02/27/20 08:55:00
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02/27 20:53 CST No. 5 Louisville clinches ACC outright with win over BC
No. 5 Louisville clinches ACC outright with win over BC
By STEVE BITTENBENDER
Associated Press
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) --- As the final minute ticked down, Louisville fans
chanted "ACC! ACC!" to signify the program's first outright conference
regular-season title in nearly 20 years.
The celebration started a little early, thanks to the strong start by the No. 5
Cardinals.
Kylee Shook matched a season high with 18 points and added 10 rebounds as
Louisville beat Boston College 68-48 to clinch the Atlantic Coast Conference
regular-season title.
The Cardinals (26-3, 15-2), who also won a share of the last two ACC titles,
claimed the program's first outright regular-season crown since winning
Conference USA in 2001. And they did that while short-handed, as starters Dana
Evans and Elizabeth Balogun missed their second straight games due to ankle
injuries.
Bionca Dunham, another starter, was limited to just 14 minutes due to a knee
issue she's battled all season.
"These kids have been unbelievable," Louisville coach Jeff Walz said. "It just
shows the character and the fight that they have."
Louisville made seven of its first nine shots and jumped out to an 18-6 lead.
Boston College closed the first quarter on an 8-0 run, cutting its deficit to
20-17. The Cardinals then used an 18-3 run in the second quarter to put the
game away.
Senior Jazmine Jones added 17, and redshirt senior Yacine Diop scored 13 in the
win.
Shook, also a senior, said getting off to a strong start was key, especially
without Evans and Balogun.
"Those are two significant players on our team," she said. "These games coming
forward, and this game, were very important. So, we knew, us being
upperclassmen, we had to lead the way and just go out hard."
In the closing seconds of the first half, the 6-foot-4 Shook got a steal in
Boston College's backcourt, dribbled down and hit a buzzer-beating jumper that
gave Louisville a 46-24 lead, their largest of the half.
Walz said he could have played both Evans and Balogun, as they had been
cleared, but the big second quarter run gave him the luxury of giving them the
night off. They'll still be game-time decisions for Sunday's game against
Virginia Tech.
The Eagles (17-11, 10-7), who had their five-game winning streak snapped, were
led by Tyler Soule's 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Boston College committed 23 turnovers that led to 29 points for the Cardinals.
Fourteen of those came in the first half as Louisville outscored the Eagles
23-2 off turnovers before the break.
"I thought in the first half, we looked like we were on a different page, both
offensively and defensively, and we just didn't play as hard as we've been
playing," Eagles coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee said.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
With No. 4 Stanford falling earlier this week, Louisville's short-handed win
could help them climb over the Pac 12 school in next week's poll, but the
Cardinals will also need to win Sunday for that chance.
MISSED OPPORTUNITY
Boston College had a chance to set a record for wins in February, but the
Eagles will settle for tying the 1986-87, 1987-88 and 2003-04 teams with six
victories in the month.
BIG PICTURE
Boston College: The Eagles had earned their way onto the NCAA Tournament bubble
thanks to seven wins in their last eight games entering Thursday.
Unfortunately, the league's third-worst defense allowed the Cardinals to shoot
60.6% in the first half and kept the Eagles from competing for what would have
been a signature victory.
Louisville: In the two games the Cardinals have played without leading scorer
Evans and Balogun, fourth on the team in scoring, they've scored 95 first-half
points. While that's been against two of the worst defenses in the ACC, it's an
indication this team may be starting to peak as postseason play draws near.
UP NEXT
Boston College: Closes out the regular season at Syracuse on Sunday afternoon.
Louisville: Wraps up the regular season hosting Virginia Tech on Sunday
afternoon.
___
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