Wednesday, December 17
LOUISVILLE, KY
6 PM
University of Louisville
vs
Eastern Kentucky
Photo by: Taris Smith | Louisville Athletics
No. 16/17 Louisville Hosts Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday
December 16, 2025 | Women's Basketball
Louisville is 7-2 at home during non-conference play
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Coming off a big ACC road win, the No. 16/17 Louisville women's basketball team (10-3, 2-0 ACC) returns to the KFC Yum! Center for one final home game before the Christmas break. The Cardinals are set to host in-state foe Eastern Kentucky (7-3) on Wednesday, December 17. The Cards and Colonels will square off at 6 p.m. ET and it will be broadcast on the ACC Network.
Louisville is coming off the heels of its 76-66 overtime win on the road against No. 12/11 North Carolina this past Sunday. The Cardinals improved to 2-0 in the ACC this season with both of those wins coming on the road. The Cardinals have 153 ACC wins since they joined the league in 2014-15, that is the most wins by any team during that span. The Cards are 2-0 in road games this season overall after going 10-4 in road games last season.
Laura Ziegler had a big week and was named ACC Co-Player of the Week after her performances against Ball State and the 12th-ranked Tar Heels. She averaged 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds over the two wins, both team-best marks. In the win over North Carolina, she had a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds and zero turnovers over 42 minutes played. Ziegler leads the team this season with 7.4 rebounds per game and is second on the squad with 11.7 points per game.
Elif Istanbulluoglu continues to play well this season as she has made her way into the starting lineup. She set a career high with 16 points against the Tar Heels and played a career-best 39 minutes. Istanbulluoglu has started in all 13 games this season and scored in double figures five times this year.
Imari Berry came up big against the Tar Heels as she scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half and overtime. She was one of four players to score in double figures and added a season-best seven rebounds. Berry has averaged 11.2 points to go with 4.7 rebounds per game over the last six contests.
PROMOTIONS
Teddy Bear Toss | The annual Ardi's Bears Teddy Bear Toss is back. Bring any stuffed animal and hold it in your seats until invited to throw it onto the court at halftime.
Toy Drive | Fans are asked to bring new toys for donation to local children in need. Collection bins will be placed at each arena entrance for drop off.
Winter Weather Clothing Drive | In partnership with the KFC Yum! Center, the Cards are hosting a clothing drive for donation to local community members in need during the winter months.
Date: Wednesday, December 17
Time: 6 p.m. ET
Site: Louisville, Ky. | KFC Yum! Center (22,090)
TV: ACCN (Dorian Craft, play-by-play; Layshia Clarendon analyst)
Radio: 93.9-FM The Ville (Nick Curran, play-by-play; Cortnee Walton, analyst)
Series History: Louisville leads 21-8 (13-2 home, 6-5 away, 2-1 neutral)
Last Meeting: W, 82-38 (Dec. 16, 2021 at KFC Yum! Center)
ABOUT THE COLONELS
Eastern Kentucky comes into Wednesday's matchup with a 7-3 overall record on the season. The Colonels have played one common opponent of the Cardinals so far this season, as they defeated Morehead State 73-60 back on November 26. Their previous two games have come against teams that have Louisville ties as they dropped a road contest to Arizona, coached by Becky Burke. In their most recent game, they fell in a neutral site game to Marshall where Mykasa (Robinson) Lucas is an assistant coach on the staff. EKU is coming off a 2024-25 campaign where they went 21-12 overall and were 10-8 in ASUN play. They fell in the ASUN semifinals to top seed Florida Gulf Coast. This season, EKU was selected fifth in the preseason coaches poll and Liz Freihofer was unanimously selected to the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
Series History - This will be the 30th meeting all-time between the two schools as the series dates back to Louisville's inaugural season in 1975-76. The Cardinals hold a 21-8 all-time series advantage and they have won seven-straight games against the Colonels dating back to the 1990-91 season. The Cardinals are 13-2 in games played against EKU in Louisville and head coach Jeff Walz is 4-0 all-time against the Colonels. This the first meeting between the two teams since the 2021-22 season when the Cardinals advanced to their fourth final four in program history.
Last Meeting (Dec. 16, 2021) - Kianna Smith made five 3-pointers for a career-high 22 points and No. 4 Louisville shot 51% to cruise past Eastern Kentucky 82-38 on Thursday night for its ninth consecutive victory. The Cardinals (9-1) showed no letdown from Sunday's tense win over No. 19 Kentucky, running off 11 unanswered points for a 13-3 lead midway through the first quarter that steadily grew behind hot shooting. Their bench helped spark 11-of-16 shooting in the second for a 51-28 halftime cushion and the lead reached 73-33 early in the fourth. Smith made 8 of 11 shots including 5 of 7 from long range to top her previous high of 21 points, set twice last season. Emily Engstler shot 5 of 10 for 11 points, while adding 10 rebounds and six steals for her third double-double of the season and a near triple-double.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Instagram account at @LouisvilleWBB, X account at @LouisvilleWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/louisvillewbb.
