![\"play\"](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/appservices\/universal-web\/universal\/icons\/icon-play-alt-white.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/div>\n<\/div>\nLouisville women’s basketball writer Alexis Cubit talks Mackenly Randolph, post depth after the Cards’ NCAA Tournament win over Vermont.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The third-seeded Louisville women’s basketball<\/a> team’s strength all season has been its depth. It became the Cardinals’ driving force against No. 14-seed Vermont<\/a> in the first round of the NCAA Tournament <\/a>on Saturday.<\/p>\n UofL (28-7) scored 20 bench points, half of which came from Imari Berry<\/a>, while the Catamounts had none in the Cards’ 72-52 victory. Yevheniia Putra<\/a> and Grace Mbugua<\/a> helped to provide the team with post depth, playing 10 and 6 minutes, respectively.<\/p>\n “I’ve been talking to them about the past week and a half \u2014 since, well, before the ACC Tournament \u2014 trying to get them all locked in practice to understand that it might be four minutes, it might be three minutes, it might be two,” head coach Jeff Walz<\/a> said. “Even the minute and a half Rebekah Graves<\/a> played. Her feet have really been bothering her. And I’m not sure she really wanted to go out there. … It’s things like that when you’re trying to make sure everybody’s prepared. And when you get out there, then you’ve got to be able to do something positive. That doesn’t mean you’re scoring. That means you might make the extra pass, guard somebody, box out.”<\/p>\n Mackenly Randolph<\/a> was a prime example of that. In addition to her career-high 20 points, the sophomore had 11 rebounds, three assists and no turnovers in 33 minutes played. Louisville was also +24 when she was on the court.<\/p>\n “She’s as good as there is (at) being able to use her body,” Walz said. “You kind of call it bully ball. She likes to put her shoulder down and will create some contact and does a really nice job of it. And then she finishes. … She’s always around the ball. It’s not like she’s out-jumping everybody. But it’s her ability to know where the ball is coming off the rim and going and pursuing the basketball.”<\/p>\n Randolph has averaged 14.5 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists so far during the postseason. She’ll look to continue her dominance with the help of the Cardinals’ deep bench when the squad takes on sixth-seeded Alabama<\/a> (24-10) on Monday.<\/p>\n The Crimson Tide fended off upset-minded and No. 13-seeded Rhode Island, 68-55, to advance to the second-round game.<\/p>\n Here are three things to know about Alabama with a Round of 32 prediction:<\/p>\n