Women’s Basketball Falls To Louisville In ACC Tournament Semifinal

Saturday, March 7

Duluth, Ga.

2:30 p.m.

North Carolina

26-7,14-4ACC

#12 Louisville

27-6,15-3ACC

North Carolina

Louisville

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

Women’s Basketball Falls To Louisville In ACC Tournament Semifinal

March 7, 2026 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

DULUTH, Ga. – In a back and forth affair early on, No. 2 seeded North Carolina was unable to find its rhythm and complete a comeback against No. 3 seeded Louisville, coming up short 65-57.

In its second meeting of the season with the Cardinals, North Carolina (26-7, 14-5 ACC) could not overcome the defensive forces of Louisville (27-6, 16-3 ACC), falling to the Cardinals for the second time this season.

Leading the Tar Heels for the sixth time this season was Elina Aarnisalo with 17 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Following her was Lanie Grant and Nyla Brooks adding 11 and 13 points respectively.

North Carolina struggled to find an offensive rhythm throughout the contest, hitting multiple scoring droughts. Grant drained three shots from the three-point line, but struggled to convert late. The Louisville defense played strong forcing 15 turnovers, converting the miscues into 16 Cardinal points.

At the jump, North Carolina opened the game with several looks from behind the arc, but struggled to find the bottom of the net early. Both teams leaned on their defenses to force turnovers and battled physically in the lane. Indya Nivar sparked the offense with early success in the paint. Aarnisalo and Grant each connected from the three-point line midway through the first quarter to power the offense. Louisville responded in the final minute, knocking down two 3-pointers to end on a 6-0 run, giving the Cardinals a 16-10 advantage at the end of the frame.

Louisville's bench provided an early lift for the Cardinals, combining for 14 first-half points to assist in its hold over the Tar Heels. North Carolina's perimeter defense was on lock, limiting Louisville from connecting from beyond the arc. Offensively, the Tar Heels kept the attack balanced, with Brooks providing a spark off the bench by drawing contact and earning multiple trips to the free-throw line to keep Carolina within striking distance.The Tar Heel defense closed the quarter on a strong note, holding Louisville scoreless for the final two minutes of the period as the Tar Heels entered the break trailing 28-27.

North Carolina would go on to take the lead courtesy of a Nivar layup to start the quarter. The Tar Heels started to find a rhythm at the beginning of the third quarter making three straight field goals and pick up some momentum. Aarnisalso made physical plays shooting a perfect clip in the third from the field and reached the charity stripe multiple times.

At the other end, North Carolina struggled to get a stop which caused multiple lead changes. The Carolina offense then struggled to convert on offense, ending on a multi-minute scoring lull to give the Cardinals a 45-40 lead with 10 minutes remaining.

Louisville opened the final period with a three and a steal to extend its lead to 10 points . Aarnisalo hit a jumper to conclude the six minute scoring drought for the Tar Heels. Aarnisalo continued to fight, driving through the lane for another score.

The defense held Louisville to no field goals in the midst of the fourth quarter. Nivar reached the line to fit two free throws to inch North Carolina back into the contest. Louisville's 44.9% shooting percentage put the Cardinals en route to the 65-57 victory.

North Carolina now awaits its fate with the unveiling of the 2026 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament bracket next Sunday, March 15. The selection show will air on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET.