Wood plays significant minutes for Tar Heels in win

Time hasn’t exactly been on Candace Wood’s side.

Because of an ACL tear and an infection in her left knee, the North Carolina guard has seen two full seasons fall to the wayside and, in her third, played only a handful of minutes per game.

But in Wednesday night’s 95-53 dismantling of Lipscomb, coach Sylvia Hatchell’s hands were tied by the four injured players who sat to her right.

She needed production from a thin bench, and Wood — knee brace and all — provided it.

“I do whatever I can to help our team,” Wood said. “Even if we don’t have injuries at any point, the coaches emphasize, ‘Just be ready.’ Every game, whether I play or not, I’m always ready.”

After Hatchell subbed her in seven minutes into the first half, Wood displayed her preparedness with 11 minutes of explosive offense.

She took 3-point looks from nearly every angle, sinking her first three attempts in a row and finishing the half with only one miss in her five attempts.

“We’ve always known she can shoot. Always,” Hatchell said. “She’s smart, but it’s just her knee situation … her lateral movement and her ability to jump is really what’s kept her from being out there.”

Last season, Wood only managed to log 4.4 minutes per game, and up to Wednesday, she had only contributed 19 minutes this season.
But on Wednesday night alone, Wood eclipsed that with 23 minutes — a new career-high.

“It felt good, actually, getting back on the court,” Wood said. “And I was moving up and down the court for the first time in a long, long time.”

Wood said her knee still isn’t 100 percent in terms of flexion and extension, but she said switching to a new brace a couple of weeks ago has improved her mobility.

While not fully healed, the knee is much improved from its condition at the beginning of her Tar Heel career. After tearing her ACL in the summer of 2008, Wood later developed a debilitating infection, which sidelined her for months.

For a time, Wood and her family questioned if she should or even could take the court again.

But as evidenced by her play Wednesday night, Wood remained committed to basketball, and that commitment was rewarded with what was perhaps her finest performance as a Tar Heel.

Wood’s father, Al, a former first-round NBA draft pick and a UNC basketball standout, was in attendance Wednesday night, and he believes the progress his daughter has made is visible.

“I see a girl who has been through a whole lot in four years here,” Al Wood said. “And she’s really persevered and just worked real hard to be where she is today, just for the opportunity to play.

“And I’m just so happy for her tonight.”