By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina sent a loud message Sunday that it’s one of the best women’s teams in the ACC and better than its No. 23 ranking.
Deja Kelly sent the Tar Heels into overdrive with nine of her game-high 23 points in the third quarter, when they took control with a 9–0 run, ending No. 13 Louisville’s six-game losing streak Sunday in a physical 79–68 win before 6,073 fans at Carmichael Arena.
“This place was rocking,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “People are totally invested in this team. They’ve earned it; they’ve built it. But, holy moly, so many fans there supporting us, cheering for us, being loud. It was really awesome.”
UNC (14–5, 6–1 ACC) is tied for first place in the ACC after its third straight win and eighth in the last nine games and is off to its best conference start since 2013. The Tar Heels have wins over the other two teams with one league loss (Louisville and Syracuse).
Banghart is happy to be at the top of the standings but takes the long view.
“We’re just about stacking wins and just figuring it all out in the end,” said Banghart, whose team outrebounded the Cardinals 42–28 and has won the boards battle five straight games. “This was a win at home against the team that we wanted to beat, obviously.”
It was the first league loss for the Cardinals (16–3, 5–1), who hadn’t lost since an 86–62 defeat at UConn on Dec. 16, and UNC’s third victory over a ranked team this month.
When your most dangerous scorer consistently makes her free throws, it’s a huge advantage. With at least 20 points in four consecutive games, Deja Kelly came into the game leading the ACC and fifth in the country in free-throw attempts. That total reached 130 Sunday when she made a career-high 14 (the previous high was 10) on 16 attempts and played all 40 minutes.
Kelly was 4 of 12 from the line in the three games before her red-hot stretch in the last four games but has turned that around. That’s good news for UNC since the trips to the line keep coming at a high volume.
The key for Kelly that helps her draw fouls has been driving right at the hips of defenders, which throws them off-balance.
“I know teams are gonna really play pretty aggressive with me,” she said. “They’re trying to throw different things at me, but I’m really smart at attacking hips. I know that when teams try to be that aggressive, I know I can attack their hips. When they’re sagging off, I know I can get downhill and get to my pull-up, anything like that. How our team is built, I know that teams are going to be pretty aggressive, so I just really focus on attacking the hips.”
Banghart got the “rock fight” she expected from the Cardinals, but her team met their physicality.
“We asked ourselves [on Friday and Saturday] to just contain our emotions and just lock into how we wanted to play so that we could have our emotions on [Sunday],” Banghart said, “but didn’t want to get emotional too early because we knew how much this game would take.”
Deja Kelly said that UNC’s toughness made a huge difference during the Tar Heels’ recent impressive outings.
“Just us locking into who we are defensively, offensively, playing well on both ends,” she said. “I think that’s been huge for us.”
Graduate guard Lexi Donarski, with 13 points and three 3-pointers, said another key has been the team’s competitiveness.
“We just have a mindset that we’re expecting to win these games; we’re expecting to play well; we’re expecting to play together,” Donarski said. “Our competitiveness just kind of takes over at some point.”
Donarski set the tone early by scoring UNC’s first 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, to space out the floor and allow UNC to drive more easily to the basket.
“This team put myself and everyone else in great positions,” Donarski said. “The shots are coming off a ball screen or some type of action that we ran to get a good open look. Our execution was really good and it does feel good to see the ball going in. We’ve been working on it a lot.”
Donarski equaled her combined point total from the previous two games with her early flurry of points, but went to the bench after drawing her second foul with 5:22 left in the first quarter.
Alyssa Ustby turned in another stat-stuffing game with 10 points, 12 rebounds, a career-high seven blocks (her previous best was three), two assists and two steals before fouling out in the final minute. It was her ninth double-double and fourth in seven ACC games.
Indya Nivar (10 points, four rebounds) made a huge contribution again off the bench before fouling out with 30 seconds left.
Donarski had the primary assignment on graduate transfer guard Kiki Jefferson, who scored 30 points last season on Nov. 20, 2022, for James Madison in UNC’s 76–65 victory. Jefferson scored eight points, her lowest total in ACC play. Donarski also guarded junior 5–6 guard Jada Curry, the Cal transfer, some.
“They’re really good at knocking down shots and getting their feet in the lane, which makes them really difficult to guard, so it really is a whole team effort,” Donarski said. “I thought we did a great job in our gaps, especially as the game progressed. I thought we got even better at it and just really containing the ball and then finding a way to secure the first rebound.”
With Paulina Paris out for the second consecutive game with a lower-body injury (appears to be a leg issue; she isn’t in boot or using crutches), freshman guard Reniya Kelly (nine points, one 3-pointer, career-high five assists) started again, and continued to improve and make better decisions on offense.
“Reniya is someone we really believe in,” said Banghart, adding that she gets better in highly competitive practices against the team’s male practice players. “This team really believes in her. She’s a really good player.”
Senior 6–3 Louisville center Oliva Cochran is a formidable force inside, but Maria Gakdeng (8 points, 7 rebounds) and Anya Poole (4 points, 8 rebounds, game-high +19) held her to 14 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Donarski drew her fourth foul early in the fourth quarter.
Carolina finished the opening quarter with a 12–2 run to take a 22–13 lead on Deja Kelly’s off-balance buzzer-beating jumper.
Louisville tied it at 25 with a 12–4 run to start the second quarter. But Ustby scored on a twisting transition drive after Deja Kelly banked in a 3-pointer as UNC retook the lead 30–27. It was tied at 36 at halftime after a jumper by Elif Istanbulluoglu.
Louisville led by as many as four in the third quarter, but Ustby, who picked up her third foul with 6:16 left in that period, made two slick inside baskets to ignite an 11–0 run. Carolina took a 52–47 lead on two of Deja Kelly five made free-throw attempts during the run with 2:45 left.
Deja Kelly added two more free throws to give her nine third-quarter free throws and 11 third-quarter points as UNC took a 60–49 lead into the final quarter.
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After a Reniya Kelly 3-pointer, Louisville went on a 6–0 run that Donarski stopped with a 3-pointer. Nyla Harris’ jumper cut UNC’s lead to five, but Nivar beat the shot-clock buzzer at the other end with a corner 3-pointer.
A Poole layup with 46 seconds all but put the game away before Deja Kelly added four more points from the free-throw line.
Harris led Louisville with 16 points, with Curry adding 14 points.
NOTES — UNC is back home at 8 p.m. Thursday against Miami (12–5, 2–4), which will enter the game with six days off since upsetting No. 4 N.C. State at home 73–59 Thursday to snap a two-game win streak. It’s the second of two sets of back-to-back home games in ACC play for the Tar Heels. … It was the third time a UNC game has been tied at halftime, all three at 36. … The victory was only UNC’s second in the last 11 meetings, trimming Louisville’s lead in the all-time series to 9–5, but the second consecutive home win over the Cardinals after a 66–65 victory in 2022.
No. 23 UNC 79, No. 14 Louisville 68
| Team | League | Overall | NET* | WAB* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 13 Duke | 16–2 | 21–8 | 10 | 13 |
| No. 12 Louisville | 15–3 | 25–6 | 13 | 10 |
| No. 16 North Carolina | 14–4 | 25–6 | 19 | 14 |
| N.C. State | 13–5 | 20–9 | 23 | 27 |
| Syracuse | 12–6 | 22–7 | 40 | 31 |
| Virginia Tech | 12–6 | 22–8 | 41 | 34 |
| Notre Dame | 12–6 | 20–9 | 24 | 23 |
| Clemson | 11–7 | 20–10 | 44 | 40 |
| Virginia | 11–7 | 19–10 | 36 | 49 |
| California | 9–9 | 18–13 | 53 | 60 |
| Stanford | 8–10 | 19–12 | 42 | 56 |
| Miami | 8–10 | 16–13 | 58 | 65 |
| Georgia Tech | 7–10 | 12–17 | 76 | 109 |
| Florida State | 5–13 | 10–20 | 107 | 138 |
| Wake Forest | 4–14 | 14–16 | 121 | 134 |
| SMU | 2–16 | 9–21 | 220 | 209 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–17 | 8–23 | 262 | 238 |
| Boston College | 1–17 | 5–26 | 247 | 283 |
* — Through Sunday games
Thursday’s results
No. 16 North Carolina 82, Virginia 70
No. 12 Louisville 69, Georgia Tech 50
Notre Dame 72, Syracuse 62
Miami 79, Pittsburgh 58
N.C. State 65, Wake Forest 58
No. 13 Duke 80, Florida State 52
Stanford 87, SMU 57
Clemson 70, California 63
Sunday’s results
No. 16 North Carolina 74, No. 13 Duke 69
Virginia Tech 83, Virginia 82
Georgia Tech 79, Miami 49
N.C. State 93, Pittsburgh 43
Stanford 85, Clemson 50
Syracuse 90, Boston College 65
Notre Dame 65, No. 12 Louisville 62
Florida State 77, Wake Forest 74, OT
California 78, SMU 34
End of regular season
ACC tournament
Gas South Arena
Duluth, Ga.
