DePaul University Athletics
DePaul University
1-0,0-0Big East
Evansville
0-1,0-0MVC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evansville | 23 | 10 | 17 | 15 | 65 |
| DePaul | 17 | 20 | 28 | 25 | 90 |
11/3/2026 8:47:00 PM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Four in double figures powers Blue Demons past Evansville 90-65
CHICAGO – After a slow start, DePaul women's basketball outscored Evansville 53-32 in the second half to pull away for a 90-65 victory over the Purple Aces in Tuesday's regular-season opener at Wintrust Arena.
Zoey Ward led the way with 20 points and four rebounds, one of four Blue Demons in double figures. First-year guard Mikaia Litza added 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range to go with six assists. Gina Davorija posted 13 points, a career-high seven assists and a career-high-tying three steals, and Louis Volker recorded her first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
DePaul controlled the glass, 39-25, and dominated the offensive boards, 16-6. Doyinsola Lijirin pulled down 10 boards of her own, six of them on the offensive end. The Blue Demons knocked down 13 3-pointers, assisted on 25 of their 29 made field goals and held a 19-6 edge in second-chance points.
Mireia Mustaros paced the Purple Aces with 15 points, three assists and three rebounds.
How It Happened
Evansville (0-1) opened the game with 10 unanswered points, forcing an early timeout from DePaul (1-0). Out of the break, Volker scored back-to-back buckets to cut the deficit to six. The Purple Aces stretched their lead to as many as 12 in the final minute, but Litza ended the quarter on a high note, hitting a three as time expired to make it 23-17 after 10 minutes.
DePaul's offense came alive in the second quarter, ignited by a 14-1 run over four minutes that gave the Blue Demons a 31-24 advantage with 6:15 remaining. Evansville climbed back within three, but Lijirin answered with a driving layup. The Purple Aces had the last word before the half, hitting a triple off a DePaul turnover to make it 37-33 at the break. Ward and Kate Clarke combined for 11 of DePaul's 20 points in the quarter.
Ward had her fingerprints all over the opening minutes of the third quarter, scoring nine points in under four minutes to push the lead to 51-39. Evansville got within single digits with just over three minutes left in the frame, but Lijirin responded with another driving layup to restore a double-digit cushion at 56-45. Davorija capped the quarter with DePaul's second buzzer-beater of the night, a three that sent the Blue Demons into the fourth up 65-50.
DePaul ran away with it in the fourth, outscoring Evansville 25-15 behind nine points from Litza. The freshman hit three triples in a 74-second span, forcing an Evansville timeout with the Purple Aces trailing 77-52. Nyah Lowery's second 3-pointer of the night gave DePaul its largest lead at 86-56 with 3:38 remaining. Seven different Blue Demons scored in the final quarter.
Game Notes
- DePaul improved to 41-12 all-time in season openers, including a 7-1 mark at Wintrust Arena.
- The Blue Demons scored 90 points for the first time since their season-opening win over Valparaiso to kick off the 2025-26 season.
- Mikaia Litza, Zoey Ward, Doyinsola Lijirin, Louis Volker, Nyah Lowery, Ofek Talker and Emily Bojan made their Blue Demon debuts.
- Ward eclipsed 800 career points.
- Ward notched her 37th career double-figure game and ninth career 20-point game.
- Lowery surpassed 400 career points with her first triple of the game.
- Volker recorded her first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
- Davorija tallied a career-high seven assists and matched her career high with three steals.
- Lijirin posted her 12th career double-digit rebounding game, including six offensive boards.
- Bojan notched her first collegiate points with a pair of free throws in the fourth quarter.
- DePaul's bench outscored Evansville's 30-17.
