Before the Louisville women’s basketball team’s Game 20 game against Ball State, guard Rayna Scott joked that it was after her bedtime.
The team’s 9pm kickoff may be the culprit for their lethargic start. Louisville, which typically gets off to a fast start this season, committed three fouls in the first seven minutes of the game and scored just eight points.
advertise
Louisville (9-3) woke up in the second quarter and heads into Sunday’s road game against 11 of the ACC’s top 25th– No. 1 North Carolina defeated Ball State 93-62 on Wednesday night. Skylar Jones notched her third consecutive double-digit performance, scoring a team-leading 20 points to go along with seven rebounds, three assists and three steals to help her team win.
Louisville is 0-3 against ranked opponents this season but has shown improvement in each game. The Cards went from losing the season opener to Connecticut by 13 points, to losing to Kentucky by 10 points, and then losing by two points to No. 3 South Carolina.
London University has played the Tar Heels the last two times, and although they hold a 9-6 lead, they are 0-2 against ranked opponents this season.
Part of Louisville’s upward trend can be attributed to its deep frontcourt. Post players Laura Ziegler and Elif Istanbulluoglu played 32 and 31 minutes, respectively, against the Huskies. A month later, Anaya Hardy entered the starting lineup and played a career-high 23 minutes against the Gamecocks, with Ziegler and Istanbul Luoglu playing 26 and 35 minutes respectively. Yevheniia Putra, who spent the first half of the season splitting time between Louisville and the Ukrainian national team, saw increased court time Sunday, scoring nine points and grabbing eight rebounds in 21 minutes in the Cards’ 94-43 victory over New Hampshire.
advertise
Hardy recorded his third double-double of the season (12 points, 10 rebounds) and made his third consecutive start. For the third straight game, she scored Louisville’s first points. Her added depth allows Louisville to be versatile with Ziegler, who continues to play forward and point guard. Ziegler had a few turnovers early but helped Louisville lead 50-25 at halftime in the second quarter with nine points, two rebounds and one assist. She finished Wednesday night’s game with 15 points, five rebounds and two assists.
The University of London’s guard performance complemented its frontcourt depth, and the team showed a strong three-point shooting performance, shooting 40% from three-pointers in the first two quarters, of which the three-pointers came from Jones, who shot 50% from three-pointers.
Mackenly Randolph started the second half for Louisville, scoring five points in the first two minutes to take a 30-point lead, 55-25. The sophomore wing scored 12 points on the night, one of five players in double figures and one shy of her career high.
Louisville women’s basketball next game
WHO: No. 20 Louisville vs. No. 11 North Carolina
advertise
when: Sunday 4pm
Where: Carmichael Arena; Chapel Hill, NC
television: ACC network
Reach Louisville football, women’s basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit acubit@gannett.com And follow her on X @Alexis_Cubit.
This article originally appeared in the Louisville Courier-Journal: Louisville WBB beats Ball State ahead of NC State road test