The UNC women’s basketball team led by as many as 19 against Miami on Thursday night at Carmichael Arena, but had to hang on by the skin of its teeth down the stretch to win 66-61. The win is Carolina’s fourth straight, and keeps the Tar Heels in a tie for first place atop the ACC standings at 7-1 in conference play.

All five starters for Carolina scored in double figures, the first time that’s happened in conference play this season. Deja Kelly led the way with 18 points and continued to shoot efficiently at the foul line: she finished 8-10 on free throws, including four in a row to seal the game when the Hurricanes had gotten to within a point in the final minute. Kelly is now 39-46 (84.8 percent) from the line in her last four games.

Alyssa Ustby contributed yet another double-double to the cause, scoring 12 points while adding 10 rebounds. Ustby also finished with four assists, two blocks and two steals for good measure. Maria Gakdeng scored 13, Lexi Donarski 12 and Reniya Kelly a career-high 10. The balanced scoring from the starters was needed: UNC’s bench combined for just one point.

Carolina finished the first quarter on a 10-0 run to take a 22-8 lead early, then extended that lead to 35-16 midway through the third quarter. The Hurricanes finished strong, cutting the deficit to 10 at halftime at 38-28. The Tar Heels looked primed to pull away again in the third quarter, leading 51-34, but once again Miami hung tough. The lead dwindled to 13 at the start of the fourth quarter, and then the Hurricanes made five threes in the final 10 minutes to very nearly steal a win. Miami’s 12 made threes on the night were a season high. Carolina made just four.

Guard Paulina Paris missed her third straight game as she continues to battle a nagging lower-body injury. In her absence, Reniya Kelly started and only Teonni Key, Indya Nivar and Anya Poole saw time off the bench. Nivar scored Carolina’s only bench point.

The Tar Heels are now 15-5 overall and tied with Syracuse for first place in the ACC, though Carolina owns the tiebreaker by virtue of its 24-point win over the Orange earlier this season. UNC will be back in action on Sunday at noon when it visits Virginia in Charlottesville. The Tar Heels beat the Cavaliers 81-68 on January 14.

 

Featured image via UNC Women’s Basketball on Twitter

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