GREENSBORO, NC. — The 11th-ranked Duke Blue Devils defense shut down the Louisville Cardinals early, assisting in their 61-48 win to advance to the semifinals of the ACC Tournament. The Devils could handle whatever was thrown at them in front of a flurry of their faithful fans. They will face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the semi-finals on Saturday, March 8th, at 2:30 PM EST.

Duke started the game strong, although the Cardinals kept the game close after the first quarter. They led 15-11, thanks to a balanced scoring attack to start the period. They shot 50% from the field to start, which isn’t bad considering their multiple days off before their first tournament game. Louisville struggled to start the game, however, only shooting 31.3% from the field in the quarter. Freshman guard Tajianna Roberts couldn’t get going early, only scoring three of her eight points in the period on one shot in six attempts (16.7%). Both teams had five turnovers to start the game, although Duke suffered the most because their lead could’ve been bigger. Even though the Cardinals would have benefited from taking care of the ball, their shooting numbers suggest they would have a hard time establishing a lead. Furthermore, the Devils had the chance to put the game away early, and they suffered from their turnovers. Duke started the game strong on defense, and that carried over to close the half. However, they struggled in a different area that prevented them from cruising to an easy win.

The Devils increased their lead over Louisville going into the break, 31-18. Duke allowed seven points in the quarter, improving on defense as the game progressed. Oluchi Okanawa (Oh-LOO-CHEE Oh-CON-uh-Wa) led the Blue Devils scoring at the half with eight points and finished with 13. ACC Freshman of the Year Toby Fournier (FOR-NEE-A) scored six of her 10 points in the first half. She started the game well but struggled in the second half. Even though Duke had a comfortable lead before the second half, they were frustrated they couldn’t capitalize on the chances to put the game away early. In the first half, the Devils shot 43% from the free-throw line in seven attempts. Along with their poor free throw percentage, they turned the ball over five times in the quarter, totaling 10 in the first half. The Cardinals continued to struggle on the field, which prevented them from competing with their opponent. Mackenley Randolph, who had the game-sealing free throws in their last game against Clemson, finished with four points in the half and 13 overall. Although the half was nowhere near perfect for Duke, they did their job to put the game away in the second half.

In the closing half, the Devils improved from the free-throw line, making eight shots in 12 attempts (67%). Ashlon Jackson, who stood out in the Ball Dawgs Classic last November, scored eight of her 11 points in the third quarter of the win. After struggling in the first half, Reagan Richardson finished with 12 points to aid the Devils. While they cleaned up their turnovers and shot better from the charity stripe in the closing quarters, Duke struggled with committing fouls. Delaney Thomas and Fournier prevented themselves from fully impacting the game with four fouls each. They’ll need to be more disciplined in their next game against one of the top teams in the country if they want to play for an ACC Championship.

Faced with a tough task in the ACC semifinals, the Blue Devils are ready to take it head-on. As the season reaches the heart of March, the importance of closing out games helps teams like Duke prepare to face teams like their next opponent in Notre Dame.