Defense Hides Many of Louisville's Flaws PHOENIX - On paper, Louisville does not possess a frightening basketball team, nor a Final Four-caliber one. Peyton Siva is a solid point guard, but he is also prone to bad decisions, lapses in judgment. Gorgui Dieng is a solid center, especially on the defensive end, but he shoots and handles the basketball as if he is allergic to it. Kyle Kuric is a solid forward, a senior who provides a calming influence, but he has disappeared for entire games this season. And then there is Russ Smith. Do not get us started on Russ Smith. That is why Coach Rick Pitino likes this team so much, because they get more out of less than perhaps any team he has coached. Because that, really, is the point of coaching. The other day, Pitino turned to his son during practice and said, "I think we're like 2 for 50 shooting open drills." And yet this Louisville team, warts and all, is headed to the national semifinals in New Orleans, winners of the Big East tournament and the West Regional, perhaps the strangest team still standing. "If you look at us on paper, you're not impressed," Pitino said. But when you play against us, your legs are giving out in the last five or six minutes in so many games. Pitino is correct there. Defense is Louisville's greatest strength. The Cardinals held Michigan State, the No. 1 seed, to 44 points. They clamped down on Florida in the regional final, weathering a first half in which Florida made what seemed like every shot it took, holding the Gators to zero second-half 3-pointers in a thrilling comeback win. Louisville's defense - the full-court pressure, the way the Cardinals never stop swarming to the ball - does not always have an immediate impact. But Louisville wears teams down. Opponents look tired down the stretch. They commit more turnovers. The Cardinals block more shots, grab more steals. Before they know it, they have won. The more Louisville wins, the more Pitino is reminded of his other favorite team, the Providence Friars of 1986-87, who also reached the Final Four, also in New Orleans. Pitino's best friend, the longtime coach Ralph Willard (he worked for Syracuse that season), sees some similarities, too. "From a collective standpoint and selflessness standpoint, there definitely is," Willard said. This team relies on defense more than that Providence team. That's how they win. But with the intangibles, the will, the way they exceed expectations, there is a tremendous amount of comparison.