Louisville Women's Basketball Falls to Notre Dame on Senior Night

Cards struggle with turnovers and zone defense in 65-62 loss on home court

Published on Mar. 2, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

The Louisville women's basketball team fell to Notre Dame 65-62 on Senior Night at the Yum Center. The Cardinals had a strong start but were undone by a poor second quarter performance and struggled to break through the Irish's zone defense all game, committing more turnovers than made field goals at one point. Coach Jeff Walz was critical of his team's execution, saying they need to do a better job of passing the ball and moving without it against zone defenses.

Why it matters

This loss is a disappointing end to the regular season for Louisville, who had hoped to build momentum heading into the postseason by protecting their home court on Senior Night. The Cardinals will now enter the ACC tournament looking to regain their form after dropping three of their last four games.

The details

Louisville jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first quarter, but Notre Dame responded by outscoring the Cardinals 23-14 in the second period to take a 10-point halftime advantage. Despite holding the Irish to 15 points or fewer in three of the four quarters, Louisville struggled mightily with turnovers and was unable to consistently score against Notre Dame's zone defense. At one point, the Cardinals had more turnovers than made field goals.

  • The game was played on Senior Night at the Yum Center in Louisville, Kentucky.
  • Louisville will next play in the ACC tournament on Friday at 5 PM.

The players

Mackenly Randolph

The Louisville forward had a strong game, scoring 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Elif Instanbulluoglu

The Louisville guard sparked a run for the Cardinals, finishing with 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Imari Berry

The Louisville guard scored 12 points and added 3 rebounds and 4 assists in the loss.

Jeff Walz

The Louisville head coach was critical of his team's execution, saying they need to improve their ball movement and cutting against zone defenses.

Notre Dame

The Fighting Irish were able to overcome Louisville's early lead by outscoring the Cardinals 23-14 in the second quarter.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“I thought we came out well. Three of the four quarters I thought we guarded great but the problem is one quarter again…. we held them to 7, 14, and 15 [points in 3 quarters] and that's pretty damn good. But the problem is we couldn't score the basketball because we were turning it over way too much.”

— Jeff Walz, Head Coach (cardchronicle.com)

“We've got a zone offense that's very effective if we pass the basketball. Unfortunately our past three games we have just not passed it well. We're holding it. We're allowing them to match up with us. You try to teach them stop staring at the ball and look at the person closest to you and the area you need to cut to. We're just not doing that. We're literally just standing and waiting to catch the ball…. We've got to get more cutting.”

— Jeff Walz, Head Coach (cardchronicle.com)

What’s next

The Louisville women's basketball team will next play in the ACC tournament on Friday at 5 PM.

The takeaway

This loss highlights the need for Louisville to improve its execution against zone defenses and cut down on turnovers as they enter the postseason. The Cardinals will look to regain their form in the ACC tournament and make a deep run in the NCAA tournament.