Louisville crushes Clemson, soar to 13th consecutive

Louisville, KY -- No. 14 Louisville ran past the Clemson Tigers in a 75-33 decision.

The Cardinals controlled the first period, outscoring Clemson 23-8. Louisville won the tip, and Briahanna Jackson struck first, driving to the basket for two. Clemson's Aliyah Collier fouled Sam Fuehring, sending Fuehring to the line to shoot two. The Cardinals led 4-0 when Coach Jeff Walz pulled the Louisville starting five and replaced them with five freshmen. The freshmen led Louisville to an 11-0 run.

"We didn't start off with the energy coach wanted," Briahanna Jackson spoke of the early substitution, "So he put in the second group, and I feel like we did a little better, we got on a little run to get the game started."

Louisville held Clemson to 26.7% from the field, as they connected on only 4-of-15. The Tigers were led by Cha'nelle Perry and Aliyah Collier, who had 100% of the teams scoring, putting up four points apiece.

The Cardinals continued their dominance in the second period. Mariya Moore fired off back to back shots from beyond the arc, and Erin DeGrate connected on a jumper to add two. Briahanna Jackson chipped in five points, connecting on two from the field and one from beyond the arc.

The Cardinals cooled off toward the end of the second. Both teams went without a bucket for nearly five minutes.

Despite the scoring drought, Louisville entered the half with a comfortable 39-12 lead.

The Cardinals crushed the Tigers in the first half. Louisville converted nine Clemson turnovers into 12 points. The Cardinals held the Tigers to a discouraging 21.4% from the field. Clemson only connected on six of 28 shots. Louisville controlled the glass, out-rebounding the Tigers 28-13.

Right out of the half, Arica Carter nailed a three-point shot, extending the Cardinals' lead to 30. The Tigers came out to play in the third period. Clemson was able to put up 11 points, connecting on 41.7% of their shots.

Victoria Cardaci put up four points, hitting two from the field and Gadson Lefft fired off one from the field and connected on one-of-two from the charity stripe. Cardaci and Lefft led Clemson scorers in the third with four points and three points, respectively. The Tigers grabbed 10 of their 11 points in the paint.

However, the Tiger's effort was futile in comparison to the mighty Cardinals. Louisville put up four three pointers in the third period, outscoring Clemson, 19-11.

The Cardinals led by 35 going into the final quarter.

The Tigers tried to gain momentum in the final period, but could not hold on to the ball, turning it over eight times. The Cardinals capitalized on the turnovers scoring seven points. The Tigers seemed defeated as the clock ticked away.

Louisville bulldozed Clemson, coming away with a 75-33 victory over the Tigers.

The Cardinals had four players hit double-figures: Briahanna Jackson paced Louisville connecting on 5-of-8 from the field and a team-high 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, while dishing out three assists and grabbing three steals. Asia Durr and Sam Fuehring racked up 12 points apiece. Durr picked up a team best, five assists and one block. Mariya Moore rounds out the top scorers racking up 10 points and three assists.

Erin DeGrate and Cortnee Walton dominated the glass grabbing 10 boards apiece. DeGrate had a team high, six defensive boards. Louisville outrebounded the Tigers 50 to 33.

Coach Walz credited his team for their team effort and shot selection, "We are doing a much better job, instead of taking a good shot, finding a teammate for a much better shot."

The Cardinals easily notched a 13th consecutive win over the Tigers, improving to 8-0 in ACC play.