With 5:30 to play in the first period, the North Carolina women’s basketball team fell behind 6-5 to USC Upstate. Sixteen seconds later, UNC reclaimed the advantage.
The Tar Heels wouldn’t give up the lead again.
UNC (7-5) relied on sharp shooting and great passing en route to its 80-40 rout of USC Upstate on Wednesday at Carmichael Arena, but the Tar Heels’ defense stood out the most in the victory.
While UNC’s spacing and shooting helped the team pile on points, the team’s exceptional defensive effort gave the Tar Heels their most one-sided victory of the season.
Holding USC Upstate (6-6) to 12 points or less in every quarter, the Tar Heels crushed any crack at a comeback before it even began.
Blocks and forced turnovers opened up the North Carolina attack, not allowing the Spartans to get set on defense for the majority of the night. UNC threw a number of defensive schemes at the Spartans, forcing 14 turnovers.
First-year guard Stephanie Watts made a splash on the offensive end — leading all scorers with 21 points — but her presence on defense proved much more lethal.
Watts’ defensive duties were all on the perimeter, but the guard still found a way to lead her team with six blocks and 10 rebounds..
Once the Tar Heels got the ball rolling — laying their base on the defensive end — there was no slowing them down.