Pregame Notes:
Good afternoon CardNation. Coach Jeff Walz and the top ranked Louisville Women’s Basketball team hit the road to face a desperate Wake Forest team. Wake Forest was blown out by Georgia Tech on Thursday. The Cards beat a very good Syracuse team 67-54 for their first win as a top-ranked team. Louisville leads the all time series 6-0.
Starting Lineup:
Dana Evans (19.5ppg, 4.6apg)
Hailey Van Lith (13.2ppg, 6.4rpg)
Mykasa Robinson (2.2apg, 3.3rpg)
Elizabeth Balogun (5.5ppg, 1.8bpg, 4.1rpg)
Olivia Cochran (12.5ppg, 6.4rpg)
1st Quarter:
The Cards started off on fire and opened up a 12-4 lead in the first half of the quarter. The pace of the quarter was a very good one, but the scoring didn’t equate. Both teams cooled off in the last half of the quarter and the Cards led 16-10 at the end of the first.
2nd Quarter:
Konno added a 3, to push the Cards lead to 19-10. Wake Forest answered with a 13-4 run to tie the game at 23. Olivia Cochran broke the tie with an offensive putback after a Dana Evans miss. UofL countered with a 7-1 run, but only took a 30-28 lead into intermission.
Halftime Stats At A Glance:
FG%: 10-29 (34.5%)
3PT%: 4-12 (33.3%)
FT%: 6-6 (100.0%)
Assists: 6
Turnovers: 5
Total Rebounds:19-26
Leading Scorer: Dana Evans (9)
3rd Quarter:
The Cards started off the quarter sluggish and Wake Forest took advantage of that, taking an early 3-point lead. Louisville continued to struggle as Wake Forest continued to own the backboard and the points in the paint. Louisville was down for the first time all year heading into the fourth quarter. The deficit was three.
4th Quarter:
Louisville’s struggle continued early in the fourth and Wake Forest was able to extend the lead to 9 (55-46). Louisville used a 11-2 run to tie the game at 57, with 2 minutes left. Dana Evans gave the Cards the lead with a huge 3-ball. Wake used a 4-0 run to take 1 point lead, and both teams traded baskets as Wake Forest led by 1 with 16 seconds left. Dana Evans put the Cards up 2 with 8 seconds and the Cards survived 65-63.
Final Stats:
FG% 23-58(39.7%)
3PT% 6-18 (33.3%)
FT% 13-13(100.0%)
Assists: 9
Blocks: 4
Steals: 8
Turnovers: 11
Total Rebounds: 32-43
Offensive Rebounds: 13-24
Bench Points: 11
Post Game Notes and Leaders:
Louisville moves to 14-0. The Cards were able to squeeze out a road victory, despite being demonized by the Deacons on the boards. Dana Evans played all 40 mins and had the game winning basket and free throw. Dana finished with 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Freshman Olivia Cochran chipped in with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Elizabeth Balogun came up huge time and time again for Louisville, as she had 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. Hailey Van Lith struggled on the road with 5 turnovers. The shots didn’t fall for most of the game, but they went in when the Cards needed it most.
Next Opponent:
Miami comes to the Yum Center Tuesday for a 4 pm game.
