Junior guard Reniya Kelly scored a career-high 24 points to help UNC overcome a halftime deficit and beat visiting Miami 73-62 at Carmichael Arena Thursday night.

Kelly’s outburst came after the junior from Alabama hadn’t reached double figures in 17 previous games this season. She was feeling it Thursday, finishing 9-14 from the floor and 4-5 on three-pointers, while also tying for the team lead with six rebounds. Sixteen of Kelly’s 24 points came in the first half, as she carried the load for the Tar Heels offensively. No other teammate had more than eight points, and UNC shot just 15-40 (37.5 percent) as a team while trailing 34-32 at halftime.

The Hurricanes increased that lead to four points early in the third quarter, but UNC turned the game around with a 9-0 run to take a 43-38 lead at the 6:09 mark. Kelly didn’t score at all during the run, as Nyla Harris, Indya Nivar and Lanie Grant provided the offense during the run. But Kelly would put the finishing touches on a 24-12 quarter with consecutive threes to end the period, giving UNC its largest lead of the game at 56-46 entering the final 10 minutes.

Miami never got closer than six points for the remainder of the game, as buckets from Nivar, Elina Aarnisalo and Taissa Queiroz kept the Hurricanes at arm’s length. UNC’s defense limited Miami to just nine made shots in the second half and scored five points off seven Hurricane turnovers.

Nivar finished as UNC’s second leading scorer with 13, while Queiroz provided a career-high 10 points on 5-7 shooting and six rebounds off the bench.

Thursday’s win snaps a two-game losing streak for the Tar Heels, who are now 14-5 overall and 3-3 in ACC play. The team will hit the road this weekend when they visit Florida State in Tallahassee Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications

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