TicketsJan. 2, 2010
CINCINNATI - Kahla Roudebush (Noblesville, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) scored 17 points but the University of Cincinnati women's basketball team dropped its BIG EAST Conference opener, 63-49, against Louisville on Saturday (Jan. 2) afternoon in Fifth Third Arena.
Monique Reid scored a career-high 26 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to pace the Cardinals (9-5, 1-0), who were the 2009 national runners-up.
The Bearcats (7-6, 0-1 BIG EAST) had their three-game winning streak snapped and fell to the Cardinals for the 10th time in the last 11 contests.
Roudebush scored 12 of her 17 in the first half, but the Cardinals used a 20-7 run midway through the half to take a 33-19 lead. The lead stretched to as much as 17 with 2:27 to play before a 9-2 Bearcats run to end the half. UC went to the locker room down 10, 39-29.
Reid posted a double-double in the first half with 19 points and 10 rebounds. The Cardinals shot 53.3 percent from the field while UC converted on just 28.6 percent shooting.
Louisville scored the first nine points of the second half to take a 48-29 lead after a three-point play by Reid with 14:13 remaining in the game. The Cards held UC scoreless until Shareese Ulis (Toledo, Ohio/Trinity Valley C.C.) hit a free throw at the 12:05 mark.
A 7-2 Cincinnati run cut the lead to 57-47 after a steal and layup from Carla Jacobs (Cleveland, Ohio/Regina) at the 4:40 mark. A jumper from Becky Burke with the shot clock expiring gave Louisville a 61-49 lead with just 2:58 to play and a Nikki Burton basket at the 1:20 mark closed out the scoring.
Jacobs scored 16 points, knocking down 9-of-10 from the free throw line, and grabbed seven rebounds for UC. Michelle Jones (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mt. Notre Dame) scored seven points and grabbed seven boards while playing the entire 40 minutes.
The Bearcats turned the ball over 23 times, but forced 21 Louisville turnovers.
UC will travel to Storrs, Conn., for a date with the No. 1/1 Connecticut Huskies on Thursday, Jan. 7. The game will pit first-year head coach Jamelle Elliott against her former coach and boss, Geno Auriemma. Elliott played for the Huskies for four seasons, winning a national championship in 1995, and then moved in to an assistant coach role for the past 12 seasons, helping UConn to five more national titles during that span.