University of North Carolina Athletics
No. 6 Carolina Takes On No. 2 Duke Thursday
February 19, 2003 | Women's Basketball
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Feb. 19, 2003
Tipoff: No. 6 UNC travels to No. 2 Duke, Feb. 20
The University of North Carolina women's basketball team (23-2 overall, 12-1 ACC) travels to Durham, N.C., on Thursday to face No. 2 Duke (24-1, 12-0). The Blue Devils won this season's first meeting, 78-67 in overtime in Chapel Hill on Jan. 20.
The Tar Heels are ranked sixth this week in both the Associated Press poll and the ESPN/USA Today/WBCA coaches' poll. Duke is No. 2 in both polls.
Next up for UNC is the final nonconference game of the regular season. The Tar Heels will host Coastal Carolina Monday at Carmichael Auditorium. Tipoff is 7 p.m.
On the air
Thursday's game will be televised live by the Regional Sports Networks (Fox Sports, Comcast, Sunshine Network). Beth Mowins will provide play-by-play for the broadcast and Debbie Antonelli will handle the color commentary.
The game also will be broadcast live on the Tar Heel Radio Network. The flagship station is 1360-AM WCHL. Stephen Gates is Carolina's play-by-play announcer and Jones Angell provides color commentary.
Game action is available via the internet at www.TarHeelBlue.com.
Quick facts on UNC
2002-03 Record: 23-2 (12-1 ACC)
Current Rankings: 6th AP, 6th USAToday/ ESPN
Head Coach: Sylvia Hatchell (Carson-Newman, 1974)
Career Record: 625-251 (in her 28th season)
Record at UNC: 353-171 (in her 17th season)
Assistant Head Coach: Andrew Calder
Assistant Coaches: Tracey Williams, Charlotte Smith-Taylor
Team captains: Coretta Brown, Courtney Chambers, Jennifer Thomas
Sports information contact: Dana Gelin
Phone/email: (919) 962-0083/dgelin@uncaa.unc.edu
UNC athletics website: www.TarHeelBlue.com
UNC ticket office: (919) 962-2126, (800) 722-4335
News of note
* UNC leads the series with Duke 36-23, but the Blue Devils have won the last seven meetings and 11 of the last 13.
* Carolina's No. 6 ranking in this week's Associated Press poll is the program's highest since the week of Jan. 4, 1999. UNC fell to No. 7 the next week and has not been that high since. The No. 6 ranking in the coaches' poll is the highest since Jan. 18, 1999. The Tar Heels held that spot for six weeks before falling to No. 10 on Jan. 25.
* Coretta Brown is the reigning ACC Player of the Week after averaging 20.5 points in the team's last two games. She shot 54.2 percent from the field, 61.5 percent from three-point range. Brown shared this week's honor, her second of the season, with Maryland's Renneika Razor.
* Heading into Thursday's game, Coretta Brown needs two three-pointers to take over second place on UNC's career list in that category. Stephanie Lawrence (1992-95) hit 227 during her career; Brown has hit a total of 226.
* Over the last eight games (dating back to this season's first matchup with Duke, in which she scored just five points), Coretta Brown has averaged 18.4 points, scoring in double figures every game.
* Sunday's game against Clemson was Coretta Brown's 100th career start and her 89th consecutive start. She has played in every game since she arrived at UNC, a total of 122 heading into the Duke game.
* Coretta Brown recently was named a finalist for three national awards. She is one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, given to the country's top senior player. She is one of 12 finalists for the Nancy Lieberman Award, given to the nation's top point guard. And she is one of 20 finalists for the Naismith Player of the Year Award.
* UNC's La'Tangela Atkinson leads all ACC freshmen in both scoring (10.1 ppg) and rebounding (8.4 per game). She ranks second among freshmen in steals and field goal percentage and third in assists.
* UNC is the only school in the conference with four players averaging in double figures. Georgia Tech and Wake Forest each have three.
