LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The North Carolina A&T women's basketball team played No. 22 Louisville Sunday afternoon at the KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals used a solid first quarter to establish a big lead against the Aggies as they defeated A&T 80-40. 

Senior guard Maleia Bracone was the only Aggie to score in double figures with 11 points on 5-for-9 shooting. Five Cardinals scored in double figures, led by Jayda Curry, who scored 12 points, grabbed five rebounds, dished five assists, and had six steals on 2-for-2 shooting from 3-point range off the bench. 

Bracone's 3-pointer 2 1/2 minutes into the game cut Louisville's lead to 9-7. An offensive rebound by Olivia Cochran led to a Cardinals layup by Nya Harris. Merisshah Russell followed with a 3-pointer to give the Cardinals a 14-7 lead. Bracone scored again for the Aggies on a floater in the paint before Louisville scored 10 straight points, capped by a Curry jump shot to give Louisville a 24-9 lead with 3:04 remaining in the first quarter. 

The Cardinals grew that lead to as many as 18 in the first quarter before Bracone scored a layup to send the Aggies into the second quarter trailing 29-13. The Cardinals shot 63.2 percent (12-for-19) in the first quarter, including 5-for-9 from 3-point range. 

Louisville took advantage of 31 A&T turnovers by scoring 43 points off those turnovers. The Cardinals also had 25 second-chance points thanks to a plus-22 rebounding margin. The Aggies will return home on Saturday to face Mercer at Corbett Sports Center starting at 2 p.m. Fans will be allowed to watch the game free on FloHoops.