Pregame Notes:
Good afternoon Card Nation, your Louisville women’s basketball team hosts the 11th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in the annual Play 4 Kay Pink Game.
The Cards last game was last Sunday, when they beat Syracuse 79-67. Louisville shook up the starting lineup as Mykasa Robinson and Nyla Harris were inserted in the lineup. The freshman Harris responded with a career high 18 points to go along with 6 rebounds. Mykasa responded as only she can, Mykasa finished the game with 7 points, 12 assists, 7 rebounds and 0 turnovers.
The Tar Heels are coming in as the hottest team in the league with a current winning streak of 8 games. Carolina started 0-3 in conference, but now own 4th place in the league. This is the 13th meeting between the two teams and Louisville currently leads the all-time series 8-4.
Starters:
Norkia Konno
Hailey Van Lith
Mykasa Robinson
Nyla Harris
Olivia Cochran
1st Quarter:
Nyla Harris got the scoring started for the Cards with a beautiful sweeping hook layup. Both teams battled hard as the lead changed 4 times. Louisville started 0-4 from beyond the arc before Van Lith went on an 8-0 run by herself to give the Cards a 15-10 lead. The Cards led 15-12 heading into the 2nd quarter.
2nd Quarter:
In a quarter that saw a total of 20 points between both teams, the Cards started the quarter with a corner 3-ball by Norika Konno off an assist by HVL. Louisville had more turnovers (5) than they had field goals (3) and Louisville saw their already slim lead evaporate. The Cards struggled to find any offensive rhythm in the quarter, but dominated the boards. UNC was able to have a little more success than Louisville in the quarter, as the Cards trailed 23-24 heading into intermission.
Halftime Stats:
Field Goal %: 9-33 (27.3%)
3PT Field Goal %: 4-18 (22.2%)
Free Throws: 1-1 (100%)
Total Rebounds: 26 (8 offensive)
Turnovers: 12
Leading Scorer: Hailey Van Lith (8)
3rd Quarter:
UNC started the quarter on an 8-0 run, that saw the Carolina lead balloon to 9, with 6 of those points being gifted to the Tar Heels by the officials. Louisville answered with their own 15-5 run to take a 38-37 lead. Chrislyn Carr scored 11 points in the quarter as the Cards extended their lead to 5. Cards took a 48-43 heading into the final quarter.
4th Quarter:
In a quarter where Louisville only took 4 shots and connected on 2 of them, the Cards defense did the job. The Cards held UNC to 5-14 from the field and forced 4 turnovers by the Tar Heels. The Cards got great effort and contributions from the bench in the quarter. Louisville was able to seal the game from the free throw line, as they went 9-12 in the quarter. Louisville beat 11th-ranked UNC 62-55.
Final Stats:
Field Goal %: 19-56 (33.9%)
3PT Field Goal %: 8-27 (29.6%)
Free Throws: 16-24 (66.7%)
Total Rebounds: 46 (15 offensive)
Assists: 11
Steals: 5
Blocks: 2
Bench Points: 28
Turnovers: 22
Leading Scorer: Chrislyn Carr and Hailey Van Lith (17)
Post Game Notes:
The Cards improve to 17-8 on the season and 8-4 in ACC play. With the win over the Tar Heels, Louisville not only snapped the UNC 8-game winning streak, but put themselves into a 4-way tie for 4th place in the ACC standings. UofL was led in scoring by Chrislyn Carr and Hailey Van Lith with 17. 14 of Carr’s points came in the second half. Freshman forward Nyla Harris led Louisville in rebounds with 12. She also added 6 points. Mykasa Robinson had yet another Mykasa-like ball game as she not only guarded Deja Kelly for the majority of the game, but she added 5 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. She also brought a whole lot of heart and determination on the floor.
Next Opponent:
The Cards head back on the road, as they face the Virginia Cavaliers February 9th at 7pm.
