SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Reyna Scott scored 20 points off the bench and No. 9 Louisville pulled away from No. 23 Notre Dame for its 10th straight victory, 79-66 on Thursday night.
Tajianna Roberts added 19 points for Louisville (17-3, 7-0 ACC), which last lost on Dec. 4 when the Cardinals fell 79-77 to then-No. 3 South Carolina. Elif Istanbulluoglu had 11 points and Mackenly Randolph scored 10.
Led by Scott, Louisville’s reserves outscored Notre Dame 31-2. The Cardinals ranked second nationally in bench production, entering the game averaging 36.3 points.
Hannah Hidalgo scored 24 points and had five rebounds and eight assists to lead Notre Dame (12-5, 2-3). Iyana Moore scored 16 points, Malaya Cowles had 12 and Cassandre Prosper scored nine points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Notre Dame trailed by 10 in the third quarter but cut Louisville’s lead to three late in the period. The Cardinals held the Fighting Irish to 1-of-6 shooting in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter and built their lead back into double digits.
Louisville outscored Notre Dame 20-10 after the Fighting Irish closed to 59-56 with 30 seconds left in the third quarter. Notre Dame shot only 3 of 13 in the final quarter, while Louisville was 6 of 13.
Up next
- Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish play their third consecutive ranked opponent when they face No. 1 UConn on Monday.
- Louisville: The Cardinals play at North Carolina State on Sunday.