By Derek DeBurger
No. 18 Louisville walks away from a slugfest with the Morehead State Eagles victorious.
The Cards were able to pull away from the Eagles, but the first quarter looked very dicey. Right out of the gate, the Eagles were the aggressors, and they stunned the Cards with their intensity on their way to a 4-0 start. The lead wasn’t insurmountable, but it was a hard-fought battle for the Cards to take back the lead. Louisville would eventually hold a 16-14 lead at the end of the first quarter, making ten total field goals to 12 total fouls.
The second quarter was even more physical than the first with the Cards running their “X” defensive set, and trapping on the sidelines. After the initial minutes, the Cards almost completely shut the Eagles’ offense down, and the defensive pressure led to some easy transition buckets. Louisville extended their lead to 41-22 at the half off of a 19-2 run to end the half.
The Eagles were about as physical as physical can get, but Olivia Cochran was still able to dominate in the paint with 12 points and seven rebounds at the half and 16 points and 11 rebounds for the game. As a team, the Cards put up 14 second-chance points off of nine offensive rebounds.
The Cards would win 74-48.
The physicality of Morehead was viewed by the Cards as a challenge. The Eagles were determined to keep points in the paint to a minimum, but Louisville’s top two scorers, Cochran and Nyla Harris, operated almost exclusively in the paint. Whatever points they didn’t get in the paint they got at the free-throw line.
The Cards were also able to limit turnovers for the first time this season against an aggressive Morehead defense that has been successful this year at getting steals and forcing errors. Louisville finished the game with only ten turnovers, their lowest mark of the year.
This might not have been a flashy opponent, but this is yet another great win for the Cards. Now at 10-1 on the year, the Cards will get ready for a tough stretch to end the 2023 calendar year.
File Photo // Taris Smith, U of L Athletics
