Women's basketball: Louisville's Durr, Evans earn ACC accolades

ACC notebook: Louisville team concept helps Durr, Evans earn ACC accolades

COLUMBUS, OH - MARCH 30: Asia Durr #25 of the Louisville Cardinals reacts after a missed shot to win the semifinal game of the 2018 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Final Four at Nationwide Arena on March 30, 2018 in Columbus, Ohio. Mississippi St. defeated Louisville 73-63 to advance to the national championship. (Photo by Justin Tafoya/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) /

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BOWLING GREEN, KY – NOVEMBER 6: Louisville Cardinals head coach Jeff Walz yells to his team to get their hands up during a college basketball game between the Louisville Cardinals and the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on November 6, 2018 at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, KY. (Photo by Steve Roberts/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Defense a team sport for Louisville

Durr’s honors and Evans’s award were the only ones Louisville received from either the Blue Ribbon Panel or the coaches. No player earned a spot on the league’s second teams, and despite the fact that Louisville led the ACC in scoring defense, no Cardinals player was named on the league’s All-Defense team.

Walz said that was a testament to the players as they have jelled as a team.

"“It’s not just one person who’s coming up with five or six steals a game,” he said. “We defend as a team. We help each other out. If I get beat, I know I have help.”"

That philosophy extends to the other side of the court as well.

Walz said he was particularly struck at how Durr responded to questions after her 47-point performance, which tied her own school record, against North Carolina State on Feb. 28. The first words from her mouth were to thank her teammates for crisp passes, getting her screens and finding her when she was open.

“It was nothing to do about her, and that’s what I think makes her as special as she is,” he said.

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