LOUISVILLE, Ky. — More than an hour before the opening tip between the Terrapins women’s basketball team and Louisville last night, police closed off a section of West Washington Street just outside the KFC Yum! Center. Fans in Louisville jerseys and T-shirts flooded the sidewalks, while the team’s cheerleaders and pep band performed on the street.

When the arena doors opened, Cardinals fans filed to their seats and created the type of lively environment the Terps have struggled in during the season.

When the No. 4-seed Terps beat No. 3-seed Louisville, 76-73, on the Cardinals’ home court in an Elite Eight matchup last night, though, players celebrated as the arena went silent. The Terps clinched their spot in the Final Four in Nashville, Tenn., and ended Louisville’s season.

“Just a phenomenal environment,” coach Brenda Frese said. “I know the fans probably didn’t enjoy the outcome, but you can’t ask for a better game when you talk about the fans and how many were here.”

Forward Alyssa Thomas had 22 points and 13 rebounds, and guard Lexie Brown added 20 points for the Terps, while Louisville guard Shoni Schimmel scored a game-high 31 points, but the senior star missed a potential game-tying three-point shot with one second left.

“I’m pretty sure that ball took 25 minutes to go through the air,” guard Katie Rutan said. “But then just seeing it bounce out and then the buzzer hit, I don’t have words. My whole life went blank right there.”

Four of the Terps’ six losses this season — including their lopsided defeat at Duke in February — have come on the road or on a neutral court, and they had to play before an announced 14,002 at Louisville’s home court to keep their postseason alive.

“I just think we got a renewed focus,” Brown said. “We’ve really come together as a team these past couple of weeks.”

In the hostile environment, the Terps (28-6) got off to a fast start. Rutan sank two three-point field goals in less than four minutes to build an early 8-2 lead. Schimmel responded with two 3-pointers of her own, leading Louisville (33-5) on an 11-2 run that gave the team a 15-11 lead.

The seesawing continued in the first half, and both teams prevented each other from establishing a half-court offense. There were four steals between both teams in a 42-second stretch, but the Cardinals took advantage of the game’s back-and-forth nature, closing their deficit to 22-21 with 7:01 remaining in the half.

The Terps’ turnovers proved costly during the final moments of the first half. Louisville had four steals in the final two minutes and scored three unanswered baskets. Schimmel finished a layup after intercepting a pass from center Alicia DeVaughn. Cardinals fans erupted, and the play gave Louisville a 36-32 lead entering halftime.

“I think one of the biggest adjustments that we made as staff was at halftime when we settled our team down,” Frese said. “Every timeout, we went into talking about ball reversals and being patient.”

Louisville came out strong in the second half and built a 41-34 lead. But the Terps went on a 12-0 run and took a 54-45 lead with 10:34 remaining.

With 5:19 left, Schimmel missed an uncontested layup that would’ve made it a five-point game, and Thomas grabbed the rebound and drew a foul on the other end. After she converted two free throws, the Terps were up 58-49. They held a commanding lead, until the Cardinals went on a late run to come within two points of tying the game in its waning moments.

Schimmel hit a trio of desperation 3-pointers in the final 30 seconds, but the Terps made 14 of 16 free throws in the final 2:39 to clinch the Final Four berth. The Terps will face undefeated Notre Dame on Sunday for a chance to advance to the national championship. Though they lost to the Fighting Irish earlier in the season, the Terps have stayed composed through pressure situations this postseason.

Without that poise in a raucous atmosphere, the Terps might not have been ascending a ladder to cut down the net in the minutes after the final buzzer sounded.

“We really got them to buy in to welcoming the environment, embracing it,” Frese said. “If this was three months ago, we wouldn’t have been prepared or have been in this place, but just to see this team grow — the trust level, the confidence level — was really special to be able to watch.”

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