If all you saw was the final score, you might think this game was easy, but if you actually watched the game, you might want to forget about the first half. However, as Coach Walz said, “This is probably the first time this year that I’ve seen us play as poorly as we did in the first half. It wasn’t a good basketball game at all. I hope that’s a lesson we all learned.” The good news is that the Cards focused and turned a 30-27 halftime lead into a 54-37 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Coach Walz said the big adjustment this time around is: “We’re playing harder.”
A highlight of the first half was the debut of Grace Mbugua, a 6-foot-4 freshman from Danville, Kentucky. She was out with a knee injury but played tonight and had 10 rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 11 minutes of play. “I’m really excited for her and it’s been a process to get her back to where she is now,” Coach Walz said. “Now we’ll see how she feels tomorrow.” I thought she looked like she was having a lot of fun outside. I didn’t expect her to take a lot of shots — the energy, the adrenaline, being on the court for the first time — but she rebounded really well. She changed the shot. She does a lot of really good things and I just think she’s only going to get better and better. “
Tajianna Roberts scored a team-high 13 points, along with five rebounds and two assists. Imari Berry, who came off the bench, once again performed well, scoring 6 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals.
“We try to do too many one-on-one things. That’s not who we are as a team. We’re better when we share the basketball, and I thought we did a good job in the second half,” Coach Walz said. He added, “I have to continue to do a good job and make sure our guys understand that our performance depends on the whole package. That’s what we have to continue to focus on, is making each other better.”
Next, the Cards will head to New York to compete in the 2025 SharkBeauty Women’s Champions Classic. They will face No. 17 Tennessee at 11 a.m. The game can be watched on Fox.