By R.L. Bynum
UNC senior guard Deja Kelly was on her game, and so was the USA as the Americans rebounded from a loss the day before with a resounding victory.
Kelly collected 10 points and a team-high seven assists and was a team-high +45 as the United States rolled to a 106–44 victory over Cuba at Domo de la Feria in León, Mexico, in its final pool play game at the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup.
Texas A&M’s Janiah Barker and Kelly had back-to-back 3-pointers to erase an 8–7 deficit and Tennessee’s Jewel Spear, a former Wake Forest star, added another during a 14–3 run that put the U.S. up 21-11. The U.S. extended that lead to 27–14 by the end of the first quarter.
The U.S. (3–1), which lost Tuesday 67–54 to Brazil, finished in second place in Group A, and will play Colombia in Friday’s quarterfinals at 2:10 p.m. ET.
The top-ranked Americans took control with a 37–2 first-half run as they continue pursuit of a third consecutive AmeriCup gold medal and a record-tying fifth overall.
“I thought our team responded great, and everyone came in ready to play and ready to execute better,” U.S. coach Kamie Ethridge said. “We competed on the boards; we were better defensively. This is a good bounce-back game, and it gives us some momentum going forward.”
UCLA’s Lauren Betts (17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks) and LSU’s Angel Reese (12 points and 14 rebounds) each put up double doubles. Tennessee’s Rickea Jackson contributed 16 points and six rebounds, Barker added 13 points and Columbia’s Abbey Hsu 11 points.
For the second consecutive game, Kelly came off the bench. In 19½ minutes, she was 4 of 7 from the floor, 1 of 2 from 3-point range and 1 of 2 from the free-throw line.
“I’m just super-proud of how we came together,” said Betts, the former No. 1 recruit in the country who has come off the bench in three of the four games. “Today’s a big bounce back from that last [Brazil] game. I thought we brought a lot of energy today and I think that we executed really well on offense and I’m just really proud of how we came together. Played really good team ball.”
The Americans were 9 of 23 from 3-point range with tournament highs for attempts and 3-pointers.
The USA went from just four assists and 21 turnovers against Brazil to piling up six assists in the first quarter and finishing with 25.
“This is a step in the right direction,” Ethridge said. “I think the mentality of our team and the fight and the spirit. We were really determined today and I don’t think we were leading up to this. So sometimes a loss is good and we just have to hope that that loss has kind of changed our mentality and made us a better team.”
The United States made it a rout when it went on an 11–0 run, then a 26–0 run after a Cuba basket.
The USA led 60–18 at halftime.
The Americans shot 46.3% from the floor and owned the boards 75–35. Both the shooting percentage and the number of rebounds were tournament highs. Cuba (2–2) shot a tournament-low 24.3% (17-of-70), its worst performance in four games.
| Date | Day/month | Score | Opponent/event (current rank) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November | ||||
| 8 | Wednesday | W, 102–49 | vs. Gardner-Webb | 1–0 |
| 12 | Sunday | W, 74–70 | vs. Davidson | 2–0 |
| 15 | Wednesday | W, 62–32 | vs. Hampton | 3–0 |
| 18 | Saturday | W, 68–39 | vs. Elon | 4–0 |
| Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla. | ||||
| 24 | Friday | W, 54–51 | Vermont | 5–0 |
