Carolina couldn’t overcome a slew of turnovers and two key absences in a 68-53 loss at No. 16 Duke Thursday night in Durham. The loss is UNC’s first on the road this season and snaps a seven-game winning streak for the Tar Heels.

With Alyssa Ustby sidelined for the third straight game with a lower-body injury, Carolina faced the Blue Devils without the services of starting guard Reniya Kelly. Kelly was also held out with a lower-body injury and is considered day-to-day.

The Tar Heel offense struggled mightily without two of its best weapons, turning the ball over 20 total times. Ten of those giveaways came in a critical third quarter, one which saw Carolina enter with a 32-31 lead but exit trailing 52-41. Duke’s Reigan Richardson caught fire during the quarter, scoring 13 of her 23 points to lead the Blue Devils back from the halftime deficit. Duke’s Toby Fournier added 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Freshman Lanie Grant, starting in place of Kelly, led the Tar Heels with 17 points. UNC shot just 7-18 (38.9 percent) in the second half, during which time Duke outscored the Tar Heels 37-21. A 7-0 UNC run tied the score at 41-41 with 3:49 left in the third quarter, but Duke used an 11-0 run to end the quarter and a 14-3 run midway through the fourth to seize control. The 15-point margin of defeat is UNC’s largest this season.

The loss drops Carolina to 25-5 overall and 13-4 in ACC play. The Tar Heels will close out the regular season when they host Virginia at Carmichael Arena Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Women’s Basketball on Twitter

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