UNC Hosts Winthrop In Final Nonconference Action

January 5, 2005 | Women's Basketball

By: UNC Athletic Communications

Jan. 5, 2005

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Tip-off
The University of North Carolina women's basketball team opens play in the new year with a home game against Winthrop on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Carmichael Auditorium. The Tar Heels (11-1) have been idle since a 79-55 win over Old Dominion on Dec. 30. The Lady Eagles (2-10) are coming off a 49-46 loss to Austin Peay on Monday.
Carolina is ranked No. 5 in this week's Associated Press poll and No. 4 in the coaches' poll. Winthrop is not ranked.

Up next
Next up for UNC is the start of Atlantic Coast Conference play. Carolina travels to Maryland this weekend and will meet the Terrapins on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. at the Comcast Center. The game will be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net.
UNC's next home game is on Jan. 17, when new ACC member Miami comes to Carmichael for a 2 p.m. game.

On the air
The game between UNC and Winthrop will air on the Tar Heel Radio Network, which includes 12 stations. WCHL-AM 1360 in Chapel Hill is the flagship. Jones Angell is the Tar Heels' play-by-play announcer and Adam Pohl provides color commentary.
Live stats are available on the UNC website, www.TarHeelBlue.com.

Tickets
General admission tickets to UNC women's basketball games are $7 for adults and $5 for students and seniors. A limited number of reserved seats are also available at $10 for adults and $7 for students and seniors.
Tickets may be purchased at the Carmichael Auditorium ticket window prior to the game or through the UNC ticket office by calling (919) 962-2296 or (800) 722-HEEL.
North Carolina students, faculty and staff are admitted free with their UNC One Cards.

UNC at a glance
2004-05 record 11-1 (0-0 ACC)
Current rankings 5th A.P., 4th ESPN/USA Today
Head coach Sylvia Hatchell
Career record 665-263 (30th season)
Record at UNC 393-183 (19th season)
Assistant head coach Andrew Calder
Assistant coaches Tracey Williams, Charlotte Smith-Taylor
Media contact Dana Gelin
Gelin's phone/email (919) 962-0083/dgelin@uncaa.unc.edu
UNC athletics website www.TarHeelBlue.com
UNC ticket office (919) 962-2296, (800) 722-4335
Home arena Carmichael Auditorium (cap. 10,180)
Press row number (919) 843-9509

News to note

UNC leads the series with Winthrop 7-0.

The Tar Heels have moved back into the top five in both national polls. UNC is No. 5 in the Associated Press poll and No. 4 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll.

UNC is the top scoring team in the ACC, averaging 82.6 points per game. The Tar Heels also lead the league in scoring margin (30.1), field goal percentage (.468) and steals (14.9 per game). Individually, Tar Heels lead the ACC in field goal percentage (Erlana Larkins, .684), free throw percentage (Ivory Latta, .897) and assist-turnover ratio (Leah Metcalf, 2.38).

Ivory Latta hit double figures in assists two games in a row with 13 against Georgia State and 10 against Lipscomb. Prior to the Georgia State game on Dec. 19, her career high for assists was seven.

Along with UNC's 27 other varsity teams, the Tar Heel women's basketball team participated in the Share Your Holidays program, helping to make the season bright for some local families. The women's basketball team received a wish list from its "adopted" family then, with donations from players and staff, shopped for gifts and delivered them on Wednesday. UNC teams provided Christmas presents for a total of 37 families.

For the first time in school history, UNC beat two ranked teams in the month of November. The Tar Heels won games against No. 4 Connecticut (Nov. 21) and Nov. 24 Villanova (Nov. 27).

The Tar Heels' win over No. 4 Connecticut was the program's first against a top-five team since UNC beat the Huskies in the 1994 East Region final to advance to the Final Four. UConn was ranked No. 4.

