UNC used a strong second quarter to pull away from North Carolina A&T early and cruise from there to an 85-50 win against the Aggies in Greensboro Thursday night. It’s Carolina’s first win of the season in a true road environment.

Freshman Nyla Brooks came alive in the quarter, scoring nine of her 14 points and drilling three three-pointers. As a team, UNC 11-17 (64.7 percent) in the period and outscored the Aggies 29-13, racing away after a low-scoring first quarter ended with Carolina only ahead 14-8.

Indya Nivar finished the night with her second career double-double, scoring 14 points on 5-7 shooting to go along with a team-high 10 rebounds. Nivar also added three assists, two blocks and two steals in 24 minutes. UCLA transfer Elina Aarnisalo (13 points) and Ciera Toomey (12 points) also reached double figures.

UNC’s defense was the story of the night, as the Tar Heels held North Carolina A&T to just 17 made shots and forced 26 turnovers. The Aggies also finished without a made three-pointer in six attempts. It’s the first time in head coach Courtney Banghart’s seven seasons in Chapel Hill that UNC has held a team without a made three for an entire game. As a program, the Tar Heels hadn’t accomplished such a feat since January 11, 2018.

Thursday’s win improves Carolina to 4-1 on the season. The Tar Heels will return home Sunday evening when they host UNC-Greensboro at Carmichael Arena at 6 p.m. UNC will be back on the road after that, heading down to Mexico for the Cancun Challenge during the Thanksgiving holiday.

 

Featured image via UNC Women’s Basketball on Twitter


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