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The Daily Tar Heel

UNC women's basketball outlasts Elon for 78-73 win

The North Carolina women’s basketball team defeated Elon, 78-73, on Sunday at Carmichael Arena.

What happened?

UNC (7-1) engaged in a back-and-forth game in the first quarter. Redshirt sophomore Paris Kea led the way for the Tar Heels, shooting 4-for-6 from the floor to lead the team with nine points. UNC couldn’t keep Elon (4-3) from getting to the rim early, and gave up a lot of layups and shots inside for easy buckets.

UNC used their quicker guards to create space for 3-point and mid range shots and to attack the rim in the second quarter. Elon, meanwhile, pounded the ball inside to its taller forwards to get easy layups on UNC’s four-guard lineup. The Tar Heels pulled away late in the quarter, making six of their final eight field-goal attempts of the half, ending with a buzzer-beater reverse layup by sophomore Stephanie Watts to put UNC up 42-38 at the half.

Junior Jamie Cherry took charge out of the intermission, quickly adding a 3-pointer and a 3-point play to put UNC up 48-40. Elon quickly got layups by driving baseline to pull within three points. The teams continued to go back-and-forth throughout the rest of the quarter before the Tar Heels gave up a late layup to Elon to put the Phoenix within one at 60-59 heading into the fourth.

UNC began to rely on its bench down the stretch, with first-year Taylor Koenen stepping in for Watts, who was in foul trouble, with five points in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Tar Heels were up as much as nine in the fourth, but the Phoenix were able to pull within two with less than two minutes left in the game. Despite some later heroics by Elon, UNC was able to get to line and execute to pull away for the victory.

Who stood out?

Kea was an offensive force down the stretch for the Tar Heels. Her trademark mid-range jumper dropped often as she scored 20 points, while also adding six rebounds and five assists.

Watts was adept on both ends of the court, scoring 17 points and adding four blocks and two steals on defense to lead the Tar Heels in both categories.

Cherry struggled with turnovers early, — tallying five in the first half — but also had her outside shot working, draining three 3-pointers en route to 17 points. The point guard also tacked on five assists for good measure.

When was it decided?

Up 73-71, UNC was able to force an Elon turnover with just over a minute left in the game. On the ensuing possession, Cherry drained the clock down before draining a pull up mid-range jumper to make it 75-71. The Phoenix turned the ball over almost immediately, resulting in free throws for the Tar Heels. Redshirt senior Hillary Fuller hit two of her four foul shots to give UNC a 77-71 lead.

Elon hit a circus shot off a rebound to make it 77-73 with 8.1 seconds left, but UNC was able to get the ensuing inbound in to Cherry, who hit one of her two free throws to ice the game.

Why does it matter?

UNC is off to a good start to their 2016-17 campaign, with only one loss in its first eight games. Last season, the Tar Heels lost three of their first eight games on the way to a 14-18 overall record. These early matchups with out of conference foes will help teach the team how to win tight contests and figure out their rotations for ACC play.

Coach Sylvia Hatchell said she expects Elon, coached by North Carolina legend Charlotte Smith, to be in the NCAA Tournament this year, noting their experience and size will help them throughout the season. Hatchell wants to see better rebounding out of her team than what was shown tonight, as UNC was outrebounded 42-28 on the evening. But, she said, it’s hard to complain at 7-1.

Where do they play next?

The Tar Heels take on the Thundering Herd of Marshall at home on Wednesday. Tip off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

@sjdoughton

sports@dailytarheel.com

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