Covering Carolina sports beyond just men's basketball and football — with the most complete women's basketball coverage
Today’s Carolina students have no idea how much better seats their predecessors enjoyed at Tar Heels games decades ago — or how much easier ticket distribution is for them. The university has to take care of Rams Club members who support the athletics programs. But college sports should be all about the athletes and their fellow students, and it’s too bad that UNC students don’t get better seats at games.
A hungry and determined Pittsburgh team put up an unexpected fight against No. 15 North Carolina but became the latest team to learn how hard it is to beat the Tar Heels. A tie game entering the final quarter turned into a blowout in a flash. The Panthers led for more than 17 minutes before Carolina took control with a 17–1 run to start the fourth quarter as the Tar Heels won 72–57 Thursday for their sixth consecutive victory. After scoring 29 points in the first half, Carolina poured it on with 28 fourth-quarter points.
On a week when many players might have had a tough time playing many minutes, Carolina wing Alyssa Ustby played well and helped the Tar Heels win two games. That has earned her the U.S. Basketball Writers Association’s Ann Myers Drysdale National Player of the Week honor, announced Tuesday.
After extending its win streak to five, North Carolina moved up two spots to No. 15 in the latest AP Top 25 women’s poll. The Tar Heels (14–5, 5–3 ACC) earned a second consecutive win over a ranked team by knocking off Duke 61–56 on Thursday, then coasted by Georgia Tech 70–57 on Sunday. They have three wins over teams ranked in the top 13 during the current streak.
CHAPEL HILL — With No. 17 North Carolina already playing well, the Tar Heels figured to be mighty hard to beat when Deja Kelly shook off her perimeter shooting struggles. With her shooting ability, it was only a matter of time. Behind the junior guard’s 18 points and season-high four 3-pointers — and with recent turnover issues mostly absent — the Heels rolled to a 70–57 victory Sunday before 4,418 fans at Carmichael Arena over Georgia Tech.
CHAPEL HILL — It wasn’t quite to the level of the Michael Jordan flu game, but Carolina junior Alyssa Ustby went from feeling sick and on an IV to being a key player down the stretch, making it a day to remember. She scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half and made the No. 17 Tar Heels’ offense productive down the stretch. UNC held on for a 61–56 victory Thursday over No. 13 Duke before a passionate crowd of 5,003 at Carmichael Arena for its fourth consecutive win and fifth over a ranked team.
It was good to have the Carmichael Arena atmosphere back Sunday to how it should be for every game. The atmosphere with a sellout crowd was more like the heyday of the Sylvia Hatchell era, when Tar Heels fans came out in force for big games and were a factor. It was the first sellout since Hatchell’s No. 15 Tar Heels lost 74–67 to No. 12 Duke in overtime on Jan. 25, 2015.
By R.L. Bynum North Carolina jumped up five spots to No. 17 in the latest AP Top 25 women’s poll … More
CHAPEL HILL — With determination and grit, Destiny Adams wasn’t about to let No. 11 N.C. State escape a raucous, sellout Carmichael Arena with a victory.
Adams scored eight points, all in the fourth quarter — including a pair of 3-pointers and a physical inside bucket — as No. 22 North Carolina knocked off No. 11 N.C. State 56–47 in front of a high-energy crowd of 6,319.
Part of building a nationally prominent women’s basketball program is consistently attracting big crowds. It’s time for Tar Heels fans who haven’t supported the program to do their part and give Carolina its first sellout in nearly seven years.
tarheeltribune.com 