Taina Mair scored 16 points and No. 13 Duke pulled out a 65-63 victory against Notre Dame in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament semifinals Saturday at Duluth, Ga.
The Blue Devils, who also received 14 points from Toby Fournier, 10 points from Riley Nelson and nine points and 10 rebounds from Delaney Thomas, needed late-game defensive stops to hang on after trailing 49-46 going to the fourth quarter. Top-seeded Duke (23-8), bidding for a tournament repeat, will meet second-seeded Louisville in Sunday afternoon’s championship game.
Hannah Hidalgo poured in 24 points and Iyana Moore racked up 14 points for fifth-seeded Notre Dame (22-10), which was attempting to win for a third day in a row. The Irish overcame a 13-point deficit to lead going to the fourth quarter.
After Hidalgo’s 3-pointer with 1:10 left pulled Notre Dame within 64-63, the Irish didn’t score again. Nelson’s free throw at the 52-second mark was the final point before the Irish missed on three shots in the final 12 seconds, including Moore’s launch at the buzzer.
No. 12 Louisville 65, No. 16 North Carolina 57
Imari Berry poured in 22 points and the second-seeded Cardinals kept the Tar Heels in check most of the second half to advance to the title game.
Laura Ziegler added 13 points for Louisville (27-6), which meets top-seeded Duke in Sunday’s final. Berry made four 3-pointers as part of 9-of-14 shooting from the field. She also pulled in a game-high 10 rebounds.
Elina Aarnisalo’s 17 points led the third-seeded Tar Heels (26-7), who lost for only the second time in 15 games. Nyla Brooks had 13 points off the bench, Lanie Grant posted 11 points and Indya Nivar added 10 points, but North Carolina finished with its fourth-lowest point total of the season.
Louisville led 28-27 at halftime. Berry scored six consecutive Cardinals points when they stretched their lead to 58-48 with 2:17 to go.
–Field Level Media
