The University of North Carolina women’s basketball team (13-12, 2-10 ACC) was defeated in a blowout loss on Sunday afternoon with a 95-64 loss against the No. 20 Syracuse University.

Redshirt sophomore guard Paris Kea led the team with 28 points, while junior guard Jamie Cherry followed up with 17 points. Sophomore guard Stephanie Watts contributed seven points and 10 rebounds.

Syracuse (18-8, 9-4) was led by Brittney Sykes’ 34 points, while Alex Peterson added 27 points.

The game marks UNC’s third loss in a row and only four games remain before the ACC Tournament begins on March 1.

North Carolina led for about two and a half minutes total in the game, as Syracuse outscored the Tar Heels each quarter – the most being by 10 points in both the second and third quarters.

Though North Carolina started out on even footing, with seven lead changes in the first five minutes of the game, a 20-4 run put the game essentially out of reach for the Tar Heels.

Syracuse had a 43-26 lead at intermission. UNC would be forced to play catch up the rest of the game.

Not quitting, UNC was close to being even with Syracuse in the fourth quarter, with 15 points compared to Syracuse’s 19, but they played at a deficit in the previous three quarters. In addition, Sykes’ 34 points was a career high for the guard.

While UNC shot for 39 percent from the field for the game, Syracuse had a 48 percent clip. Syracuse also had 46 points in the paint, compared to UNC’s 32. Finally, Syracuse had 20 fast break points, while North Carolina had four.

The Tar Heels next play on Thursday in a home game against Georgia Tech at seven o’clock.

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