LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Blue Devils sophomore forward Toby Fournier scored 15 points and came up with a huge block late for No. 17 Duke (17-6, 12-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), which started hot and then rallied to beat No. 6 Louisville (21-4, 11-1 ACC) 59-58.
What You Need To Know
No. 17 Duke beat No. 6 Louisville 59-58, snapping UofL’s 14-game win streak
Duke extended its win streak to 14
Junior forward Elif Istanbulluoglu had 13 points
UofL faces Syracuse Sunday, Feb. 8, at noon
The loss snapped the Cardinals’ 14-game win streak while Duke extended its win streak to 14.
The lone regular-season matchup of the ACC co-leaders was a defensive battle as the Blue Devils (17-6, 12-0) shot just 42.6% (23 of 54) and committed 19 turnovers while the Cardinals (21-4, 11-1) shot a season-worst 33.9% (21 of 62).
Louisville sophomore guard Imari Berry missed the second of two free throws with 1.1 seconds left. Duke redshirt sophomore guard Riley Nelson got the rebound.
The game started with blowout potential as the Blue Devils took a 16-1 lead and made their first seven shots while Louisville missed its first nine.
The Cardinals twice got the deficit to seven points in the second quarter and to three in the third. Louisville took its first lead 93 seconds into the fourth quarter on senior forward Laura Ziegler’s 3-pointer.
Duke, however, countered with an 11-1 run to go up 57-50 with 3:57 left. The Cardinals, who had missed nine straight after Ziegler’s go-ahead bucket, got a layup from junior forward Elif Istanbulluoglu to cut the deficit to 59-57 with 1:18 remaining.
The score was the same when Berry tried a 3-pointer from near the top of the key with 37 seconds left. Fournier blocked that shot, and Duke got the rebound.
Ziegler stole the ball in the closing seconds and fed Berry for a fast break. Nelson fouled Berry to prevent a tying layup.
Istanbulluoglu led Louisville, which saw its 14-game winning streak snapped, with 13. Ziegler and Reyna Scott added 11 each.
UofL travels to New York to face Syracuse Sunday, Feb. 8, at noon.