Carolina jumped out to a 21-6 lead in the first quarter and never looked back against No. 14 Kentucky on Thursday night in the ACC-SEC Challenge, defeating the Wildcats 72-53 in Carmichael Arena. It’s Kentucky’s first loss of the season.

“I’m really happy for our team,” head coach Courtney Banghart said after the game. “If you give us four days to prepare for an opponent, watch out. We feel like we can really understand how we want to play.”

Maria Gakdeng scored a season-high 16 points and added nine rebounds, helping her reach the 1,000-point milestone for her collegiate career (Gakdeng spent her first two seasons at Boston College). Sophomore guard Reniya Kelly poured in 18 points – 12 of which came in the fourth quarter – to lead all scorers. With Kelly leading the way, the Tar Heels ended the game on a 12-2 run to pull away from the Wildcats. Kelly ended the night with a team-high +28 plus-minus rating.

“What do you say about Reniya Kelly except the dog that she is?” Banghart said.

Alyssa Ustby added 13 points, helping give Carolina a decisive 42-10 advantage in points in the paint. Eight points each from Ciera Toomey and Trayanna Crisp also gave UNC a 16-2 advantage in bench points. Against the nation’s top field-goal percentage defense, UNC shot 9-17 (52.9 percent) in the first quarter to build its initial lead and 6-10 (60 percent) in the fourth quarter to protect it. Kentucky had held its opponents to a 29.6 shooting percentage on the season.

The UNC defense limited the Wildcats to just 19-54 (35.2 percent) shooting. Kentucky star – and former Virginia Tech standout – Georgia Amoore finished the night without a made three-pointer for just the second time in the last two years. Clara Strack, the Wildcats’ leading scorer, finished with just four points on 2-10 shooting. She came into the night averaging 18 points per game.

“We forced them to Plan B, and then we took away Plan B,” said Banghart. “That was the game plan defensively.”

For Banghart, Thursday night’s win broke a streak of six consecutive losses to Kentucky head coach Kenny Brooks. Brooks, like Amoore, had previously faced Banghart and the Tar Heels while at Virginia Tech.

Carolina is now 8-1 on the season and has won five straight games. The Tar Heels will be back in action when they host Coppin State at Carmichael Arena on Sunday at 2 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Women’s Basketball on Twitter

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Women's Basketball Falls to No. 2 Duke in NCAA Tournament Sweet 16
UNC women’s basketball put up its worst offensive showing of the season in a 47-38 loss to No. 2 seed Duke in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 Friday afternoon in Birmingham, AL, ending Carolina’s tournament run. The poor showing came after an extremely bright start for the Tar Heels, who led 11-0 midway through the […]
UNC Women's Basketball in the 2025 NCAA Tournament: How to Watch, Cord-Cutting Options and Tip-Off Time
No. 3 seed UNC is headed to the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 for the first time since 2022, and the Tar Heels will face No. 2 seed Duke in Birmingham, AL Friday for the right to advance to the regional finals Sunday. If you aren’t making the trip with the Tar Heels, here’s how to […]
Chansky's Notebook: Happening Again
UNC and Duke faced each other for the first time in the NCAA Tournament three years ago. It's happening again today with their women’s teams.
UNC Women's Basketball Opponent Breakdown: Duke
No. 3 seed UNC will face a familiar opponent in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 Friday afternoon: No. 2 seed Duke, which defeated No. 15 Lehigh and No. 10 Oregon to reach the regional semifinals. The Blue Devils are 28-7 overall this season and finished 14-4 in ACC play. Here’s a quick breakdown of Duke: […]
Chansky's Notebook: Women Move On!
UNC's second-round win against West Virginia was a special home send-off for the team's seniors, including Alyssa Ustby.
UNC Women's Basketball NCAA Tournament Opponent Breakdown: West Virginia
UNC will take on No. 6 seed West Virginia in the NCAA Tournament’s second round Monday night for the right to advance to the Sweet 16. The Mountaineers defeated No. 11 seed Columbia 78-59 in the first round Saturday and are 25-7 overall this season. They finished with a 13-5 record in the Big 12 […]
Ustby Sets Record as UNC Women's Basketball Beats Oregon State in NCAA Tournament
Alyssa Ustby scored 10 points and added nine rebounds to become UNC’s all-time leading rebounder as the No. 3 seed Tar Heels defeated No. 14 seed Oregon State 70-49 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Carmichael Arena Saturday afternoon. It was the first NCAA Tournament game to be played at Carmichael since […]
Chansky's Notebook: Hoops Galore
Between the men's and women's NCAA Tournaments, the Triangle will be the capital of the college basketball world this weekend.
UNC Women's Basketball NCAA Tournament Opponent Breakdown: Oregon State
UNC will host an NCAA Tournament game at Carmichael Arena for the first time in a decade Saturday afternoon, and the Tar Heels’ opponent will be No. 14 seed Oregon State. The Beavers enter the game with a 19-15 overall record and finished 12-8 in the West Coast Conference. If you aren’t familiar with Oregon […]
UNC Women's Basketball Earns No. 3 Seed in NCAA Tournament, Will Host Games at Carmichael Arena
The NCAA Tournament is coming back to Chapel Hill. The UNC women’s basketball team earned a No. 3 seed in the tournament field Sunday night and will host postseason games at Carmichael Arena for the first time since 2015. Joining the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill will be No. 6 seed West Virginia, No. 14 […]
›