Louisville, Ky. — Freshman Oluchi Okananwa scored a team-high 14 points and grabbed five rebounds, but the Duke women’s basketball team (9-5, 1-2 ACC) dropped a 61-44 decision to No. 17 Louisville Thursday night at the KFC Yum! Center.

Kennedy Brown, a senior, was the top performer in rebounding with 10 rebounds. Three Blue Devils, including Brown, Mair, and Okananwa, each contributed two assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The initial quarter was a close battle with two ties and two changes in the lead.

The match started with both teams scoring points back and forth. Louisville was able to score seven of the first nine points in the game, giving them an early advantage. However, Duke responded with a 7-0 run of their own, taking the lead 9-7 at the 6:24 mark thanks to Jadyn Donovan’s finish during a transition play.

Oluchi Okananwa and Reigan Richardson scored 2 and 1 field goals respectively for the Blue Devils towards the end of the quarter. However, Louisville maintained a lead of 21-15 after the first quarter.

In the second half, Louisville scored 14 points while Duke only scored 4, giving Louisville a 35-19 lead at halftime. Okananwa and Richardson were responsible for Duke’s field goals during this time.

In the third quarter, Duke scored twelve points with five players contributing to the scoring, led by Camilla Emsbo (4) and Okananwa (3).

Duke finished the game with a strong performance, scoring the last six points. In the last period, Duke caused Louisville to commit seven turnovers.

Source: wralsportsfan.com