By R.L. Bynum

GREENSBORO — After a slow start, veteran Alyssa Ustby jump-started No. 14 North Carolina but it was redshirt freshman Laila Hull who closed the deal.

UNC battled through a choppy first 13 minutes, and pesky N.C. A&T had the game tied when Ustby turned the game around in less than a minute as the Tar Heels pulled away for a 66–47 victory before a packed Corbett Sports Center.

The Tar Heels (3–0) return to Greensboro on Friday and must avoid another slow start, considering they play No. 2 UConn (2–0).

“I felt like we were a little bit of a deer in the headlights,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “We missed some open shots. I like the adjustments we made from a game out. They’re better now than they were last game, and [they were] better the last game than they were the first game.”

It wasn’t the best game for Ustby (seven points, nine rebounds, two assists and a team-high four turnovers). But she made the first shot she took with 5:50 left in the first half to untie the game, got a rebound at the other end, assisted on a Lanie Grant corner 3-pointer and drove for a three-point play, all in 49 seconds.

That ignited a 19–5 run to end the first half and ended the chances of hanging around for the Aggies (0–3), the favorites to win the CAA.

“Alyssa is so relentless,” said Banghart with son Eli on her lap and daughter Grey to her right. “When she’s in the game, we have opportunities to make plays on both sides of the ball. I think when we were able to go to her in the low post a little bit to open her up, that was helpful.”

When it came to putting A&T away, Hull (top photo) took a significant role with 11 of her team- and career-high 14 points in the fourth quarter, finishing with a game-high four 3-pointers.

Her big effort was a reward for her hard work since April after redshirting last season with a shoulder injury. She developed a consistent 3-point shot during her senior season at Zionsville High School in Indiana and showed off that stroke against the Aggies.

“I was just shooting it when I was open,” said Hull, who had five rebounds and a blocked shot. “My teammates were able to give me really good shots, so I might as well reward them for the great passes and the great looks that they were getting me. Just trying to have confidence in myself and know that I put in the work to make these shots.”

Banghart can attest to Hull’s hard work, calling her improvement during a four-month period probably the best she’s seen as a coach, saying it comes from the confidence Hull gained from skill development.

“She’s much better with the ball in her hands,” Banghart said. “She’s shooting the ball with better rotation. She understands the defensive rotations better. She’s just a better basketball player. Her athleticism is a great add to our program. She’s a shot-taker. That’s great, and we hold her to a high standard. When we ask her to make adjustments, she does that. Really proud of her.”

Not only did reaching that level take a lot of work for Hull in the offseason, but she also had to figure out what her role would be after all of the roster turnover. But she said her teammates made it easy.

“They always try to make me feel comfortable,” Hull said. “It was really a group effort. I don’t think I could have gotten where I’ve gotten without my teammates and also my coaches. I knew I would have to try to get my minutes, making plays on the ball, hustling defensively.”

The Tar Heels played without center Maria Gakdeng (left knee; considered day-to-day), which led freshman Blanca Thomas (2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks) to get her first college start and redshirt freshman Ciera Toomey (7 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block) to play a good bit at center.

“Sitting Maria, we felt like we needed to make sure that those guys get more and more comfortable, which makes us deeper when Maria’s back,” Banghart said.

Arizona State transfer Tray Crisp (8 points, 2 assists) got the start at the two spot after Richmond transfer Grace Townsend (6 points, 6 assists) began the first two games there.

“She’s got some more size than Grace has,” Banghart said of Crisp. “But also having Grace come off the bench, knowing that we were going to sit Maria tonight, that we have a little bit less experience then. And so having someone in her fifth year off the bench gave us that experience that we felt like we needed. So it’s not always about the first five; it’s about how they all play together.”

UNC got 3-pointers from five players, including two each by freshman guard Lanie Grant (7 points) and fifth-year guard Lexi Donarski, who was the only other Tar Heel among the nine who scored to reach double figures with 10 points.

Donarski’s important work was keeping A&T star guard Jordyn Dorsey in check on the defensive end. Dorsey averaged 24.5 points and shot 42.5% in the first two games but Donarski’s tough defense held her to 12 points and 4 of 13 shooting.

“It was great for us to do a good job on their best player; holding her to 12 points felt like a win,” Banghart said. “We knew that was a priority coming in.”

The opponent will be tougher for Friday’s visit to Greensboro, but the environment might not be as challenging as the loud crowd of 3,593 in a small gym. (Relax, Wolfpack fans, Banghart didn’t call it that.)

“It was loud all night,” Banghart said. “A lot of great energy. Made it really hard for us to communicate, and for this young season with so many young guys, I felt like I couldn’t be as helpful as I wanted to be. It was just a great environment for us to have this early in the season.”

A big reason that Carolina dominated after the first 13 minutes was that the Heels turned defense into offense, with decisive advantages in points off turnovers (29–8) and fast-break points (27–5). UNC held A&T to 0.69 points per possession while scoring 1.01.

