No. 7 Louisville Scores a Program-Record 119 Points, Opens With 44-Point First Quarter in Rout of Bellarmine

LOUISVILLE, Ky. Louisville women's basketball has been around for 52 years, and it has never had a night quite like Monday, Nov. 2. The Cardinals scored the first 23 points of their season, put up 44 in the first quarter and kept going until the scoreboard read 119.

No. 7 Louisville beat crosstown rival Bellarmine 119-47 at the KFC Yum! Center in its season opener. The 119 points are the most in program history, according to Louisville, and the Cardinals also set school records for points in a quarter, points in a half and 3-pointers in a half. Tajianna Roberts led seven players in double figures with 15 points, Imari Berry and Amiya Joyner each scored 14, and Zamareya Jones posted 11 points, nine assists and six steals.

Louisville moved to 1-0 and Bellarmine fell to 0-1. Here is the box score (opens in a new tab) and Louisville's recap (opens in a new tab).

A 23-0 start and a 44-point quarter

The game was effectively over almost as soon as it started. Louisville scored the first 23 points, and it built that lead less than midway through the first quarter, according to the Associated Press. Berry was the spark. Berry scored 10 points in the first quarter, seven of them during the opening run, according to Louisville.

By the end of the period the Cardinals led 44-9. The 44 points broke the program record for a quarter, which had been 40 against DePaul in 2020, according to the AP. Louisville shot 17 of 28 from the floor and 5 of 10 from 3 in the quarter, while Bellarmine made only two of its 11 field goal attempts.

The Knights' bigger problem was the ball. Bellarmine committed 13 of its 35 turnovers in the first quarter alone, according to the AP, and those giveaways fed a Louisville transition game that finished with an 18-2 edge in fast-break points.

Records fall before halftime

The second quarter kept the record book open. Bellarmine hit a 3, and Louisville answered by closing the half on a 20-3 run to take a 72-21 lead into the locker room, according to the school. The 72 points broke the program record for a half, which had been 63, set in a 111-33 win over this same Bellarmine program on Nov. 16, 2023.

Louisville also made 10 3-pointers in the first half, a program record for a half according to the school. The previous mark was nine, set against Syracuse on Feb. 11, 2012. Eleven different Cardinals scored before halftime.

Carys Baker led the second-quarter push with six points on perfect shooting. Baker, a second-team All-ACC selection last season at Virginia Tech according to the AP, finished with 13 points on 5 of 9 shooting, made 2 of 5 from 3 and added four assists in 18 minutes.

Jones runs the show

The most complete line of the night belonged to Jones, a former NC State guard. Jones scored 11 points on 4 of 8 shooting, grabbed five rebounds, handed out nine assists and collected six steals in 22 minutes, without a single turnover. According to the AP, the six steals were a career high and the nine assists tied a career high.

That kind of control matters on a team with this many scorers. Roberts and Berry, who both earned preseason All-ACC honors last month according to the AP, did their damage in limited minutes. Roberts made 7 of 12 shots for 15 points in 19 minutes and added four steals. Berry made 4 of 7 shots, including 3 of 6 from 3, and 3 of 4 free throws for 14 points in only 14 minutes.

Louisville turned the ball over just six times all night against 27 assists. When the guards take care of the ball like that and the defense is forcing 35 turnovers on the other end, the margin grows quickly.

Joyner's debut and a deep bench

Joyner, a fifth-year transfer from LSU, made a strong first impression. Joyner went 5 of 5 from the floor and 4 of 6 at the line for 14 points in 13 minutes in her Louisville debut, according to the AP. Ten of those points came after halftime.

Grace Mbugua, a sophomore, scored 10 points on 5 of 8 shooting with five rebounds and a block, and eight of those points came in the second half. Ariyana Cradle, a freshman, also scored 10, with six rebounds, five of them on the offensive glass, in 13 minutes.

The reserves were relentless. Louisville got 65 bench points, 37 of them in the second half, according to the school. Reagan Bender made 2 of 4 from 3 for eight points, Deniya Prawl had seven points and three blocks, and Rebekah Graves hit a 3. Twelve of the 13 Cardinals who played scored.

Starters Mackenly Randolph and Elif Istanbulluoglu played limited minutes. Istanbulluoglu scored nine points with five rebounds and three steals in 13 minutes, and Randolph had five points in 12 minutes.

Bellarmine never found footing

Bellarmine, coached by former Louisville star Monique Reed, had little chance once the first quarter got away. The Knights shot 16 of 53 from the floor, 30.2 percent, made 2 of 14 from 3 and finished with five assists.

Hana Abdel Aal and Leigha Acoff led Bellarmine with nine points apiece. Hana Abdel Aal made 3 of 6 shots and grabbed seven rebounds, and Acoff went 3 of 7 from the floor. Tacko Sy added eight points and five rebounds, Coumba Keita had five points and a team-high nine rebounds, and Kayce Hyman scored five points.

Turnovers were the story again. Hyman committed seven, Acoff and Triniti Ralston had six each, and Hana Abdel Aal had five. The Knights did make 13 of 17 free throws and grabbed 13 offensive rebounds, but the giveaways buried them.

The second half was more competitive by comparison. Bellarmine scored 26 points after the break, 12 in the third quarter and 14 in the fourth, while Louisville scored 47.

What it means for Louisville

The headline numbers are all Louisville. The Cardinals shot 54.1 percent from the floor, 46 of 85, made 12 of 32 from 3 and scored 53 points off turnovers, according to the school. They won the paint 66-22 and outrebounded Bellarmine 45-39.

The defense produced 23 steals, led by six from Jones, four from Roberts and three each from Berry and Istanbulluoglu. Bellarmine had only five steals and forced just six Louisville turnovers, a gap of 29 in the turnover column alone.

The free throw line was the one blemish. Louisville went 15 of 26 at the stripe, 57.7 percent, and that is the type of number that will matter more against the top half of the ACC than it did on Monday.

The bigger takeaway is the shape of the rotation. Coach Jeff Walz had seven players in double figures and nobody on the floor for more than 22 minutes. Roberts, Berry and Jones look like the core of the offense, while Joyner, Baker and Cradle give Louisville size, shooting and energy. That is the profile of a team built to play fast and wear opponents down.

An opener against a crosstown rival does not tell anyone much about March. What it does show is a team that can score in bunches when its defense is generating turnovers, and a roster with enough depth that the starters can rest early in games like this one.

Louisville stays home to host Stetson on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 8 p.m. ET on ACC Network. Bellarmine hosts Simmons, a Louisville-based NCCAA program, on Thursday.

Sources: ESPN box score, Louisville Athletics recap, Associated Press, Spectrum News.

Photo: Louisville Athletics.