How Louisville women pulled off another ranked win on the road at No. 11 Duke
On Thursday, unranked Louisville took advantage of its sharp-shooting from deep and a near-perfect night from the charity stripe to upset No. 11 Duke, 70-62, and pick up its second consecutive ranked win on the road.
While Louisville was 6-of-12 from deep and held Duke to only 2-of-13, its ability to get to the basket and convert at the free-throw line was a key factor in the upset.
The Cardinals were 22-of-25 from the charity stripe. This steal from freshman Tajianna Roberts — one of 12 in the game for Louisville — led to an and-one from senior Jayda Curry on the other end.
Senior Ja’Leah Williams, who had 13 points, drew the pump-fake from the corner and played through contact under the basket to draw a foul and put Louisville up, 39-31, with 8:14 to play in the third quarter.
Curry (9-of-9 FT) and Roberts (6-of-6 FT) combined for 15 of the 22 made free throws in the game for the Cardinals.
Duke (20-7, 11-4 ACC) has relied on its defense all season. In its 15 conference games, Duke has allowed fewer than 60 points in 12 of them. Louisville is only the second ACC team to score 70 or more points against the Blue Devils this season.
With a second meeting against in-state rival No. 9 North Carolina remaining on Feb. 27, Duke must protect the basket and take better care of the ball after committing 20 turnovers on Thursday. If so, Duke’s defense is plenty capable of holding its own, even when the shots are not falling.
Louisville (19-7, 12-3 ACC) started the season 6-5 and has since gone 13-2 with four ranked wins in that span. The Cardinals have two ranked opponents — No. 9 North Carolina and top-ranked Notre Dame — left on their schedule. However, if Louisville can get to the basket like it did against Duke and impose its will, it may keep the momentum rolling all the way to the ACC Tournament and beyond as March approaches.
