LEXINGTON, Ky. — If there was any doubt about what team owned Rupp Arena this week for the NCAA Tournament second- and third- round games in the Midwest Region, it was answered at halftime.
A witty group of Louisville fans, their team enjoying a healthy lead over Colorado State, broke out the chant of the tournament.
"Robert Morris! Robert Morris!''
It was Robert Morris that knocked Kentucky, the 2012 NCAA Tournament champion, out of the NIT. To add insult to injury, Louisville was installed as the overall No.1 seed in this NCAA Tournament and sent 75 miles to play on Kentucky's home court. And Kentucky, a top seed in the NIT, was sent to Robert Morris because Rupp was in use.
REUTERS
PRESSURE PLAYER: Louisville's Russ Smith gets a shot off under pressure form Colorado State's Colton Iverson.
Forget survive and advance. This was frolic and roll.
Louisville blasted a game Colorado State team 82-56 to advance to the Sweet 16 next week in Indianapolis, where the Cards will enjoy another great home-court advantage against the winner of last night's St. Louis-Oregon game.
"We got caught by as well a coached team as I've ever played against, and that's saying something'' Colorado State coach Larry Eustachy said. "I don't want to put the pressure on Rick [Pitino] and his guys, but they're special.
"They're a special group. They need a little luck like everybody does to win it all, but that's as impressive a team as I've been against.''
With 15 minutes left, Louisville had a 55-36 lead and Louisville fans had started the wave. The Cards had forced 16 turnovers and made nine steals and the press was just starting to really take effect. Louisville finished with 11 steals and forced 20 turnovers.
"We probably can't play any better,'' Louisville coach Rick Pitino said, issuing a challenge to his players for the next round.
The Rams shot 55.6-percent (10-of-18) from the field in the first half and trailed 45-31. Just as Louisville did to North Carolina A&T in its second-round blowout, when the Cards forced 25 turnovers and set an NCAA Tournament game record with 20 steals, they took apart Colorado State.
"I just describe it as total chaos,'' Rams forward Greg Smith said.
Colorado State (26-9) only had about 36 hours after its second-round win over Missouri to prepare for Louisville's pressure. It wasn't enough. Thirty-six days might not have been enough.
"We just got ambushed,'' said Eustachy.
Brooklyn's Russ Smith, who dedicated this tournament to his late high school coach, the legendary Jack Curran of Archbishop Molloy, was Cardinal-red hot, making 4-of-6 3's in the first half and converting 9-of-10 free throws.
"Coach Curran is smiling right now,'' Pitino said. "He's so proud of Russ Smith.''
Smith finished with 27 points. He had 30 here last season against Kentucky, prompting a new Twitter account — Russarena.
With 19.1 seconds left, Pitino cleared the bench for a second straight NCAA Tournament game. That's not supposed to happen in a third-round game.
But crazy things happen in March. Rupp Arena becomes the KFC Yum! Center East. Fans brave enough to wear Kentucky gear get booed on the video monitor.
"The hard part is that we started the season in Jay Z's arena [Barclays Center] and ended it in a high school gym,'' said Kentucky fan Sam Lowe, an EMT from Lexington. "And Louisville has a chance to get to the Four Four by playing in Rupp. That's hard.''
Not as hard as playing against Louisville's press. Not even close.
lenn.robbins@nypost.com
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