Louisville is coming off the heels of its 76-66 overtime win on the road against No. 12/11 North Carolina this past Sunday. The Cardinals improved to 2-0 in the ACC this season with both of those wins coming on the road. The Cardinals have 153 ACC wins since they joined the league in 2014-15, that is the most wins by any team during that span. The Cards are 2-0 in road games this season overall after going 10-4 in road games last season.
Laura Ziegler had a big week and was named ACC Co-Player of the Week after her performances against Ball State and the 12th-ranked Tar Heels. She averaged 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds over the two wins, both team-best marks. In the win over North Carolina, she had a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds and zero turnovers over 42 minutes played. Ziegler leads the team this season with 7.4 rebounds per game and is second on the squad with 11.7 points per game.
Elif Istanbulluoglu continues to play well this season as she has made her way into the starting lineup. She set a career high with 16 points against the Tar Heels and played a career-best 39 minutes. Istanbulluoglu has started in all 13 games this season and scored in double figures five times this year.
Imari Berry came up big against the Tar Heels as she scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half and overtime. She was one of four players to score in double figures and added a season-best seven rebounds. Berry has averaged 11.2 points to go with 4.7 rebounds per game over the last six contests.
PROMOTIONS
Teddy Bear Toss | The annual Ardi's Bears Teddy Bear Toss is back. Bring any stuffed animal and hold it in your seats until invited to throw it onto the court at halftime.
Toy Drive | Fans are asked to bring new toys for donation to local children in need. Collection bins will be placed at each arena entrance for drop off.
Winter Weather Clothing Drive | In partnership with the KFC Yum! Center, the Cards are hosting a clothing drive for donation to local community members in need during the winter months.
Date: Wednesday, December 17
Time: 6 p.m. ET
Site: Louisville, Ky. | KFC Yum! Center (22,090)
TV: ACCN (Dorian Craft, play-by-play; Layshia Clarendon analyst)
Radio: 93.9-FM The Ville (Nick Curran, play-by-play; Cortnee Walton, analyst)
Series History: Louisville leads 21-8 (13-2 home, 6-5 away, 2-1 neutral)
Last Meeting: W, 82-38 (Dec. 16, 2021 at KFC Yum! Center)
ABOUT THE COLONELS
Eastern Kentucky comes into Wednesday's matchup with a 7-3 overall record on the season. The Colonels have played one common opponent of the Cardinals so far this season, as they defeated Morehead State 73-60 back on November 26. Their previous two games have come against teams that have Louisville ties as they dropped a road contest to Arizona, coached by Becky Burke. In their most recent game, they fell in a neutral site game to Marshall where Mykasa (Robinson) Lucas is an assistant coach on the staff. EKU is coming off a 2024-25 campaign where they went 21-12 overall and were 10-8 in ASUN play. They fell in the ASUN semifinals to top seed Florida Gulf Coast. This season, EKU was selected fifth in the preseason coaches poll and Liz Freihofer was unanimously selected to the Preseason All-ASUN Team.
Series History - This will be the 30th meeting all-time between the two schools as the series dates back to Louisville's inaugural season in 1975-76. The Cardinals hold a 21-8 all-time series advantage and they have won seven-straight games against the Colonels dating back to the 1990-91 season. The Cardinals are 13-2 in games played against EKU in Louisville and head coach Jeff Walz is 4-0 all-time against the Colonels. This the first meeting between the two teams since the 2021-22 season when the Cardinals advanced to their fourth final four in program history.
Last Meeting (Dec. 16, 2021) - Kianna Smith made five 3-pointers for a career-high 22 points and No. 4 Louisville shot 51% to cruise past Eastern Kentucky 82-38 on Thursday night for its ninth consecutive victory. The Cardinals (9-1) showed no letdown from Sunday's tense win over No. 19 Kentucky, running off 11 unanswered points for a 13-3 lead midway through the first quarter that steadily grew behind hot shooting. Their bench helped spark 11-of-16 shooting in the second for a 51-28 halftime cushion and the lead reached 73-33 early in the fourth. Smith made 8 of 11 shots including 5 of 7 from long range to top her previous high of 21 points, set twice last season. Emily Engstler shot 5 of 10 for 11 points, while adding 10 rebounds and six steals for her third double-double of the season and a near triple-double.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on Louisville women's basketball, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's Instagram account at @LouisvilleWBB, X account at @LouisvilleWBB or on Facebook at facebook.com/louisvillewbb.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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/ Women's Basketball
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