We did a good job of locating in the second half," said Pitino.
Pitino is now 8-0 in Sweet 16 games. The win earned Louisville an Elite 8 matchup Saturday with North Carolina, the same Heels who kept Pitino out of the 1995 Final Four by knocking off Ricky P.'s Kentucky team in the Southeast Regional final that year in Birmingham, Ala.
It was in Birmingham that Lofton injured his left foot last weekend during the Vols' second-round win over Butler. He wore a protective boot the first part of the week, missed a couple of practices, but was pronounced fit enough to play after participating in a full workout Wednesday.
But Lofton's wheels were not so much the problem Thursday night as Louisville's length. The Cardinals hounded Pearl's club into its lowest offensive output of the season, the 60 points falling three short of the previous low of 63, set in UT's 63-60 win over visiting Kentucky earlier this month.
Were it not for a pair of free throws with 35.8 seconds left, Lofton would have had a scoreless first half. His first field goal came at the 12:08 mark, roughly 30 seconds after Clark had blocked his trey. The ex-Mason County star finally hit a three-pointer at the 8:05 mark, cutting the Louisville lead to 54-47.
But the Vols would score just 13 points the rest of the game.
Lofton would score but 15 for the game
His final college game.
A sad way to go out.