Final Four bound: Louisville beats Michigan in Elite Eight of women's NCAA Tournament

WICHITA, Kansas — Louisville is Final Four bound. 

The Cardinals, the top seed in the Wichita region, defeated Michigan 62-50 on Monday to advance to their first Final Four since 2018. It's the fourth time Louisville has been to the Final Four of the women's NCAA Tournam. 

The Cardinals (29-4) were led by standout guard Hailey Van Lith, who had 20 points, her fifth 20-point game in six games. She's the first Cardinal to score 20 or more points in four straight NCAA Tournament games, according to ESPN Stats & Info. She also ties Angel McCoughtry (2009) for most 20-point games in a single tournament.

Emily Engstler had just five points, 16 rebounds and six steals. 

Louisville was sparked by a clutch performance from post Olivia Cochran in the final minutes. She had nine points in the game, with six of them coming in the final quarter. 

Louisville will play No. 1 overall seed South Carolina (33-2) in Friday night's Final Four game, with the time still to be announced. 

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Here are three takeaways from the game:

Olivia Cochran comes up clutch

Cochran struggled much of the game with foul trouble, but came through in a crucial time for Louisville. 

Up by just two points with less than three minutes left, Cochran scored three straight baskets, drew a charge and got another stop on Michigan's Naz Hillmon, who finished with a team-high 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Cochran came up big when Louisville need her the most. She finished with nine points and four rebounds in 20 minutes of action.

Chelsie Hall has game of her career

Hall has never been to an NCAA Tournament, but she came through big in the first half. She had 13 points by intermission and finished the night with 15 points, a season-high for the Vanderbilt transfer. 

Hall also had four steals in the game. 

Cards defense wins out despite foul trouble

The fouls piled up for Louisville, but the Cardinals defense held out. 

Louisville forced 22 turnovers and scored 24 points off them.

The Cardinals committed 17 fouls but held the Wolverines to 34.8% shooting (16-of-46) from the field and 21.4% from 3-point range (3-of-14).