Louisville Demolishes Notre Dame in Regular Season Finale
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Kianna Smith and Hailey Van Lith each scored 20 points and No. 4 Louisville raced to a huge lead and routed No. 14 Notre Dame 86-64 in a testy matchup Sunday.
The Cardinals (25-3, 16-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) led 41-3 early in the second quarter. They beat the Irish (21-7, 13-5) for the sixth straight time in the conference regular-season closer for both teams.
Louisville was up 48-6 when Notre Dame made consecutive baskets, the second by Olivia Miles at 2:49 before halftime after her steal.
Miles and Mykasa Robinson then got in a shoving match after exchanging words. Notre Dame’s Dara Mabrey and Van Lith also were whistled for intentional fouls after a lengthy video review and some heated consultation from coaches Jeff Walz of the Cardinals and Niele Ivey of the Irish.
Emily Engstler had 17 points and Chelsie Hall added 13 for the Cardinals, who would tie for the ACC title if No. 3 North Carolina lost later in the day to No. 23 Virginia Tech.
Regardless of the outcome, Louisville will be the No. 2 seed in the ACC postseason tourney and has a double bye to Friday’s quarterfinals.
Olivia Miles had 13 points, Maya Dodson and Dara Mabrey scored 12 each and Sonia Citron 10 for Notre Dame, which also has a double bye to the ACC tourney quarterfinals.
The Cardinals jumped to a 31-3 lead after the first quarter. Ivey tried to stop the Louisville momentum with timeouts and substitutions, but nothing worked.
Louisville made its first seven shots in the opening 4:38 in taking an 18-1 lead. Notre Dame hit just one of 13 shots as former four-time Irish All-American Skylar Diggins-Smith watched from the sidelines.
The Cardinals scored the first 10 points of the second quarter and led 54-15 at halftime. Louisville hit 23 of 34 shots (68%), including 8 of 12 (67%) on 3-pointers before the break.
BIG PICTURE
Louisville: The Cardinals were on their game from the start, particularly from beyond the 3-point line. They hit their first seven 3-pointers during the first quarter and didn’t miss from long distance until early in the second quarter.
Notre Dame: The Irish were hoping to put behind them the bad vibes remaining from the Cardinals’ 73-47 victory two Sundays ago in Louisville. But their bad start from the field -– at one point the Irish had one basket in 18 attempts (5.6%). Louisville’s fast start made it a long afternoon at the Purcell Pavilion where Notre Dame was 13-0 prior to the rout. The Irish outscored Louisville 49-32 in the second half and finished shooting 41.5% (22 of 53).
UP NEXT
Louisville: Cardinals have earned double bye as No. 2 seed for ACC Tournament in Greensboro, North Carolina, and play quarterfinal game Friday at 6 p.m.
Notre Dame: Fighting Irish have earned double bye in ACC Tournament and play quarterfinal game Friday at either 11 a.m. or 8 p.m.
(Photo of Kianna Smith: Matt Cashore - USA TODAY Sports)
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