BOX SCORE
LOUISVILLE, KY The 13th ranked Louisville Cardinals used an efficient second half offensive attack to knock off the Seton Hall women’s basketball team, 88-67. The Pirates (9-5, 1-2), who were led by a career-high 19 points from Noteisha Womack (Fort Washington, Md.), have dropped two straight in BIG EAST play.
Angel McCoughtry, the league’s leading scorer and rebounder, led four Cardinals (16-1, 2-1) in double figures with 21 points.
Ela Mukosiej (Bialystok, Poland) had 17 points and five rebounds for Seton Hall. Brittney Messina (Massapequa, N.Y.) added 10 points and five boards off the bench.
The Pirates started out strong, with Mukosiej and Heta Korpivaara (Espoo, Finland) scoring two baskets each as SHU took a 10-9 lead. Neither team could hold the lead for an extended period, and a Womack lay-up with 7:35 left gave the Pirates a 20-19 edge.
Monique Blake (Union, N.J.) hit a short jumper to tie the game for the last time at 22. Louisville’s Yuliya Tokova’s three-point play was part of a 10-2 run that saw the Cardinals take a 32-24 edge with 1:41 to go in the first half. Mukosiej stemmed the tide with a driving lay-in and a jumper to cut the deficit to four, but Patrika Barlow answered with a three-pointer just before the half to give Lousiville a 35-28 lead at the break.
SHU scored for the first basket out of halftime before the Cardinals ripped off eight unanswered to seize control at 43-30. An Ashley Booker (Oceanside, Calif.) basket at the 16:24 mark briefly brought the Pirates back to within 10 before Brandi Radde drilled a triple to get Louisville rolling once again. The Cardinals lead hit 20 at 59-39 on Toni Slaughter’s shot from deep with 11:47 left.
The Pirates got no closer than 13 the rest of the way against Louisville, which was coming of its only loss of the season three days ago. Womack and Blake claimed eight rebounds each to pace SHU. Blake also added a team-high three steals.
McCoughtry had nine rebounds and seven steals for Louisville. Chauntise Wright poured in 14 points in reserve.
SHU returns to action on Tuesday at No. 5 Connecticut, with tip-off at 7:30 p.m.
