Carolina and Virginia Tech fought down to the wire in a back-and-forth ACC Tournament quarterfinal in Greensboro Friday, but it was the Hokies who made the plays in overtime to seal an 87-80 win over the Tar Heels.
UNC never trailed in the first half, leading by as many as nine points before going into halftime up 37-31. The complexion of the game changed dramatically when the Hokies’ Elizabeth Kitley, recently named ACC Player of the Year, left with an injury and did not return to the game.
“When she went out… that changed a lot of how we were gonna defend on certain quadrants of the floor,” said head coach Courtney Banghart. “We had to change on the fly. And we should be able to do that. I didn’t think this was a game we earned.”
Despite the injury to their star forward, Virginia Tech fought back in the third quarter, using a trio of three-pointers to rattle off a 19-8 run in the third quarter and lead 50-45. Very much like the game between the two teams in Blacksburg, outside shooting had erased the Tar Heel lead. Virginia Tech outscored UNC 19-11 in the quarter.
“They started to capitalize on their shots that we let them have,” said sophomore guard Deja Kelly. “[Aisha] Sheppard and [Georgia] Amoore just hit some really big shots, really timely shots.”
Carolina cracked down on defense in the fourth, and eventually took the lead back from the foul stripe. But inconsistent foul shooting proved to bite the Tar Heels down the stretch. As a team, UNC shot just 5-10 on free throws in the final quarter. A late miss from the usually reliable Kelly kept the Carolina lead at 64-60, and the Hokies promptly answered on the other end with another three-pointer. Carlie Littlefield knocked down a two-pointer on the next possession, but then fouled Sheppard on a three-point attempt. Sheppard hit all three foul shots to tie the game again.
Kelly missed with seven seconds remaining, and the Hokies grabbed the rebound and called timeout. Amoore appeared to ice the game out of the stoppage, driving in for a layup while being fouled. She hit the succeeding free throw to give Virginia tech a 69-66 lead with two seconds left.
Head coach Courtney Banghart called timeout after the free throw, advancing the ball to midcourt. On the inbounds, Littlefield found Eva Hodgson open on the left wing, and the transfer from William & Mary swished the buzzer-beating triple to send the game to overtime.
𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙎 𝙄𝙎 𝙈𝘼𝙍𝘾𝙃!!!
WILD finish in the VT/UNC quarterfinal game to send it to OT! 🤯#ACCWBB | #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/1pKCxRAr3V
— ACC Women's Basketball (@accwbb) March 4, 2022
“We were excited that we had another chance in overtime, but I kept trying to remind everyone that the score is 0-0 now,” Kelly said. “And that we just had to play like it was a new game.”
Carolina led 74-73 midway through the overtime period, with a three-pointer from Alyssa Ustby giving the Tar Heels the lead. But the game would slip away after that, and the Hokies would piece together a 10-0 run, powered by eight points from the free throw line. Virginia Tech shot 15 free throws in the extra session.
Carolina had no answer on offense, shooting just 4-12 and getting no points from either Kelly or Kennedy Todd-Williams in the period. Ustby, who finished with 18 points, fouled out late in overtime, committing her fifth foul of the game on Amoore as the Hokie wing was shooting another three-pointer.
Foul trouble proved to be an issue all game for Carolina. Both Kelly and Anya Poole ended with four fouls, while Hodgson picked up three fouls in overtime alone.
“We’ve got to figure out what the rules are in our game,” said Banghart. “If a kid falls, it can’t always be a foul.”
Ustby and Kelly tied for the team lead with 18 points each, but Virginia Tech’s Sheppard and Amoore led all scorers with 22 apiece. The Tar Heels will now have two weeks to rest and recover before the NCAA Tournament starts later in the month. The bracket will be revealed next Sunday by the selection committee, and Carolina will begin play the following weekend.
“This group has learned if you’re not good enough, it’s over,” Banghart said. “And so we hope this is a good ignition as we get into the Big Dance here soon.”
Featured image via Atlantic Coast Conference
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