Louisville Races Past SMU to Win Sixth Straight

Press Release from the University of Louisville:

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The No. 13-ranked University of Louisville women's basketball team (13-3, 3-0 ACC) never trailed from tipoff to the final whistle, defeating Atlantic Coast Conference opponent SMU (7-8, 0-3 ACC) Thursday afternoon inside the KFC Yum! Center by a final score of 91-58.

UofL's victory was driven by a dominant performance on both sides of the ball. The Cardinals shot a strong 36-of-74 (48.6%) for the game. Louisville's defense forced the Mustangs into their season-high of 24 turnovers. The Cardinals also shined on the glass, hauling in 41 total rebounds, including 15 offensive boards. The Cardinals turned those 15 offensive boards into 21 second-chance points.

Tajianna Roberts' 15 points and five assists paced the UofL offense. Imari Berry nearly missed a double-double, coming off the bench and finishing today's contest with 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Elif Istanbulluoglu also had a solid performance as she finished the day with 11 points and four boards. It was her sixth double digit scoring outing of the season.

The Cards opened the first quarter of the game with a 19-14 lead. Louisville had six different players record a basket in the opening period. Anaya Hardy led the way for UofL in the opening quarter with six points and three boards.

The Cardinals came out of the gate hot in the second period, going on a 14-3 run. Louisville shot 9-of-16 (56.3%) from the field in the quarter. The UofL defense shined as well, forcing SMU to commit 10 turnovers in the period. Junior Skylar Jones recorded four steals in the quarter and had a career-high five total steals by halftime. Louisville held a 46-27 advantage at the intermission.

Out of the break, UofL got off to an 11-2 run. Strong outside shooting for the Cards propelled the offense, finishing the quarter with five makes from deep as their lead blossomed to as many as 33-points in the period. The Cardinals had a 69-42 edge heading into the final quarter of the game.

The fourth quarter was the Louisville offense continuing to roll as they built a game-high 42-point lead. UofL finished the period by having nine different players register a field goal in the fourth. Mackenly Randolph hauled in four rebounds during the period to finish the game with six total.

The Cards will be back in action at home on Sunday afternoon inside the KFC Yum! Center for another conference matchup, playing Virginia Tech at 4 p.m. ET on the ACC Network. It will be the Cards' Salute to Service game on Sunday against the Hokies.

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