No. 5 Louisville Hosts Virginia on Thursday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Following a week on the road, No. 5 Louisville women's basketball (18-1, 7-0) returns home to host Virginia (7-11, 2-5) on Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET.

The Cardinals are 7-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play for the first time since 2015-16. That season, they opened with wins in their first 10 ACC games and finished 15-1.

Louisville leads the ACC with 16.1 assists per game and ranks second with a 1.13 assist-to-turnover ratio. They have a 1.36 assist-to-turnover ratio in seven ACC games, which leads the league.

The Cardinals are shooting 77.3 percent from the free throw line, which leads the ACC and ranks 12th in the country. They are shooting 78.4 percent in ACC games, which ranks second.

Dana Evans was named ACC Player of the Week after averaging a team-high 24.5 points per game, while shooting 48 percent from the floor last week. She was 10-of-17 from 3-point range and a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line.

She scored 27 points at Boston College, which was just one point shy of career high, and tied her career-high with seven made 3-pointers (7-10). She led the team with 23 points, while adding six assists at North Carolina.

The junior from Gary, Ind., ranks second in the ACC with 19.1 points per game, while leading the league and ranking ninth in the country with 58 made 3-pointers. She is shooting 45.0 percent from beyond the arc, which leads the ACC and ranks 15th in the NCAA. She leads the league and ranks fifth in the country with a 92.1 free throw percentage.

She has scored in double figures in 18 of 19 games and her eight 20-plus point games rank second in the league. She has scored 20-plus points in three straight games.

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS

Virginia enters Thursday's contest with a 7-11 record, 2-5 in ACC play. They have played the toughest schedule in the country and are 0-5 against AP Top 25 teams.

Their two ACC wins came at home against Duke (W, 66-63) and on the road at Boston College (W, 69-52). In their last game, they led most of the way before falling at home to Virginia Tech (L, 69-61).

The Cavaliers are averaging 59.1 points per game, which ranks last in the league, and their 62.6 point per game allowed ranks eighth. They rank last in the league in blocks (2.1 bpg) and rebounds (35.5 rpg), and second-to-last in rebound margin (-0.8) and 3-point field goals made per game (4.3 pg).

Senior Jocelyn Willoughby leads the ACC and ranks 24th in the country with 19.6 points per game. She also ranks first in the league with 37.0 minutes per game and 98 made free throws. She ranks second in the league with an 88.3 free throw percentage. Senior Dominique Toussaint is the only other Cavalier averaging double figures with 10.1 points per game.

Series History - UofL is 9-2 all-time against Virginia and 5-0 at the KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals are 9-1 since joining the ACC and have won eight straight. Last season, Louisville won 91-43 at the KFC Yum! Center on Jan. 17 and 71-49 at Virginia on Feb. 21.

The Last Meeting (Feb. 21, 2019) - Dana Evans scored 13 points and No. 4 Louisville used a 16-0 run spanning halftime to take command and beat Virginia 71-49. Asia Durr added 12 points and Sam Fuehring 11 for the Cardinals, who bounced back from a loss to No. 14 Miami. Jocelyn Willoughby had 16 points and 13 rebounds to lead Virginia and the Cavaliers led 28-25 at halftime, but the Cardinals scored the first 12 points after halftime to open a 37-28 lead. They wound up outscoring the Cavaliers 46-21 in the second half.

GAME FACTS
Date: Thursday, Jan. 23
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Site: KFC Yum! Center | Louisville, Ky.
TV: RSN, Tom Werme, play-by-play, Kelley Deyo, analyst
Radio: 790 AM (WKRD), Nick Curran, play-by-play; Adrienne Johnson, analyst
Last Meeting: W, 71-49 (Feb. 21, 2019 at Virginia)
Series History: 9-2 (5-0 Home, 4-2 Away, 0-0 Neutral)
UofL National Ranking: 5th Associated Press, 3rd USA Today
Promotions: 90's Night, Thirsty Thursday
Next Game: Sunday, Jan. 26 vs. Pitt

For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, follow the team's Twitter account at @UofLWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/UofLWBB.

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Asia Durr

Dana Evans

Sam Fuehring

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