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The Daily Tar Heel

UNC women's basketball edges Wake Forest in tournament game

GREENSBORO — Multiple obstacles stand in the way of a team winning the prestigious ACC tournament. And the North Carolina women’s basketball team took the first step Thursday with a 69-65 win against Wake Forest at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Wake Forest took control of the game from the opening tip, which featured high school teammates Diamond DeShields and Dearica Hamby squaring off. Hamby ultimately had the extra spring in her step, and the Deacons seized the lead on the first possession and tallied the first seven points of the game.

UNC missed its first five shots but would find an answer in freshman guard Allisha Gray — who drilled two 3-pointers on the team’s way to its first lead at 10-9. But this was the only lead the team would attain in the first half.

The Tar Heels double-dribbled and walked their way to 13 turnovers, shot an abysmal 32 percent and Wake Forest’s lethal tandem of Hamby and Chelsea Douglas sliced the Tar Heels apart to the tune of 32 first-half points and a 39-27 lead.

The team’s woes weren’t only present on the hardwood but on the bench — where Gray found herself for the remainder of the game after being the recipient of a hefty blow from Hamby in the final minutes of the half.

Without their second-leading scorer, the Tar Heels were seeking a spark coming out of the locker room. And they got one — maybe too much of one.

The team initiated a 7-0 run of their own to open the second half behind a series of phenomenal plays by DeShields including a neck-bending reverse layup.

Associate head coach Andrew Calder said the team took it upon themselves to respond in the second half.

“Well, we’re champions, and I think the players, they closed the door before I could get in there to them and kind of took care of business themselves,” Calder said. “I may have raised my voice just once, maybe, at them. But they responded.”

With DeShields’ electric play, UNC’s comeback attempt was on — but the electricity in the Coliseum itself refused to cooperate. A power outage less than four minutes into the second half suspended the game for more than 20 minutes.

When play resumed, UNC continued to expand its run to 14-0 and was capped by two free throws by DeShields to obtain a 41-39 lead.

Wake Forest didn’t allow the comeback to faze them. Millesa Calicott splashed in a 3-pointer to bring the Tar Heels’ hot streak to an end.

The teams continued to trade blows throughout the remainder of the contest with neither team procuring any more than a five-point lead.

With two minutes remaining, Hamby hammered home two free throws to put the Deacons up 62-61. Finding themselves in desperate need of a basket, the Tar Heels once again turned to their fearless freshman.

The next time down the floor, Deshields received a pass at the top of the left elbow and, without any hesitation, pulled up and knocked down a 3-pointer in the eye of the defender to put the Tar Heels up for good.

An ordinary freshman would crumble in a high-pressure situation such as this one, but, as she has proven time and time again this season, she is no ordinary freshman. DeShields said she had confidence she’d thrive in the big moment.

“I like the big moment,” DeShields said. “And I’ve said this before, I want to take the big shot. I got confidence in myself, and I believe my teammates have confidence in me to take that shot and make that shot.”

“That was the shot that we needed,” DeShields said. “I had to knock it down. I had to.”

sports@dailytarheel.com

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