By Derek DeBurger and Elizabeth Scanland

Louisville will face the Boston College Eagles as they begin the bulk of ACC play.

BC is coming off four-straight wins and are hoping to keep the momentum going. Joanna Bernabei-McNamee is a former assistant coach on the same staff as Jeff Walz, so their matchups are always tightly contested.

Star-studded

The team’s star power comes from guard Dontavia Waggoner.

Waggoner is a fifth-year senior who has been a massive fish in a little pond for quite some time. She leads the team in scoring, averaging 12.6 points per game. She’s also top-four on her team in assists, rebounds and steals per game, proving on a nightly basis that she does it all for her team.

Waggoner is extremely effective at shooting under the basket and finding open lanes to drive into to create easy points. Her weakness falls in her three-point shooting as she’s virtually a non-shooter.

Despite the inability to stretch the court, Waggoner is coming off one of her best games of the season against Central Connecticut in which she had 17 points and was three rebounds shy of a double-double.

Teya Sidberry leads the team in rebounds and steals with an average of 6.8 and 2.5 a night, respectively. Sidberry has not had a game yet where she hasn’t had a steal, so Louisville will need to be alert when she’s on the court.

The Eagles also bring to the table guard Kaylah Ivey with 6.1 assists per game, which ranks second in the ACC and 13th nationally.

Walz usually focuses his defensive game plans around eliminating the efficacy of one player, so the Cards will likely try to shut down Waggoner or Ivey. Each offers it’s own benefits, but those are the most likely targets by a mile.

One-trick pony

The Eagles are a tough, physical defensive team, and are lethal this season guarding the perimeter. BC averages 11.8 steals a game, which is 31st best in the country. Louisville has struggled this season while limiting turnovers, so that will likely be a factor in Sunday’s game. If the Cards can do what they’ve failed to do most of the season, they will put themselves in a great position to secure a victory.

BC also boasts an impressive three-point defense, holding opponents to 27.8%.

Where the Eagles thrive on the outside, they’re a little more lackluster on the inside. BC on averages 3.1 blocks a game and holds opponents to 40.4% from the field. These are not bad marks, but they are painfully average.

If Louisville wants to try and get the upper hand, they may need to constantly be on the attack offensively.

It seems as though this is a must win for Louisville. Louisville’s seniors have yet to miss the NCAA tournament, and an 0-2 start in ACC play would definitely spell bad times to come.

The Cards, however still have what it takes to improve to 8-5 of the season and snag their first conference win while they’re at it.

Photo Courtesy // Taris Smith, Louisville Athletics