UNC's statistical leaders
Scoring: Coretta Brown (14.3 points per game)
Rebounding: La'Tangela Atkinson (8.4 per game)
Assists: Coretta Brown, Leah Metcalf (4.7 per game)
Steals: Nikita Bell (2.9 per game)
Blocks: Candace Sutton (1.6 per game)
Minutes per game: Coretta Brown (34.1 per game)
Tar Heels in the NCAA statistical rankings
(Through games of Feb. 17)
Scoring offense: 15 (76.7 ppg.)
Scoring defense: 43 (58.5 ppg)
Scoring margin: 10 (18.2 ppg.)
Field goal percentage: 34 (45.1)
Field goal percentage defense: 10 (35.0)
Free throw percentage: 316 (58.3)
Rebounding margin: 4 (9.9)
Three-point percentage: 123 (32.7)
Three-pointers per game: 165 (4.6)
Turnovers: 172 (19.1 per game)
Assists: 25 (17.2 per game)
Steals: 31 (11.5 per game)
Blocks: 141 (3.0 per game)
Win-loss percentage: 4 (23-2, 92.0 percent)
Scouting the Duke Blue Devils
Duke is 24-1 on the season and 12-0 in ACC play following an 83-41 win at Wake Forest on Monday. Alana Beard and Sheana Mosch led the way with 14 points each and all 10 players scored at least five points. The Blue Devils shot 51.7 percent from the field and outrebounded Wake 41-26.
Beard leads Duke in scoring with 23.1 points per game, the top scoring average in the ACC. Her shooting percentage of 55.6 also leads the conference. Iciss Tillis averages 14.9 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 per game. Beard averages 7.1 rebounds and leads the team in steals (3.1) and assists (3.3) per game.
The Blue Devils lead the ACC in 11 team categories, including scoring (81.8 points per game), defense (52.8 points per game by opponents) and field goal percentage (46.7).
Duke is coached by Gail Goestenkors, who is 260-83 in her 11th season with the program.
The North Carolina-Duke series
Thursday's game will be the 61st meeting between North Carolina and Duke in a series that dates back to the 1975-76 season. UNC leads the series 36-23 but Duke has won the last seven matchups and 11 of the last 13.
UNC's last win at Cameron Indoor Stadium was on Jan. 18, 1997, 87-73. Since then, the Tar Heels have lost five in a row in Durham.
* Last year at Cameron (Jan. 24, 2002)
No. 5 Duke 102, No. 21 UNC 82
DURHAM, N.C.-Alana Beard totaled 31 points and eight rebounds and freshman Monique Currie scored a then-career-high 23 points as the Blue Devils (16-3, 8-0) beat UNC 102-82. The win was Duke's seventh in a row, while UNC lost for the fourth time in five games.
Coretta Brown led North Carolina (14-6, 4-4) with 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Leah Metcalf added 15 points and Candace Sutton had 14.
Currie had 15 points in the first half and Beard 14 as Duke built a 54-32 halftime lead. Beard was 10-for-21 from the field, including 2-for-3 from 3-point range. She also had five steals and four assists.
The Blue Devils stretched their lead to 30 with 12:28 to play before UNC closed the margin with an 18-6 run. Brown scored 15 of her 19 points in the second half, six of them during that span.
The Tar Heels won the rebounding battle, 45-44, but committed 18 turnovers and hit a season-low two three-pointers in 14 attempts. Duke committed just 10 turnovers and totaled 21 assists.
This year's first meeting: Jan. 20, 2003
No. 1 Duke 78, No. 8 North Carolina 67, OT
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Facing the No. 1 team in the nation in front of the largest crowd in school history, UNC took Duke into overtime before falling 78-67. The Blue Devils outscored Carolina 17-6 in the overtime period.
Alana Beard led Duke with 26 points, 23 of which came in the second half and overtime. She also had 12 rebounds and was one of three Blue Devils to register double-doubles. Iciss Tills scored 22 points and led the team with 14 rebounds and Wynter Whitley came off the bench to added 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Leah Metcalf led UNC with 18 points, including an off-balance three-pointer that she banked in with 24 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the score at 61-61. Candace Sutton blocked Duke's final shot attempt with seconds remaining on the clock, but Carolina was unable to get off a potential game-winner before the game went to overtime.