March 4–8
UNC season statistics
| Date | Day/month | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 30 | Thursday | L, 91–82 | No. 4 South Carolina in Atlanta | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 90–42 | vs. N.C. Central | 1–0 |
| 6 | Thursday | W, 71–37 | vs. Elon | 2–0 |
| WBCA Challenge Las Vegas | ||||
| 13 | Thursday | L, 78–60 | vs. No. 2 UCLA | 2–1 |
| 15 | Saturday | W, 82–68 | vs. Fairfield | 3–1 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 20 | Thursday | W, 85–50 | at N.C. A&T | 4–1 |
| 23 | Sunday | W, 94–48 | vs. UNCG | 5–1 |
| Cancun Challenge Cancun, Mexico | ||||
| 27 | Thursday | W, 83–48 | vs. South Dakota St. | 6–1 |
| 28 | Friday | W, 85–73 | vs. Kansas State | 7–1 |
| 29 | Saturday | W, 80–63 | vs. Columbia | 8–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge | |||
| 4 | Thursday | W, 79–64 | at No. 3 Texas | 8–2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 82–40 | vs. Boston Univ. | 9–2 |
| 14 | Sunday | L, 76–66, OT | vs. No. 13 Louisville | 9–3, 0–1 ACC |
| 17 | Wednesday | W, 84–34 | vs. UNCW | 10–3 |
| 21 | Sunday | W, 93–74 | vs. Charleston Southern | 11–3 |
| 29 | Monday | W, 90–38 | at Boston College | 12–3, 1–1 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 1 | Thursday | W, 71–55 | vs. California | 13–3, 2–1 |
| 4 | Sunday | L, 77–71, OT | vs. Stanford | 13–4, 2–2 |
| 11 | Sunday | L, 73–50 | at No. 22 Notre Dame | 13–5, 2–3 |
| 15 | Thursday | W, 73–62 | vs. Miami | 14–5, 3–3 |
| 18 | Sunday | W, 82–55 | at Florida State | 15–5, 4–3 |
| 22 | Thursday | W, 54–46 | at Georgia Tech | 16–5, 5–3 |
| 25 | Sunday | W, 77–71, OT | vs. Syracuse | 17–5, 6–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 61–59 | at N.C. State | 18–5, 7–3 |
| 5 | Thursday | W, 53–44 | vs. Clemson | 19–5, 8–3 |
| 8 | Sunday | W, 84–56 | vs. Wake Forest | 20–5, 9–3 |
| 12 | Thursday | W, 94–42 | vs. SMU | 21–5, 10–3 |
| 15 | Sunday | L, 72–68 | at No. 8 Duke | 21–6, 10–4 |
| 19 | Thursday | W, 66–63, OT | at Virginia Tech | 22–6, 11–4 |
| 22 | Sunday | W, 78–50 | vs. Pittsburgh | 23–6, 12–4 |
| 26 | Thursday | W, 82–70 | at Virginia | 24–6, 13–4 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 72–69 | vs. No. 8 Duke | 25–6, 14–4 |
| ACC tournament | Gas South Arena, Duluth, Ga. | |||
| 6 | Friday | W, 85–68 | Quarterfinal vs. Va. Tech | 26–6 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 65–57 | Semifinal vs. No. 13 Louisville | 26–7 |
| NCAA tournament 1st two rounds in Chapel Hill | ||||
| 20–21 | Fri. or Sat. | First round | ||
| 22–23 | Sun. or Mon. | Second round | ||
| 27–30 | Fri.-Mon. | Regionals: Fort Worth, Texas, and Sacramento, Calif. | ||
| April | ||||
| 3, 5 | Fri., Sun. | Final Four Phoenix | ESPN (Fri.); ABC (Sun.) |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
