| It turns out the Bellarmine University and Louisville women’s basketball teams will be playing this season after all. After originally being slated to play Dec. 6 only to see their game postponed due to pandemic-related issues, Bellarmine (0-4) and Louisville (5-0) have successfully rescheduled a makeup date as the No. 2 Cardinals will host the Knights at noon (ET) Saturday in the KFC Yum! Center. Both teams had been seeking games after recent postponements caused by the pandemic. Bellarmine’s Monday contest against Morehead State in Freedom Hall had to be shelved for the time being, while Louisville’s last three outings – against ACC foes Florida State (Dec. 17), Miami (Dec. 20) and Virginia (this Sunday) no less – were all put on hold. Saturday will revive the series between Bellarmine and Louisville, which have met 18 times, although the latest clash will mark the first with BU in Division I. The Knights and Cardinals consistently squared off from the early 1970s to mid-’80s, with all but one of their 18 meetings occurring from the 1971-72 to 1984-85 seasons. They last met in December of 1999, with Louisville capturing an 80-56 home win to hold a 14-4 series lead. Both Louisville and Bellarmine have had scant game action of late. The Cardinals haven’t played since their 73-49 road win at Duke on Dec. 9, while the Knights will have competed once – Tuesday’s 72-62 loss at Evansville – in two weeks when they take the floor in the KFC Yum! Center. While Bellarmine has started 0-4 in its first season in Division I, the Knights’ margin of defeat has decreased every game. In Tuesday’s contest at Evansville, Bellarmine made a frenetic comeback from 18 points down in the third quarter to slice the Aces’ lead to 64-62 with four minutes left in the fourth before UE finished the game on an 8-0 run. Although both their season debuts were delayed, senior guards and co-captains Breia Torrens and Tasia Jeffries made big impacts in their respective returns. Torrens has played in Bellarmine’s last two games and is averaging 16.0 points and 3.5 assists, while Jeffries was back against Evansville and posted a team-high 17 points. Senior forward Lauren Deel has scored in double figures in three of four games and is averaging 10.5 points. Before its unintended lengthy layoff, second-ranked Louisville was dominant over its 5-0 start. The Cardinals’ most difficult challenge on paper was against now-No. 18 DePaul on Dec. 4, and U of L set a program record for scoring in a 116-75 romp. The victory over Duke in Louisville’s most recent game represented the Cardinals’ ACC opener. Louisville’s Dana Evans is among the most heralded players in the country. The senior guard was named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 30 Watch List along with being selected as the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, an Associated Press Preseason All-American, and to the Naismith and Drysdale Award Watch List. Evans is averaging 21.0 points and over four assists per game for Louisville. In addition to Evans, three other Cardinals are averaging double figures in the scoring column. Hailey Van Lith is posting 15.6 points per game, Kianna Smith 15.3 and Olivia Cochran 13.8 along with a team-high 9.0 rebounds. According to Louisville, tickets will be available for $12 at TicketMaster.com or the KFC Yum! Center box office. Single-game parking will be available at surrounding KFC Yum! Center lots. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra, which is a streaming-only option offered exclusively through WatchESPN. ACC Network Extra is included if your cable or streaming service provider carries ACC Network. For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights) and Facebook (BUKnights). |