In overtime, Duke was 6-for-10 from the field while UNC was 2-for-9. The Tar Heels hit just four of their 13 free throw attempts in the game for a season-low percentage of 30.8.
Also in double figures for UNC were Nikita Bell with 12 points and Chrystal Baptist with a season-high 11 points and 11 rebounds. La'Tangela Atkinson grabbed 11 rebounds and added six points.
The crowd of 10,180 was the second Carmichael Auditorium sellout in school history.
Last time out: Feb. 16, 2003
No. 8 North Carolina 70, Clemson 66
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Coretta Brown scored 19 points and Candace Sutton added a season-high 18 as UNC beat Clemson for the fourth consecutive time, 70-66 at Carmichael Auditorium. Nikita Bell came off the bench to score 15 points, including eight in a row during a span of just over two minutes in the second half.
The score was tied at 42-42 at halftime after both teams shot 50 percent from the field. In the second half, Clemson fought to a three-point lead (54-51) with 14:39 to play. That's when Bell came into the game and went on her run, putting UNC back up 59-55 with 1:37 to play.
Clemson pulled back within three, 69-66, with 1:28 on a three-pointer by Chrissy Floyd, who led all scorers with 27 points. Brown hit a free throw with 4 seconds remaining for the final score.
Julie Aderhold added 12 points for Clemson. The Lady Tigers outrebounded UNC 48-35 overall and 20-8 on the offensive boards. The margin was the largest for an opponent this season and marked just the fourth time that the Tar Heels have been outrebounded.
Brown among top seniors
Coretta Brown is one of 10 finalists for the 2002-03 Senior CLASS Award, which will be presented at the end of the season to the nation's outstanding male and female senior basketball player.
Joining Brown on the women's list are Chantelle Anderson (Vanderbilt), Courtney Coleman (Ohio State), Cheryl Ford (Louisiana Tech), Gwen Jackson (Tennessee), Kara Lawson (Tennessee), Ashley McElhiney (Vanderbilt), Jocelyn Penn (South Carolina), Plenette Pierson (Texas Tech) and LaToya Thomas (Mississippi State).
Finalists for the men's award are Matt Carroll (Notre Dame), Nick Collison (Kansas), Brian Cook (Illinois), Reece Gaines (Louisville), Jason Gardner (Arizona), Kirk Hinrich (Kansas), Josh Howard (Wake Forest), Kyle Korver (Creighton), Hollis Price (Oklahoma) and David West (Xavier).
The finalists were selected from an initial list of 30 candidates by a national committee of sportswriters and sportscasters who cover Division I college basketball. Selection is based on performance in the current season. The winners will be selected by voting from the national media committee and Division I coaches, as well as fan balloting at the award's website, www.seniorclassaward.com.
The Senior CLASS Award, an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, was launched prior to the 2001-02 season. Last year's winners were Sue Bird (Connecticut) and Juan Dixon (Maryland).
Best of the new kids
Before she had played a college game, UNC's La'Tangela Atkinson was voted the Preseason ACC Rookie of the Year. She has lived up to that billing and continues to make her case for the same honor in the postseason.
Heading into Sunday's game against Clemson, Atkinson leads all ACC freshmen in scoring (10.1 points per game) and rebounding (8.4 per game), with her rebounding average second in the conference. She ranks second in steals (1.7 per game), second in field goal percentage (.480) and third in assists (2.8 per game) among freshmen.
Atkinson also stacks up well against the conference's veterans. In addition to ranking second in the league in rebounding, she is tied for second in double-doubles with seven. She is ninth overall in field goal percentage and 18th in scoring.
Six times this season, Atkinson earned ACC Rookie of the Week honors outright or shared the honor with another player. No other player has earned the honor more than twice.
