By Bob Sutton
A heavy dose of stellar defensive work defined North Carolina’s semifinal victory in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The No. 16 Tar Heels kept Villanova in check in a 53-36 result Sunday at Imperial Arena in Nassau, Bahamas.
“I love a defensive game. I think it’s a lot of fun,” fifth-year guard Lexi Donarski said. “We’re able to really lock in on our defensive game plan. We’ve done really well for two days in a row and we need to have one more day of that. I feel we had a full buy-in from all of our players.”
Alyssa Ustby and Donarski each scored 14 points to help set up North Carolina (5–1) for the tournament championship game against Indiana at noon Monday (ESPN).
The Hoosiers (4-2) upended No. 18 Baylor 73-65 in the first semifinal.
Ustby, who shot 6-for-8 from the field, also had 14 rebounds.
But the biggest statistics were probably the Wildcats’ 23.5% shooting from the field and 21 turnovers.
“Our guys, led by these two [Ustby and Donarski] were totally locked into the defensive scout,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “Still missed a few too many shots. [Monday] we’re going to have to clean that up. But we’re playing for a championship [Monday] and we’re really thrilled about that.
“I still think we can be better on offense,” Banghart said. “I thought we missed too many layups. I think we’re a better shooting team. But if you’re going to bring that defensive intensity and accountability, you’ve got a shot.”
If there was a flaw, Ustby said there were some possessions when the Tar Heels should have avoided committing fouls. That might have been nitpicking.
“It felt like our team as a whole locked into our defensive game plan, as Coach said,” Ustby said. “I felt like our rotations were really good. We were contesting shots.”
“Definitely a tough battle against a great UNC team,” Villanova coach Denise Dillon said.
North Carolina was up 30–18 at halftime. Ustby (11 points) and Donarski (9 points) accounted for most of the offense as they combined for nine of the team’s 13 field goals.
Villanova had 10 turnovers and shot 25% (7-for-28) from the field in the opening half.
The Tar Heels led 17N7 after the first quarter, meaning Ustby matched the Wildcats’ point total.
“Just being in the flow with my teammates, so just reading off of each other,” Ustby said. “We have so many great shooters on our team, that spreads the floor a lot, so I had a lot of opportunities for 1-on-1.”
Villanova (4-2) topped Texas A&M in Saturday’s first round after North Carolina had defeated Ball State.
“It’s really not easy. It’s a late night [Saturday]. We didn’t know who was going to win the first [round],” Banghart said. “These guys came and locked in very quickly. They didn’t know Villanova from anybody until this morning. It’s easy for us to talk about it now, but I really give all the credit to the players who did what we asked them to do. They’re starting to really trust themselves defensively.”
(Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics)
The Wildcats hope to learn from the experience.
“It’s the reason we wanted to be in this tournament to prepare for later in the season,” Dillon said. “It will pay off in the long run.”
Teams must win three games in three days to capture the tournament title. The Tar Heels say they’re ready for that challenge.
“We have so much depth on our team,” Ustby said. “We’ve been preparing for this since the beginning of the season. We’ve had back-to-back practices where we’ve been really pushing our tempo, really pushing our pace. So, we feel ready for it.”
NOTES — Each team attempted two free throws in the first half. By game’s end, Villanova was 7-for-10 and North Carolina was 4-for-6. … The Tar Heels are 3–0 all-time vs. Villanova after their first meeting in 20 years. … For Villanova, the Tar Heels were its second ACC opponent this month. The Wildcats defeated visiting Wake Forest 64–56.
No. 16 UNC 53, Villanova 36
Battle 4 Atlantis
Imperial Arena | Nassau, Bahamas
Saturday’s first-round results
No.18 Baylor 101, Southern Miss 55
Indiana 72, Columbia 62
No. 16 North Carolina 63, Ball State 52
Villanova 65, Texas A&M 47
Sunday’s games (all on FloCollege)
Semifinals
Indiana 73, No. 18 Baylor 65
No. 16 North Carolina 53, Villanova 36
Consolation bracket
Southern Miss vs. Columbia, 6:30
Ball State vs. Texas A&M, 9 p.m.
Sunday’s games
Championship: No. 16 North Carolina (5–1) vs. Indiana (4–2), noon, ESPN
Third-place game: No. 18 Baylor (4–2) vs. Villanova (4–2), 2:30, ESPNU
Fifth-place game, 5 p.m., FloCollege
Seven-place game, 7:30, FloCollege
| 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 | L, 69–58 | vs. No. 2 UConn in Greensboro | 3–1 |
| Battle 4 Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas | ||||
| 23 | Saturday | W, 63–52 | Ball State | 4–1 |
| 24 | Sunday | W, 53–36 | Villanova | 5–1 |
| 25 | Monday | Noon | Indiana | ESPN |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 29 | Friday | 2 p.m. | vs. N.C. Central | ESPN3 |
| December | ||||
| ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge | ||||
| 5 | Thursday | 5 p.m. | vs. No. 15 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. 14 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. 20 N.C. State | ESPN |
| 20 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | at Syracuse | ACCN |
| 23 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at No. 25 Louisville | ESPN |
| 27 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at No. 14 Duke | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 2 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Virginia | The CW |
| 5–9 | Wed.–Sun. | ACC tournament First Horizon Coliseum Greensboro |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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