No. 2 Texas outscored UNC 47-25 across the second and third quarters to beat the Tar Heels 79-64 in Austin as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge Thursday night.

Carolina had opened the game on the front foot, leading 21-16 after the first quarter thanks to 15 combined points between Indya Nivar and Elina Aarnisalo. But the Longhorns opened the second quarter with seven unanswered points, then ended it with six unanswered to take a 39-31 lead into halftime. The Tar Heels managed just three made shots in the entire period, and none in the final 4:52.

The deficit only grew in the third, with Texas outscoring UNC 24-15 in the third quarter. The Longhorns stretched their lead to as large as 24 points at 78-54 before the Tar Heels whittled it down to 15 by the final buzzer.

Carolina shot 10-13 (76.9 percent) in its strong opening quarter, but finished just 13-36 (36.1 percent) across the final three periods. Nivar (17 points) and Aarnisalo (16) led the tar Heels in scoring, while Ciera Toomey added 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Texas punished UNC for its sloppy play, turning 20 Tar Heel turnovers into 24 points. On the other side, the Longhorns committed just eight turnovers. Texas also held decisive advantages in assists (15-7) and bench points (27-10). UNC’s seven assists were by far a season low, and its 20 turnovers were a season high. Taliyah Henderson was the only Tar Heel to play in the game who was not assessed a turnover.

The loss drops UNC to 8-2 overall this season. Carolina will return home to Carmichael Arena when it hosts Boston University Sunday at 12 p.m.

 

Featured image via Associated Press/Eric Gay

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