The University of North Carolina women’s basketball team was close, but not close enough on Thursday night.
The Tar Heels failed to secure their second ACC win with a heartbreaking 80-77 loss in Chapel Hill to Wake Forest University (11-7, 2-3 ACC).
UNC is now 1-5 in the ACC and holds a 12-7 overall record.
In Wake Forest’s first win in Chapel Hill since 1991, junior Elisa Penna led the Demon Deacons with 23 points and eight rebounds.
Not unlike other games, sophomore Stephanie Watts and redshirt sophomore Paris Kea, produced for North Carolina.
Watts had 25 points and nine rebounds, while Kea added 21 points and three rebounds.
Things started well for UNC, as a hot first quarter helped North Carolina build a 29-22 lead. Watts scored 10 points in a row at one point, supplementing the team’s 58 percent shooting clip from the field in the first.
At the team’s peak, the Tar Heels had a 14-point lead about halfway through the second quarter. However, UNC allowed a Wake Forest 8-0 run, while also cooling down, scoring 15 points in the second.
At halftime, the Tar Heels led 44-38.
North Carolina nearly maintained that lead, as they had a 7-point advantage with about one minute remaining in the third quarter.
However, a close fourth quarter saw Wake Forest outscore UNC, 25-17.
With 15 seconds left, Wake Forest gained the lead and held onto it after a 3-pointer from sophomore Alex Sharp put her team up 75-72. The shot broke the quarter’s second tie.
The Demon Deacons scored the last five points of the game.
Overall, an advantage the Demon Deacons held over the Tar Heels was scoring points in the paint. Wake Forest held a 34-22 advantage for the game in that aspect.
Wake Forest also made 50 percent of its 3-point shots, while UNC made only 33 percent.
UNC will remain in Chapel Hill to play against a No. 6 Notre Dame team at twelve o’clock on Sunday afternoon.
Related Stories
‹

'We Want Them To Feel Welcome': A Conversation with UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts, Part 2UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts shares his thoughts on tenure delays, student visas, Bill Belichick, and the future of the Smith Center.

'It's Natural To Be Unsettled': A Conversation with UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts, Part 1UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts shares his thoughts on federal funding cuts, academic freedom, and the public role of higher education.

Kelly, No. 15 UNC Women's Basketball Hand No. 19 Cal First Home Loss of SeasonNo. 15 UNC women’s basketball started its trip out west with a win on Thursday night, as the Tar Heels’ defense powered them to a 65-52 over No. 19 California. It was the Golden Bears’ first loss in Haas Pavilion this season, and keeps Carolina undefeated on the road in ACC play. Sophomore guard Reniya […]

UNC Men's and Women's Basketball Unveil Their 2023-24 ACC SchedulesThe final pieces of the scheduling puzzle for UNC’s basketball programs fell into place on Tuesday, as the Atlantic Coast Conference released the schedules for 2023-24 conference play. The Carolina men’s and women’s teams joined the other 14 teams in seeing their schedules revealed during an ACC Network special Tuesday night, rounding out their games […]

Kelly, Ustby Pick Up Preseason Awards; UNC Women's BBall Predicted 5th in ACCThe Atlantic Coast Conference has recently fielded some strong women’s basketball programs, with UNC looking to break into the competitive upper-tier. Heading into the 2022-23 season, media members throughout the conference are predicting this may indeed be the year. The ACC released its preseason predictions from voting media on Wednesday, with the Tar Heels listed […]
![]()
Stroman on Sports: Women's Basketball in the ACCDr. Debbie Stroman joins 97.9 The Hill's Brighton McConnell to discuss the start of women's basketball season and the landscape around the ACC. Stroman shares her thoughts on the Triangle's three programs, the competitiveness of the conference and a remarkable coaching streak potentially coming to an end.

Guskiewicz, UNC Faculty Depart on Tar Heel Bus Tour Across North CarolinaUNC-Chapel Hill interim chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz and members of the university’s faculty embarked on a three-day bus tour across the state aimed at interacting with North Carolinians. “We are about to leave for an amazing journey,” Guskiewicz told faculty members before departing from the Friday Center in Chapel Hill on Wednesday, “and I want to […]

Janelle Bailey Named ACC Women's Basketball Player of the WeekUNC sophomore forward Janelle Bailey was named the ACC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week on Monday, coming off an 85-63 win against Howard this past Friday that saw her pour in a career-high 30 points to go along with 14 rebounds. This is Bailey’s first ACC Player of the Week honor, after winning the […]

ACC Names Janelle Bailey Its Women's Basketball Rookie of the YearACC commissioner John Swofford announced Wednesday that UNC forward Janelle Bailey has been named the league’s women’s basketball Rookie of the Year. The 6-foot-4-inch native of Matthews, North Carolina has been a revelation for head coach Sylvia Hatchell in the frontcourt this season–leading all freshmen in the conference with 15.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per […]

North Carolina Residents are not happy about the new UNC System LogoAt a press conference earlier this week, the University of North Carolina System unveiled a new logo for its 17 campuses across the state. System president Margaret Spellings said that the rebranding project was important to detail the important work being done across the UNC system but also to avoid confusion between the system and […]
›
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines