No. 20 Cardinals Fall to No. 1 Huskies, 79-66

Tuesday, November 4

Annapolis, Md. (US Naval Academy)

5:30 PM

University of Louisville

0-1,0-0ACC

#1 UConn

1-0,0-0Big East

UConn

Louisville

Photo by: Taris Smith | Louisville Athletics

November 04, 2025 | Women's Basketball

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Laura Ziegler tallied 16 points and 18 rebounds in her Louisville debut

By: Matt Paras

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The 20th-ranked Louisville women's basketball team battled back in the second half but ultimately dropped its season opener to No. 1 UConn 79-66 in the Peraton Armed Forces Classic Tuesday night at Alumni Hall in Annapolis, Maryland.

Louisville trailed by as many as 28 points in the second half but trimmed the lead all the way down to 10 in the final minutes. The Cardinals ended up outsourcing the Huskies 47-44 over the final three quarters of the game. Louisville only had 12 turnovers on the night and just eight over the final three quarters of the game.

Laura Ziegler shined in her Louisville debut as she led the Cards with 16 points and a career-best 18 rebounds for her 42nd career double double. The 18 rebounds were the most in a game by a Louisville player since Myisha Hines-Allen tallied 18 against Pitt on January 18, 2018. Ziegler was 3-for-3 from behind the arc in the fourth quarter and 4-for-8 from three for the game.

Skylar Jones and Reyna Scott also played well in their Louisville debuts. Jones was in double figures with 13 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the floor. Scott tallied nine points, was a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line and added four rebounds and three assists for the Cards. Imari Berry tallied double figures with 13 points on 6-for-12 shooting.

The Cardinals largest deficit was 28 halfway through the third quarter. Louisville responded with a 13-6 run to finish the quarter. After UConn made three of the first four shots of the fourth, the Cardinals ripped off a 20-6 run, including a 10-0 spurt, to bring the deficit down to 10 at 73-63 with 2:22 remaining. That would be the closest the Cardinals got as UConn made a few shots down the stretch to seal the win.

The Cardinals return to campus and prepare for the home opener, set for Sunday, November 9. Louisville welcomes Northern Kentucky to the KFC Yum! Center to open the home slate of games for the season. The Cardinals and Norse will square off at 2 p.m. ET and it will be streamed on the ACC Network Extra.