(AP)
ATLANTA — It was an odd reaction to a loss, a loss to an arch-rival, a loss that ended the season, ended the dream so many kids share the first minute they dribble a basketball.
The Louisville Cardinals were not devastated in the immediate aftermath of their Final Four loss to Kentucky last year. Rather, they were proud of their accomplishments, proud they went toe-to-toe with the vaunted Wildcats and showed well in a 69-61 semifinal loss to the eventual NCAA Tournament champions.
None of these Cardinals had been to a Final Four, so they were playing with house money. Heck, the Final Four was in the Big Easy, there was no big pressure, so why not enjoy the journey?
“We were in New Orleans, Bourbon [Street], that was pretty crazy,” guard Russ Smith of Brooklyn said. “You go outside you’re going to hit with beads.’’
Soon after that loss, however, the Cards got hit with beads — stinging beads of regret and disappointment.
“When we lost to Kentucky, it really hurt,’’ center Gorgui Dieng said. “I just wanted to come back. I don’t believe in being a failure. In everything I do, I want to do it great.
“I said to myself, ‘If I can get to the Final Four this year, then we are winning it all.’ ”
Win it all! That has been the Cards’ mantra this season.
“It was everybody’s first Final Four and everybody liked that feeling, so everybody took it upon themselves after that, like, ‘We got a mission to go on,’ ’’ forward Wayne Blackshear said.
“Coming out of high school, it was my dream to win it all. Last year, we were close to doing it. This year, right now, it’s right here in front of us. We’ve got to try to seize the moment.”
The moment arrives tonight when Louisville (34-5) faces an offensive power in Michigan (31-7), a No. 4 seed that has played dazzling basketball in this tournament.
The Wolverines are led by Player of the Year point guard Trey Burke and 6-foot-10 center Mitch McGary, who has averaged a double-double in this tournament.
But the Wolverines, one of the youngest teams ever to make it to the national title game, do not have the motivation these Cards carry. And they will face a pressure defense the likes of which they have never seen.
“I started at 5:45 [yesterday] morning watching them on film,’’ Michigan coach John Beilein said. “Those two hours, I didn’t think they were fun because they give you so many different looks. With a one‑day prep, it’s almost impossible to get ready for all those things.’’
Burdened by the No. 1 overall seed, disheartened by swingman Kevin Ware’s horrific broken leg, determined to complete the mission, Louisville can fulfill the dream of every little boy with a roundball.
“You start dreaming of winning a national championship when you’re little and you watch ‘One Shining Moment’ on TV or you watch all these great college teams winning and [Saturday] night I was really thinking, ‘Man, we’re in the national championship,’ ” said Peyton Siva, Louisville’s point guard and senior leader.
“I told Luke [Hancock]: ‘Has it hit you yet, that we’re playing for the national championship?’ You know, my last three years, we were like, ‘Man, we could have won this year. We could have won this year. Last year, ah, it was so close — we made it to the Final Four.’ This year it’s like we actually have a chance. We actually believe in ourselves.”
lenn.robbins@nypost.com