By Derek DeBurger
The Louisville Cardinals bounced back from a devastating loss with an overwhelming win against the Grambling State Tigers.
The win seemed to show the full spectrum of the Cardinals capabilities this season.
Sleepwalking
Louisville came out with low energy and effort, as they superior talent and knew it.
Grambling took a five-point lead to start the game, but took over a-minute-and-a-half to do so. The Cards finally got on the board with a layup, but a couple of quick baskets saw Louisville fall behind 2-9.
Th Cards finally woke up with a 10-0 run over the next four minutes. The rest of the first quarter would be nip and tuck, but the Cards would hold a slim 19-15 lead.
The tightness persisted into the second quarter, as the Tigers wouldn’t go away.
During this time, the three-headed monster of Olivia Cochran, Nyla Harris and Elif Istanbulluoglu gave Grambling bigs all they could handle.
Once the score reach 29-27 in favor of the Cards, Louisville kicked it into overdrive. Grambling didn’t score for the remaining three minutes of the half. Cochran and Tajianna Roberts took on the bulk of the scoring, as the Cards finished on a 15-0 run.
Louisville led 44-27 at halftime.
The gave was firmly put away in Jeff Walz’s back pocket during the break with no intentions of giving it back.
Louisville extended their run from the end of the second well into the third quarter. They held Grambling scoreless for a total of six minutes during a 21-0 run that spanned the second and the third.
Once the drought ended, Louisville’s offense just exploded, scoring 20 points in three-and-a-half minutes.
The game grew so out of reach that Walz was able to clear the entire bench. Esosa Imafidon and Anaya Hardy even saw the court.
Louisville won 96-57.
Wake up on time
Louisville showed they had enough talent and then some to wax the floor with Grambling without even trying. Unfortunately, they didn’t try at the start.
The Cards turned the ball over a mere five seconds into the game, something that cannot happen against any opponent. Turnovers have been the x-factor for and against the Cards dating back to last season, so sure-fire victories like this should be a challenge to hold onto the ball as much as possible.
Louisville ended the game with 19 turnovers, above their already high season average.
On the bright side, the Cards got some great performances Thursday.
Cochran yet again had the best game of her season after getting out to a so-so start. She had game-highs in points and rebounds with 18 and 11, respectively.
Seven other players scored six or more points, and three players tied the team-high with four assists.
Defensively, the Cards played fantastic team ball in spite of their sleepy start. Only one Tiger scored more than seven points as their team only shot 35.2% from the field.
Louisville is now 6-4 on the season as non-conference play nears an end.
Photo Courtesy // Caleb Jones, Louisville Athletics
