Cochran's go-ahead basket lifts No. 4 Louisville over Miami
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) - Kianna Smith had 21 points and Olivia Cochran scored the go-ahead basket as No. 4 Louisville outlasted Miami 69-66 Tuesday night.
Cochran finished with 18 points, including her layup with 32 seconds remaining that gave Louisville (19-2, 9-1, Atlantic Coast Conference) a 67-66 advantage. Mykasa Robinson stole an inbounds pass and Smith's two free throws with 11 seconds left gave Louisville its final margin.
Kelsey Marshall's game-tying 3-point attempt as time expired bounced off the rim.
'œI thought we figured out a way to gut one out,'ť Cardinals coach Jeff Walz said. 'œIt's a tough loss for them there's no question about it but we figured out a way to make some plays towards the end the last six minutes.'ť
Miami (11-8, 4-5) went ahead 66-65 on Marshall's 3-pointer with 47 seconds left.
Ja'Leah Williams had 16 points and Destiny Harden finished with 13 for the Hurricanes, who fell short of upsetting nationally ranked Louisville for the second time in three seasons. Miami beat then No. 2 Louisville 79-73 Feb. 17, 2019.
'œIt shows we're a tough team,'ť Williams said. 'œLouisville beats teams by more. It gives us hope that we can stick with people.'ť
The Cardinals rallied from a nine-point deficit midway through the fourth period and took the lead 65-63 on Chelsie Hall's corner 3-pointer with 56 seconds remaining.
Smith shot 8-of-13 from the field and also had seven assists in a 39-minute outing.
After spotting the Hurricanes a three-point lead to end the third quarter, Louisville closed with 23 points the final period.
'œReally, really pleased how we finished this game tonight,'ť Walz said.
Karla Erjavec's 3-pointer with 6:13 remaining in the fourth quarter gave the Hurricanes their largest lead at 59-50.
'œObviously, it was a high-level basketball game,'ť Miami coach Katie Meier said. 'œPlayers were making plays, after plays, after plays both ends of the court. 'œAt a certain point you have to give Louisville a lot of credit. They executed down the stretch.'ť
Marshall's 3-pointer with time expiring tied it at 35-35 at halftime.
The game was rescheduled from Jan. 9 after members of the Cardinals roster entered COVID health and safety protocols.
BIG PICTURE
Louisville: another slow second half start plagued the Cardinals, who had six turnovers and shot 4-of-14 from the field in the third quarter. In Sunday's home win over Duke, the Cardinals' 18-point halftime lead was reduced to single digits before they extended it to the 12-point final margin.
Miami: the prospects of a top four league finish and securing a double-bye in the conference tournament next month became dimmer. Five of the Hurricanes' nine remaining conference games are on the road, including visits to No. 12 Georgia Tech, No. 20 Notre Dame and No. 24 North Carolina.
UP NEXT
Louisville: visits Clemson on Thursday.
Miami: hosts Syracuse on Thursday.