CARDINALS

Louisville, Indiana baseball to square off Tuesday

Steve Jones

The University of Louisville and Indiana University baseball teams will begin an important final week of the regular season with a marquee matchup tonight at Jim Patterson Stadium — another meeting of clubs that have solidified themselves among the nation's best in recent years.

The Cardinals (40-12) and Hoosiers (35-12) will play at 6 p.m. in the third meeting of the season with U of L seeking some revenge.

Visiting IU won 6-2 on March 1 and 9-3 on March 19 at Bart Kaufman Field in Bloomington. The Hoosiers, who lead the overall series 24-22 and have won five of the last six, also knocked off the Cards 2-0 in their opener of last year's College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

"(The rivalry) has definitely grown," U of L closer Nick Burdi said. "Everyone is from this same Midwest area, and it's something that's gotten a lot bigger for the fans and especially for us in going back to Omaha."

Burdi also said, "Being the last midweek game of the year, it's going to be a lot on the line."

It's a matchup of top-20, or even top-10 teams, depending on which of the many national college polls you prefer.

U of L is ranked No. 5 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and No. 11 by Collegiate Baseball. The Hoosiers are No. 8 by Collegiate Baseball and No. 18 in the USA Today coaches' poll.

According to Baseball America, tonight's game will be No. 9 IU vs. No. 10 U of L.

Whichever way they're ranked, it's another opportunity for both teams to improve their NCAA Tournament resumes and beat a familiar quality opponent.

"It's great for baseball," U of L coach Dan McConnell said. "Baseball is regionalized, and in your midweek games, you have to play the teams in your part of the country. It's important that teams in your part of the country are good because it helps your (Ratings Percentage Index ranking) and you help theirs. It's good for baseball in the Midwest. … It's become a good rivalry."

After facing IU, U of L (16-5 American Athletic Conference) will have a day off before beginning a season-ending home series against Cincinnati that will help decide the conference title. The Cards and South Florida are tied atop the league standings, three games ahead of Houston.

IU (19-2 Big Ten Conference) has clinched at least a share of its league crown and set a record for Big Ten wins.

U of L had a 12-game winning streak snapped Saturday night 4-2 at Temple, but the Cards bounced back to defeat the Owls 6-4 in 11 innings Sunday — giving U of L its seventh 40-win season in eight years.

U of L is one of only four major college teams with at least 40 wins now.

"It's a great accomplishment," McDonnell said. "… There are 300 teams in college baseball, and there are not that many that win 40. To have 40 regular-season wins with four to play and hopefully four more in the conference tournament, I'm really proud of the group."

The hard-throwing Burdi, who picked up the win against Temple on Sunday, was named AAC Pitcher of the Week.

He made three scoreless appearances — allowing only one hit in six innings — in U of L's three victories. He had 13 strikeouts with no walks. He has 13 saves to go with a 0.59 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 302/3 innings.

"For me to come out and help the team win, it was a huge, successful week for us," he said. "And now we're on to the next one."

Steve Jones can be reached at (502) 582-7176 and followed on Twitter at @SteveJones_CJ.

TONIGHT'S GAME

IU (35-12) at U of L (40-12)

6 p.m., Jim Patterson Stadium

Tickets: $8 and $12