The University of North Carolina Tar Heels picked up their fourth loss in a row on Thursday night in the John Paul Jones Arena at the University of Virginia. The Cavaliers bested the Tar Heels in a close 72-68 game.
A rounded team effort included a team-leading 18 points from freshman Destinee Walker, followed by redshirt junior Hillary Summers’ 16. Sophomore Jamie Cherry added 12 points.
In addition, freshman Stephanie Watts, the current ACC Rookie of the Week for the fourth time this season, completed her seventh double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Virginia placed four players in double digits as well, with sophomore guard Mikayla Venson leading the team with 23 points.
UNC now stands at 14-16 on the season while 4-11 against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. Virginia is now 16-13, with a 6-9 record in the ACC.
While the game was only tied for almost four minutes, it was Virginia that lead for a majority of the 40 minutes, leading for 21:53.
North Carolina started out with an early 13-6 lead and ended the first period up 16-12. Making 10-for-26 field goal attempts in the first half, the Tar Heels entered intermission trailing 29-26, hurt by missed free-throws. In the first 20 minutes, UNC went 2-for-8 from the line.
At one point in the third period, the Tar Heels trailed by eight points, however, an 8-0 run brought them back up to speed. Nearly matching UNC’s 19 points in the third period, Virginia scored 18 to just barely keep a lead in the game, entering the final 10 minutes with a 47-45 lead.
Early in the fourth the game was tied at 47-47, but the Cavaliers slightly broke away at one point to lead by eight, at 64-56.
North Carolina battled back with some shots from Walker and Watts, including a timely Watts three-pointer, but the Tar Heels never re-gained a lead. The closest they would come in the fourth period was one point away, trailing 64-63 with 2:42 remaining.
Worth noting, UNC went 16-for-31 from field goal range in the second half, keeping them close to the Cavaliers with the 51 percent completion rate.
Perhaps the most anticipated game of North Carolina’s season, the Tar Heels will play their final game of the regular season against the Duke Blue Devils at three o’clock Sunday in Carmichael Arena.
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines