Louisville Cardinals at Notre Dame Fighting Irish
· ACC WOMEN'S TOURNAMENT - FINAL
79 - 99
No. 4 Irish women beat No. 3 Louisville to win ACC tourney
Shepard had a season-high 30 points and 13 rebounds, and the fourth-ranked Fighting Irish claimed their fifth Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament title in six years by routing No. 3 Louisville 99-79 on Sunday.
Tournament MVP Jackie Young added 21 points and 10 rebounds, Brianna Turner had 20 points and Marina Mabrey and Arike Ogunbowale scored 12 apiece for the top-seeded Irish (30-3).
"When you beat ranked teams by as much as we did this weekend, I think it sends a great message" to the rest of the nation, coach Muffet McGraw said.
Notre Dame outscored Louisville 72-40 in the paint and built a 44-29 rebounding edge. The Cardinals didn't have one key player to start the game, lost another and frequently used a four-guard lineup.
"Coming into the game, we knew we had a mismatch," Shepard said. "The guards did a great job of passing the ball inside. ... You can just throw it up to the rim and watch (Turner) get it."
Bionca Dunham scored 18 points and ACC player of the year Asia Durr finished with 15 for the second-seeded and short-handed Cardinals (29-3). The ACC's second-best 3-point-shooting team shot a season-worst 11 percent from long range and missed all 12 3s they tried over the final 25 minutes.
"This is not our final goal," Durr said. "We've just got to learn from it and continue to push forward."
BIG PICTURE
"I wasn't willing to sacrifice (Fuehring) being able to play in 2 1/2 weeks when the big tournament starts up," Walz said.
"We came in with a goal of bringing the trophy back to South Bend," McGraw said, "and I felt like we played really well in every game."
STAT SHEET
QUICK SHOTS
Shepard's previous season best of 28 points came in the opener against Harvard on Nov. 9. . Notre Dame's 27 points in the first quarter were the most allowed by Louisville in that quarter all season. . The Cardinals, who trailed 48-39 at halftime, have not overcome a halftime deficit of more than three points this season.
UP NEXT
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How can I watch Cardinals vs. Fighting Irish?
- TV Channel: Cardinals vs Fighting Irish 2021 College Basketball, week 18, is broadcasted on ESPN2.
- Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
Recent Plays
| 4th 0:00 |  |
End of Game | 79 - 99 |
| 4th 0:21 |  |
Jessica Laemmle made Jumper. | 79 - 99 |
| 4th 0:30 | |
Jump Ball won by Louisville | 77 - 99 |
| 4th 0:49 |  |
Danielle Patterson Turnover. | 77 - 99 |
| 4th 0:50 | |
Lindsey Duvall made Free Throw. | 77 - 99 |
Statistics
 LOU |
ND |
|
|---|---|---|
| 32-66 | FG | 42-83 |
| 48 | Field Goal % | 51 |
| 2-18 | 3PT | 3-11 |
| 11 | Three Point % | 27 |
| 13-16 | FT | 12-16 |
| 81 | Free Throw % | 75 |
| 29 | Rebounds | 44 |
| 14 | Offensive Rebounds | 23 |
| 15 | Defensive Rebounds | 21 |
| 15 | Assists | 17 |
| 4 | Steals | 7 |
| 3 | Blocks | 3 |
| 16 | Turnovers | 12 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
| 16 | Total Turnovers | 12 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Points Off Turnovers | 0 |
| 0 | Fast Break Points | 0 |
| 0 | Points in Paint | 0 |
| 18 | Fouls | 17 |
| 0 | Largest Lead | 27 |
Game Information
Location: Greensboro, NC
Attendance: 10,104 | Capacity:
2025-26 Atlantic Coast Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke | 16-2 | - | 27-9 |
| Louisville | 15-3 | 1 | 29-8 |
| North Carolina | 14-4 | 2 | 28-8 |
| NC State | 13-5 | 3 | 21-11 |
| Syracuse | 12-6 | 4 | 24-9 |
| Virginia Tech | 12-6 | 4 | 23-10 |
| Notre Dame | 12-6 | 4 | 25-11 |
| Virginia | 11-7 | 5 | 22-12 |
| Clemson | 11-7 | 5 | 21-12 |
| California | 9-9 | 7 | 21-15 |
| Stanford | 8-10 | 8 | 21-14 |
| Miami | 8-10 | 8 | 18-15 |
| Georgia Tech | 8-10 | 8 | 14-19 |
| Florida State | 5-13 | 11 | 10-21 |
| Wake Forest | 4-14 | 12 | 14-18 |
| SMU | 2-16 | 14 | 9-21 |
| Pittsburgh | 1-17 | 15 | 8-23 |
| Boston College | 1-17 | 15 | 5-26 |