No. 2 Cardinals Battle Past No. 3 North Carolina, 65-57

Saturday, March 7

Duluth, Ga. (Gas South Arena)

2:30 PM

University of Louisville

27-6,15-3ACC

No. 3 North Carolina

26-7,14-4ACC

North Carolina

Louisville

No. 2 Cardinals Battle Past No. 3 North Carolina, 65-57

March 07, 2026 | Women's Basketball

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Louisville advances to the ACC Championship game for the fifth time in program history

By: Matt Paras

DULUTH, Ga. — The No. 2 seed Louisville women's basketball team (27-6, 15-3 ACC) battled and came away with a 65-57 win over No. 3 North Carolina (26-7, 14-4 ACC) at the Ally ACC Championship Saturday afternoon at Gas South Arena. With the win, Louisville advances to the ACC Championship for the fifth time in program history and the first time since 2022-23.

Imari Berry had another standout game against a top opponent as she had a game-high 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting with 10 rebounds and three assists. It was her second double-double of the season and the third-straight game a Louisville player has a double-double. Laura Ziegler had 13 points on 4-for-7 shooting with three rebounds. Elif Istanbulluoglu led the team with four assists to go with 11 points and six rebounds. Mackenly Randolph was just shy of double figures with nine points with three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

It was a slow start for both teams in the first quarter as they were both playing their second game in less than 24 hours. It was not a slow start for Berry, who was scorching from the field in the first quarter. She was a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc and she scored the last six points for the Cards as they finished the quarter on a 6-0 run. After the first 10 minutes, Louisville had a 16-10 lead.

The second quarter was a tougher shooting quarter for the Cards, as they were just 5-for-15 from the field. They limited the Tar Heels to just 5-for-14 shooting but the Heels got five points at the free throw line. Heading into the half, Louisville had a 28-27 advantage.

North Carolina took the lead in the third for the first time since early in the first quarter. The Cardinals began to fight back in the frame as they started to cause havoc defensively. Louisville turned the Tar Heels over six times in the quarter and they only had six turnovers in the entire first half. Berry continued to carry the Cards offensively with five points and her fourth three of the game. Heading into the final quarter, Louisville led 45-40.

After hitting her first three of the game late in the third, Ziegler connected on her second three to start the fourth. Louisville scored the first five points in the quarter to extend the lead to double digits for the first time in the game. The Cardinals went on a dry spell and didn't score for almost three minutes until Berry ended the drought with another jumper. The Tar Heels continued to try and chip away at the lead but the Cardinals defense held on to clinch the trip to the championship game.

The top 2 seeds will square off in the ACC Championship on Sunday as the No. 2 seed Cardinals will face the No. 1 seed Duke Blue Devils. It is the first time since the 2020-21 season that the top two seeds square off in the championship game. The Cardinals and Blue Devils will begin at 1 p.m. ET and broadcast on ESPN.