LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Asia Durr scored 24 points, including 12 in the first quarter to lead top-seeded Louisville past No. 8 Michigan 71-50 on Sunday in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament.
The Cardinals (31-3) started fast and stayed in gear on the way to earning their third consecutive Sweet 16 berth.
Durr got them going with two assists before adding the first of five 3-pointers in the game and a 4-point play. She finished 9 of 23 from the field and 5 of 14 from long range.
Louisville's defense also came up big, holding the taller Wolverines to just 23 percent shooting in the second half and 43 percent overall. The Cardinals scored 28 points off 22 turnovers, forcing 17 by halftime alone.
Jazmine Jones added 15 points while Sam Fuehring and Dana Evans each had 10. Kylee Shook had 10 rebounds and guard Arica Carter seven after missing two games with a left knee injury.
Akienreh Johnson had 12 points and Kayla Robbins 10 for Michigan, which fell to 1-4 all-time against Louisville. Michigan (22-12) failed in its fifth attempt to reach the Sweet 16 in its history.
BIG PICTURE
Michigan: The Wolverines were caught off guard from the jump in allowing consecutive layups. The early turnovers didn't help, the result of being sped up more than they wanted to be by the Cardinals.
Louisville: The returns of Carter from injury and coach Jeff Walz from suspension made the Cardinals whole, and it showed with effective precision and intensity that negated Michigan's size and athleticism. Their bench was outscored 28-12, but it didn't matter because they controlled areas such as paint scoring (36-30) against a challenging opponent.
UP NEXT
Michigan: Season over.
Louisville: Faces Oregon State-Gonzaga winner on Friday in Albany Regional.
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