| 25 | Saturday | L, 63–56 | No. 15 Kansas State | 5–1 |
| 26 | Sunday | L, 65–64 | Florida Gulf Coast | 5–2 |
| ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge | ||||
| 30 | Thursday | L, 65–58 | vs. No. 1 South Carolina | 5–3 |
| December | ||||
| 6 | Wednesday | W, 81–66 | vs. UNC Greensboro | 6–3 |
| Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase in Uncasville, Conn. | ||||
| 10 | Sunday | L, 76–64 | No. 10 Connecticut | 6–4 |
| ——————— | ||||
| 15 | Friday | W, 96–36 | vs. Western Carolina | 7–4 |
| Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte | ||||
| 19 | Tuesday | W, 61–52 | No. 18 Oklahoma | 8–4 |
| ACC season | ||||
| 31 | Sunday | W, 82–76 | vs. Clemson | 9–4, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 4 | Thursday | W, 75–51 | vs. No. 22 Syracuse | 10–4, 2–0 ACC |
| 7 | Sunday | W, 61–57 | at No. 9 Notre Dame | 11–4, 3–0 ACC |
| 11 | Thursday | L, 70–62 | at Florida State | 11–5, 3–1 ACC |
| 14 | Sunday | W, 81–68 | vs. Virginia | 12–5, 4–1 ACC |
| 18 | Thursday | W, 73–68 | at Georgia Tech | 13–5, 5–1 ACC |
| 21 | Sunday | W, 79–68 | vs. No. 23 Louisville | 14–5, 6–1 ACC |
| 25 | Thursday | W, 66–61 | vs. Miami | 15–5, 7–1 ACC |
| 28 | Sunday | L, 81–66 | at Virginia | 15–6, 7–2 ACC |
| February | ||||
| 1 | Thursday | L, 63–59 | at No. 11 N.C. State | 15–7, 7–3 ACC |
| 4 | Sunday | L, 70–61, OT | vs. No. 13 Virginia Tech | 15–8, 7–4 ACC |
| 11 | Sunday | L, 68–60, OT | at Duke | 15–9, 7–5 ACC |
| 15 | Thursday | W, 75–62 | vs. Pittsburgh | 16–9, 8–5 ACC |
| 18 | Sunday | W, 58–50 | at Wake Forest | 17–9, 9–5 ACC |
| 22 | Thursday | W, 80–70 | vs. No. 11 N.C. State | 18–9, 10–5 ACC |
| 25 | Sunday | L, 74–62 | at No. 13 Virginia Tech | 18–10, 10–6 ACC |
| 29 | Thursday | L, 78–74 | at Boston College | 18–11, 10–7 ACC |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | W, 63–59 | vs. Duke | 19–11, 11–7 ACC |
| ACC tournament Greensboro Coliseum | ||||
| 7 | Thursday | L, 60–59 | Second round: vs. Miami | 19–12 |
| NCAA tournament Columbia, S.C. | ||||
| 22 | Friday | W, 59–56 | First round: Michigan State | 20–12 |
| 24 | Sunday | L, 88–41 | Second round: No. 1 South Carolina | 20–13 |
Potential UNC 2024–25 roster
| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | — | Lanie Grant (5 star) | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | — | Blanca Thomas (5 star) | C | 6–5 | |
| Freshman | — | Jordan Zubich (4 star) | G | 5–11 | |
| RS Freshman | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| RS Freshman | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 10 | Reniya Kelly | PG | 5–7 | |
| Sophomore | 15 | Sydney Barker | PG | 5–6 | |
| RS Junior | 11 | Kayla McPherson | PG | 5–8 | |
| Junior | 24 | Indya Nivar | G | 5–10 | |
| Junior | — | Trayanna Crisp | G | 5–8 | |
| Senior | 5 | Maria Gakdeng | C | 6–3 | |
| Graduate | — | Grace Townsend | G | 5–5 | |
| Graduate | 20 | Lexi Donarski | G | 6–0 | |
| Graduate | 1 | Alyssa Ustby | F | 6–1 |
2023–24 UNC players to enter transfer portal
| Class | Player | Date entered | Pos. | Hgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Junior | Paulina Paris | March 26 | G | 5–9 | Arizona |
| Graduate | Ali Zelaya | April 1 | F | 6–4 | UNCW |
| Graduate | Anya Poole | April 1 | F | 6–2 | Clemson |
| RS junior | Teonni Key | April 2 | F | 6–4 | Kentucky |
| Sophomore | RyLee Grays | April 5 | F | 6–3 | Virginia |
| Graduate | Deja Kelly | April 8 | G | 5–8 | TBA |
Photos courtesy of FIBA
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