The Louisville Cardinals are hoping to upgrade their regional championship trophy to a national one, but for right now, the team is enjoying its pretty piece of hardware. Better yet, the Cardinals are happy that they brushed off Duke in the second half on Sunday, because the win meant they got to fulfill their promise to injured teammate Kevin Ware to advance to the Final Four.
After Ware went down with a gruesome broken leg Sunday, the Louisville players spent the rest of the game talking about winning the game for Ware. Coach Rick Pitino said after the game that he reminded his players that Ware is from Atlanta, the site of the Final Four and the national championship game. He said he told them repeatedly to take Ware home.
The Cardinals did that and then some, winning the regional. Ware had surgery that evening, and his teammates were able to drop off proof of their win as he recovered in the hospital.
Check out Ware and the team’s trophy in the photo below.
Photo via Twitter/WhatsUpWitB
