Louisville Defeats Miami in ACC Opener
Press Release from the University of Louisville
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The No. 19 Louisville women's basketball team (12-2, 1-0) finished off the calendar year with a win after the 77-72 victory over RV/23 Miami Sunday afternoon at the Watsco Center. The Cardinals improved to 10-0 all-time in ACC openers and ended the Hurricanes (10-2, 0-1) 17-game home winning streak. Louisville had five players score in double figures in the win, the fourth game this season with five or more players in double figures.
Jayda Curry had her best game in a Cardinal uniform with a season-high 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting and was 2-for-2 from three. Merissah Russell scored a season-high 12 points on 3-for-3 shooting from the floor and behind the arc. 11 of her 12 points came in the fourth quarter as the Cardinals closed out the win. Nyla Harris recorded her second double-double of the season with 13 points and tied a career high with 12 rebounds. Kiki Jefferson recorded 12 points on 4-for-8 shooting and was 4-for-4 from the line.
Jefferson hit a milestone as she surpassed 2,000 career points with a jumper in the first quarter. Curry also hit a career milestone in the win as she eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark with a three pointer in the third quarter.
The Cardinals had a slow start to the quarter as they were playing their first game in 11 days. After the media timeout in the first, the Cardinals began to find their rhythm and hit four-straight shots to tie the score at 12. Louisville hit seven of its last 10 shots in the quarter but trailed 23-20 following the first 10 minutes of action.
Miami scored the first four points of the second quarter but the Cardinals responded with an 8-0 run to take a one-point lead. It was a back-and-forth quarter the rest of the way. Curry drove in for a lay-up as time expired to tie the game at 37-37 heading into the half.
Eight different Cardinals scored in the first half and they were paced by nine points from Harris, eight from Curry and seven from Cochran. Harris also led the squad with seven rebounds as the Cardinals shot 53.6 percent (15-28) from the floor in the first half.
Curry took over for the Cardinals in the third quarter. She eclipsed 1,000 points for her career with a three early in the quarter. Curry scored 11 points in the quarter on 4-for-6 shooting and the Cardinals took a 58-57 lead into the final quarter.
In a tight fourth quarter, Russell came through as she scored 11-straight points to put the Cardinals in front for good. She hit all three of her three-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Cards went on a 7-0 run to regain the lead. Miami got as close as two but the Cardinals put the game away at the line.
The Cardinals will return to campus for their ACC home opener, slated for later this week. Louisville will welcome the Duke Blue Devils to the KFC Yum! Center on Thursday, January 4. The Cardinals and Blue Devils are set to square off at 8 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast nationally on the ACC Network.
(Photo of Jeff Walz, Nyla Harris: Kareem Elgazzar - The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK)
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