LOUISVILLE Ky. (WDRB) -- The University of Louisville women's basketball team entered the postseason against a Wake Forest team trying to win its third game in three days after a 20-point comeback upset of Florida State on Thursday.
But Louisville, and junior guard Hailey Van Lith, tore into the postseason like a buzzsaw. Van Lith had 17 of the Cards' 20 first-quarter points and finished with a game-high 26 as No. 4 seed Louisville ended Wake Forest's ACC Tournament run with a 74-48 victory in Greensboro Coliseum.
It was the largest margin of victory ever for U of L in an ACC Tournament game.
How It Went:
Louisville jumped to an early 17-6 lead and was up 12 at the break. The Cards extended their lead to 18 in the second quarter but went scoreless the last 3:37 of the half, and Wake Forest closed on an 8-0 run to stay within striking distance, down just 10 at halftime.
The Cards opened the second half determined to end Wake's upset hopes, getting six quick points from Olivia Cochran to spark a 19-4 run that put them in command, up 25 points.
The fourth quarter was one of Louisville's best offensive stretches of the season. Louisville made 7 of its first 9 shots in the quarter before Louisville coach Jeff Walz pulled his starters with several minutes remaining.
Star of the Game:
After 21 first-half points, Van Lith cooled off in the third quarter but picked back up in the fourth to finish with 26, just two points short of the Louisville scoring record for an ACC Tournament game, breaking set by Asia Durr.
"I knew I needed to come out and be aggressive early and set my teammates up for success, Van Lith told the ACC Network. "They were just going in for me today. I just felt confident and let it go. It was great."
The Numbers:
Chrislyn Carr responded to a return to the starting lineup by scoring 16 points. Mykasa Robinson finished with 10 assists, eight rebounds and three steals. The Cards outscored Wake Forest 21-5 off turnovers and allowed just four second-chance points.
Quotable:
At halftime, Walz told the ACC Network: "I thought, for 15 minutes, we played extremely well and then we do what we do, which is not a good thing, and that's turned the ball over on unforced turnovers. We don't sprint back. I got one, Marissah Russell, busting her tail to get back and make her miss the layup, and the rest of them are on a Sunday stroll. Unfortunately, it's Friday, and we've got to still work so you've got to sprint. ... (Wake) is going to continue to fight, so we've got to remote our heads from our rear ends and play like we did for the first 15 minutes and then we've got a chance to be a pretty darn good basketball team."
Next Up:
Louisville will face the winner of top-seeded Notre Dame's quarterfinal against No. 9 seed N.C. State at noon on Saturday (ACC Network).
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