The No. 20 North Carolina women’s basketball team (12-5, 4-1 ACC) topped Virginia (8-8, 0-5 ACC) at home on Sunday, 81-68.
Senior forward Alyssa Ustby and senior guard Deja Kelly combined for 44 of the Tar Heels' points in the close victory against UVA. North Carolina’s offensive scoring droughts allowed Virginia to tie the game late, but UNC’s 10 rebounds in the fourth helped seal the win.
In the first quarter, Ustby found Kelly on the left wing for the first points of the game. Ustby continued to orchestrate a fast-paced offense that scored nine points and only allowed UVA to put two on the board.
Defensively, North Carolina was quick to close out on UVA’s shooters, forcing them off the line and causing turnovers inside the paint. Quick transition buckets and ball movement led to the Tar Heels seven-point lead as the quarter ended, 19-12.
The offense continued to create space for UNC guards in the second quarter. On a possession where all five players touched the ball, the Cavalier defense became clogged inside, leaving Kelly wide open to convert on a short corner jumper.
“It really just came from settling in with the ball and finding open players,” Ustby said. “I just have so many great teammates that I get to play with and I'm so grateful for each and every one of them because they're just so darn good at basketball so it makes my job so easy.”
The Tar Heels held what seemed to be a steady 12-point lead with three minutes to go in the quarter. However, Virginia’s sudden burst of energy and seven unanswered points cut the North Carolina lead to only five by halftime.
Kelly got it done on both ends in the third quarter, scoring nine points. She stripped the ball from UVA and got around Virginia forward Camryn Taylor with a euro step, laying it off the glass for two.
Tied at 52 apiece, Ustby went 1-2 from the free throw line, putting North Carolina up only one heading into the fourth quarter.
