The UNC women’s basketball team got its fans a nice gift for Christmas. Back in front of a home crowd in Carmichael Arena, the Tar Heels blew out Alabama State Tuesday afternoon, winning 83-47 for the team’s 11th straight victory to open the season.
The 11-0 start is the team’s best since the 2010-11 season, and the 11-game winning streak is the longest since the 2012-13 campaign.
After struggling for much of Sunday’s game at Boston College, the Tar Heels left nothing to chance Tuesday, outscoring the visiting Hornets 24-5 in the first quarter. Fresh off her game-winning jumper against the Eagles, sophomore guard Deja Kelly took charge in the game’s first 10 minutes, scoring 10 points and not missing a shot from the field or the free throw line in the quarter. The efficient stretch of play from Kelly ensured the guard’s double-digit points streak would extend to an 11th consecutive game.
Kelly was one of four Tar Heels to score 10 or more points Tuesday, with Kennedy Todd-Williams, Anya Poole and Eva Hodgson joining the fun. Hodgson’s 14-point effort comes on the heels of a 15-point performance against Boston College, which drives her season average up to 11.2 points per game. She is one of four Tar Heels, along with Kelly, Alyssa Ustby and Carlie Littlefield, averaging double figures this season.
It was another sparkling performance from Carolina’s defense, with the team holding its opponent under 50 points for the eighth time in 11 games this season. The Tar Heels are allowing just 50.4 points per game, good for No. 12 in the nation. The Hornets shot a paltry 18-67 (26.7 percent) from the field Tuesday, with just one player shooting over 50 percent. Only five of the Hornets’ 12 players who saw the floor scored a point.
UNC’s offense was just the opposite, with 10 of 11 players getting on the score sheet. The Tar Heels’ 83 points scored is right on their season average, which ranks No. 7 nationally.
Carolina, one of just seven unbeaten sides remaining in Division I women’s college basketball, will now take its 11-0 record into the Christmas holiday break. Head coach Courtney Banghart and the Tar Heels won’t see the floor again until December 30, when a home matchup with Syracuse begins ACC play in earnest.
Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/UNC Women’s Basketball on Twitter
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