University of Louisville women’s basketball returns home for the first of three straight games at the KFC Yum! Center when they host Miami on Tuesday afternoon at 4 p.m. ET. The game will broadcast on the ACC Network and 790-AM WKRD.
Louisville held at No. 1 in the Associated Press poll this week following wins over Syracuse and Wake Forest.
UofL is 14-0 to start the season, which ties the third best start in program history. They are at least 14-0 for the third time in four years. They started 14-0 in 2018-19 and a program-record 20-0 in 2017-18. They started 15-0 in 2006-07.
Dana Evans was named ACC Player of the Week after playing all 80 minutes and averaging 23.0 points per game in wins over Syracuse and Wake Forest. In the comeback win at Wake Forest, she scored a team-high 25 points and shot a perfect 7-7 from the line. She scored nine of UofL’s final 15 points including the game-winning layup and free throw with nine seconds left. She finished with a game-high 21 points and seven assists against Syracuse.
She has 10 20-point games, which are four more than VT’s Aisha Sheppards’s six, which rank second. She has 22 career 20-point games and UofL is 22-0 in those games. The All-American has scored in double figures in every game this season.
Louisville came back from nine down (55-46) with 7:15 to go in the win at Wake Forest, outscoring the Demon Deacons 19-8 the rest of the way. It marked their largest comeback win since they came from 13 down in the first quarter against Duke on Jan. 5, 2020 (W, 60-55). It’s their largest second half comeback since they rallied from 10 down (55-45) with 3:14 to go in the third in a 67-66 win at Kentucky on Dec. 15, 2019.
Opponents are shooting just 22.9 percent from deep against UofL, which leads the ACC and ranks sixth in the country. Louisville limited Wake Forest to 1-11 (.091) and Syracuse to 2-13 (.154) shooting from deep. They limited Clemson to 0-19 shooting from 3-point range. In seven ACC games, UofL is limiting opponents to 19.3 percent 3-point shooting, which leads the league. Six total times the Cards have held their opponent below 20 percent shooting from deep
ABOUT THE HURRICANES
Miami is 7-5 overall, 4-5 in ACC play. The Hurricanes are 2-3 on the road, splitting their last four contests. Tuesday’s matchup completes a five-game road trip for Miami, who defeated Pitt 72-68 on Jan.21. Kelsey Marshall is the team’s leading scorer with 14.2 points per game, recording double figures in four out of her last five games. Her 111 3-point attempts rank second in the ACC and her 32 3-point makes rank fifth. The Hurricanes are next-to-last in the ACC with 67.1 points per game and they are allowing 66.6 points per game, which ranks 10th. They benefit from a 2.58 turnover margin, which ranks third in the ACC, trailing only Boston College and Louisville. Miami’s 291 3-point attempts rank third in ACC despite the fact that their 28.9 3-point shooting percentage ranks last in the league.
Series History – This marks the eighth meeting between the two programs. Louisville leads the all-time series 5-2, winning five out of the last six games. The first meeting came in 1989, where Miami defeated Louisville 58-59 in Freedom Hall. After an almost three-decade hiatus, the conference opponents have played each season since Louisville joined the ACC in 2014-15. The last time the teams met inside the KFC Yum! Center, No. 20 Miami upset No.2 Louisville 73-79 on Feb. 17, 2019. This ended an 18-game home winning streak and marked Louisville’s lone home loss on the season.
Last Meeting (Jan. 9, 2020) – No. 7 Louisville led wire-to-wire, defeating Miami 87-41 in Coral Gables. The 46-point margin marked Miami’s worst loss in the last 13 years. Dana Evans led all scorers with 16 points. She was one of four Cardinals in double digits. Louisville recorded the first nine points and did not allow a field goal until the 7:41 mark in the second quarter – after Miami missed its first 16 attempts. Louisville held Miami to 20.3 percent from the field and 14.8 percent behind the arc.
GAME FACTS
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 26
Time: 4 p.m. ET
Site: Louisville, Ky. | KFC Yum! Center
TV: ACCNX (Don Russell, play-by-play; Sara White, analyst)
Radio: 790-AM WKRD (Nick Curran, play-by-play; Adrienne Johnson, analyst)
Last Meeting: W, 87-41 (Jan. 9, 2020 at Miami)
Series History: 5-2 (W1, 2-2 Home, 3-0 Away, 0-0 Neutral)
UofL National Ranking: 1st Associated Press, 1st USA Today
Next UofL Game: Thursday, Jan. 28 vs. North Carolina