The No. 13 UNC women’s basketball had no trouble against South Carolina State in Carmichael Arena Wednesday, easily dispatching the Bulldogs 93-25.

Junior guard Deja Kelly missed her first game as a Tar Heel, sitting out as a precaution after sustaining an ankle injury earlier in the season. Sophomore Destiny Adams started in her place, and made her first collegiate start one to remember. After scoring 10 points against TCU last weekend, Adams more than doubled that output with a career-high 23 points on 10-14 shooting in just 21 minutes.

Joining Adams in double figures were all four of the other Carolina starters. Alyssa Ustby tallied 14 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double in three games, and contributed to a dominating effort on the glass by the Tar Heels. They outrebounded the Bulldogs 67-23.

There was another Tar Heel to reach the 10-point plateau: redshirt freshman Teonni Key. The five-star recruit made her collegiate debut after missing all of her true freshman season with a knee injury, and made the minutes count. Key notched 13 points on 4-8 shooting, grabbed seven rebounds, dished out three assists and blocked two shots in a stat sheet-stuffing performance. She played 19 minutes.

Overall, UNC allowed South Carolina State to score 10 or more points in just one of the game’s four quarters. The opening period was particularly impressive, as Carolina ended the first 10 minutes leading 32-1.

Yes, you read that right.

South Carolina State did not make a shot in the first quarter, while UNC shot a blazing 13-21 (62 percent) from the floor. Adams and junior forward Anya Poole combined to shoot 6-6 in the period. Poole finished with 11 points.

UNC is now 3-0 on the young season, having won its games by an average of 42 points. But Wednesday was the team’s last home game until early December, as the Tar Heels will visit James Madison this coming Sunday before traveling out to Oregon for the Phil Knight Invitational the week of Thanksgiving. The following week will see Carolina visit Indiana in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge before finally returning to Chapel Hill on December 7.

 

Featured image via Jordan on Twitter

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our biweekly newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Women's Basketball Ranked No. 12 in 2026-27 AP Preseason Poll
Head coach Courtney Banghart and UNC checked in at No. 12 in the AP Preseason Top 25 poll, which was released Tuesday. It’s the third consecutive year and fourth overall in Banghart’s tenure that the Tar Heels have been ranked inside the top 15 in the preseason poll. Comin' in at No. 𝟭𝟮 in the […]
UNC Women's Basketball Beats Davidson in Preseason Exhibition
A 12-0 run in the second quarter helped UNC overcome an early deficit and beat Davidson 76-66 in a preseason exhibition at Carmichael Arena Sunday afternoon. That's a preseason 𝘿𝙐𝘽!@WellsFargo x #GoHeels pic.twitter.com/jQ6yUzYrri — Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) October 18, 2026 The 12-0 Tar Heel run flipped a 23-20 deficit into a 32-23 lead in […]
UNC Women's Basketball Picked 3rd in ACC; Kate Harpring Receives Preseason Honor
UNC was picked to finish third in the ACC in the league’s preseason poll Tuesday. The Tar Heels received one of 76 first-place votes. Duke, which is coming off consecutive conference titles, sits at No. 1 in the preseason poll with 49 first-place votes. No. 2 Louisville (22 votes) is next, followed by UNC and […]
5-Star Guard Ryan Carter Commits to UNC Women's Basketball
Another highly coveted prospect will be joining the Tar Heels next season. Ryan Carter, who 247 Sports rates as a five-star recruit and the No. 10 overall player in her class, announced her commitment to head coach Courtney Banghart and UNC Monday evening. Carter is the second five-star recruit from the Class of 2027 to […]
This Week in UNC Sports: October 12-18
More and more of UNC's winter sports are beginning their seasons as we hit the middle of October, and "crossover season" is upon us.
Micah Ojo, No. 6 Prospect in 2027 Recruiting Class, Commits to UNC Women's Basketball
Micah Ojo, who ESPN rates as a five-star prospect and the No. 6 overall recruit in the 2027 class, announced her commitment to head coach Courtney Banghart and UNC Thursday. Ojo also held offers from Duke and Vanderbilt. View this post on Instagram A 6-foot-1 wing originally from Virginia Beach, Ojo is described by ESPN […]
UNC Women's Basketball Announces 2026-27 ACC Schedule
The UNC women’s basketball program announced the ACC portion of its 2026-27 regular season schedule Wednesday afternoon. 18 games to make some 𝙉𝙊𝙄𝙎𝙀. pic.twitter.com/ohLCnlv0W0 — Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) September 2, 2026 The Tar Heels will play three ACC games before the New Year, two of which will come at Carmichael Arena. The conference schedule […]
UNC Women's Basketball to Host Davidson for Preseason Exhibition October 18
UNC will host Davidson for a preseason exhibition Oct. 18 at Carmichael Arena, the program announced Wednesday. It will be the only exhibition on the Tar Heels’ 2026-27 schedule. A tip-off time is yet to be announced. Preseason Basketball? 𝙋𝙍𝙀𝙎𝙀𝘼𝙎𝙊𝙉 𝘽𝘼𝙎𝙆𝙀𝙏𝘽𝘼𝙇𝙇. See you October 18! pic.twitter.com/8YrY1YAsGj — Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) August 26, 2026 The […]
Non-Conference Schedule Set for UNC Women's Basketball's 2026-27 Season
The UNC women’s basketball program has confirmed its full non-conference schedule for the 2026-27 regular season. You asked, we answered. The non-conference schedule is 𝙃𝙀𝙍𝙀! 📰 | https://t.co/OEnIKLy7Dt🎟️ | Season tickets on-sale SOON! pic.twitter.com/ClynYQpKSG — Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) July 30, 2026 Several of the Tar Heels’ fixtures have already been announced: UNC will face […]
UNC Women's Basketball to Face Texas Tech, Alabama at WBCA Showcase
The UNC women’s basketball program has added two more games to its non-conference schedule for the 2026-27 season. The Tar Heels will face Texas Tech and Alabama as part of the WBCA Showcase in Orlando this November. Adding a Dash of Carolina Blue to the Happiest Place on Earth ✨ 📰 | https://t.co/zWPDqLzjnV pic.twitter.com/bQ51fNumF8 — […]
›