“We were able to get out and run and win the paint and get great looks,” Banghart said. “We want to be able to play fast because we can play a lot of guys.”

A 3-pointer from Reniya Kelly (5 points, career-high 5 steals) gave UNC a 7–2 lead. After a 6–0 Aggies run gave them an 8–7 lead, a Donarski 3-pointer and Kelly’s steal and layup put the Heels up by four. UNC led 13–10 after shooting 4 of 15 in the first quarter.

UNC’s decisive first-half run included a steal and a twisting layup by the right-handed shooting Crisp using her left hand to give UNC a 35–21 halftime lead as A&T went the last 4:30 without a field goal and UNC shot 56.3% in the second quarter.

Toomey’s first college 3-pointers stopped a 6–2 A&T run. The Aggies pulled within 10 before a Grant 3-pointer gave UNC a 47–34 lead after three quarters.

The Tar Heels scored the first seven fourth-quarter points — including a Hull 3-pointer — to stretch the lead to 20 on a Hull 3-pointer with 8:17 left. Hull’s last 3-pointer, with 44 seconds remaining, gave UNC its biggest lead at 21.

Forward Paris Locke led A&T with 15 points.

“We were definitely excited and grateful that Courtney was willing to come to our gym and give us the type of environment that you want to play in,” Aggies coach Tarrell Robinson said. “Aggie Nation really showed up. We competed. We were up to the challenge. It just didn’t work out.

“I told them that this was a great test because if we want to be where we say we want to be in March, this is what you want to see,” Robinson said.

NOTES — UNC is back in Greensboro, this time at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex, to face No. 2 UConn (2–0) at 6 p.m. Friday (ESPN2). The Huskies have won home games 86–32 on Nov. 7 against Boston University and 86–49 Sunday against South Florida … Gakdeng also missed the second half of the UNCW win while wearing a knee brace on her left knee. … Indya Nivar (day-to-day, boot on an ankle) was in uniform for the first time. She didn’t play, but Banghart said she would play soon. … Guards Kayla McPherson (who worked out on the court about 90 minutes before tipoff) and Syndey Barker missed the game. … Banghart’s next win will be her 100th at UNC. … UNC has won all four meetings with N.C. A&T, but this was the first game in Greensboro. … Former NFL and Chicago Bears running back Tarik Cohen, who retired from the NFL last summer, was at the game, as was former UNC player Taylor Koenen, who is the ACC’s assistant director for basketball operations.

No. 14 UNC 66, N.C. A&T 47

UNC scores, schedule

Date	Day/month	Time/ score	Opponent/event (current rank)	TV/ record
	November
4	Monday	W, 83–53	vs. Charleston Southern	1–0
7	Thursday	W, 77–50	vs. UNCW	2–0
12	Tuesday	W, 66–47	at N.C. A&T	3–0
15	Friday	6 p.m.	vs. No. 2 UConn in Greensboro	ESPN2
			Battle 4 Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas
23	Saturday	4 p.m.	Ball State	FloHoops
24	Sunday	1:30 or 6:30	Texas A&M or Villanova	FloHoops
25	Monday	Noon, 2:30, 5 p.m. or 7:30	No. 17 Baylor, Indiana, Columbia or S. Miss	ESPN2, ESPNU or FloHoops
			———————————
29	Friday	TBA	vs. N.C. Central	ESPN3
	December
			ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge
5	Thursday	5 p.m.	vs. No. 20 Kentucky	ESPN2
			———————————
8	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Coppin State	ESPN3
11	Wednesday	7 p.m.	vs. UNCG	ESPN3
15	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Georgia Tech	ACCN
			Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte
18	Wednesday	6:30	vs. Florida	ESPNU
			———————————
21	Saturday	Noon	vs. Norfolk State	ESPN3
			ACC season
29	Sunday	4 p.m.	at Miami	ACCN
	January
5	Sunday	1 p.m.	vs. No. 6 Notre Dame	ESPN
9	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. No. 16 Duke	TBA
12	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Boston College	ACCN
16	Thursday	8 p.m. ET	at SMU	ESPN3
19	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Pitt	ACCN
23	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Wake Forest	ESPN3
26	Sunday	Noon	vs. Florida State	ACCN
30	Thursday	TBA	at Cal	ESPN3
	February
2	Sunday	3 p.m. ET	at Stanford	The CW
9	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Clemson	ESPN3
13	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Virginia Tech	ESPN3
16	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. No. 13 N.C. State	ESPN
20	Thursday	6 p.m.	at Syracuse	ACCN
23	Sunday	2 p.m.	at No. 18 Louisville	ESPN
27	Thursday	7 p.m.	at No. 16 Duke	ESPN
	March
2	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Virginia	The CW
5–9	Wed.–Sun.		ACC tournament First Horizon Coliseum Greensboro