The Tar Heels won both of their preseason exhibition games, 101-69 over EA Sports on Nov. 4 and 92-57 over Athletes in Action on Nov. 16. Nikita Bell's 21 points led UNC the first game, and Camille Little was the high scorer with 24 in the second.

At the conference media day in October, North Carolina was picked as the preseason favorite to win this year's ACC title. The Tar Heels received 20 of 40 votes, two more than defending champion Duke. Ivory Latta and Camille Little were named to the Preseason All-ACC team.

UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in June. She is in her 30th season as a head coach.

UNC's statistical leaders
Scoring: Ivory Latta, 15.4 ppg
Field goal percentage: LaToya Pringle, .750 (21-28)
Three-point percentage: Camille Little, .500 (9-18)
Free throw percentage: Ivory Latta, 897 (26-29)
Rebounding: La'Tangela Atkinson, 8.1 per game
Assists: Ivory Latta, 5.0 per game
Steals: Camille Little, 2.9 per game
Blocks: Erlana Larkins, 1.5 per game
Minutes: Ivory Latta, 30.8 per game

UNC in the NCAA statistics
Through games of Jan. 3
Individual
Erlana Larkins: 5th, field goal percentage (68.4)
Ivory Latta: 17th, three-point percentage (.458)
Latta: Tied for 15th, three-pointers per game (2.5)
Team
Scoring: 4th (82.6)
Scoring defense: 20th (52.5)
Scoring margin: 2nd (30.1)
Field goal percentage: 16th (46.8)
Field goal percentage defense: 29th (35.1)
Rebounding margin: 11th (9.8)
Win-loss percentage: Tied for 7th (.917)
Assists: 7th (19.2)
Steals: 2nd (14.9)

The UNC-Winthrop series
UNC and Winthrop will meet Thursday for the eighth time in a series that dates back to the 1974-75 season, Carolina's first as a varsity program. The Tar Heels lead the series 7-0.
The teams' last meeting was in the 2001-02 season, when UNC won 84-43 in Rock Hill, S.C., on Nov. 24, 2001, in the championship game of the Winthrop Lady Eagle Classic. The last time UNC and Winthrop met in Chapel Hill was during the 2000-01 season, when the Tar Heels won 71-48 at Carmichael Auditorium on Dec. 16, 2000.

Scouting the Lady Eagles
Winthrop is 2-10 on the season following a 49-46 loss to Austin Peay on Monday. Sophomore guard Gene't Moore led the Lady Eagles with 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field, 4-for-7 from three-point range.
The Lady Eagles have lost back-to-back games since a 59-50 win at Tennessee State on Dec. 21.
Moore is the team's top scorer and the only Lady Eagle averaging double figures with 10.0 points per game. Sophomore forward Jessica Dukes contributes 9.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. The team's top rebounder is sophomore forward Jolandra Crump, a Raleigh product (Southeast Raleigh H.S.) who averages 5.6 boards per game.
The Lady Eagles are coached by Bud Childers, who is in his first season at the program's helm.

The last UNC-Winthrop meeting
Nov. 24, 2001: North Carolina 84, Winthrop 43
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Sophomore center Candace Sutton scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead North Carolina to an 84-43 win over Winthrop in the Winthrop Lady Eagle Classic. With a pair of wins in the weekend event (UNC defeated Howard 117-57 on Friday), the Tar Heels improved to 5-1 on the season.
Carolina senior Nikki Teasley was named MVP of the event, joining Sutton and junior guard Coretta Brown on the five-member all-tournament team.
Sutton scored the Tar Heels' first seven points and UNC went on to a 42-25 halftime lead, despite being outrebounded 23-22 by the Lady Eagles (0-3). "Winthrop was well-prepared and the first half gave us all we could handle," UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. "At halftime, the sermon was rebounding. Our focus was to get on the boards in the second half. We did and that made a big difference."
The Tar Heels finished the game with a 57-40 rebounding edge. Brown scored 14 points and tallied six assists, five rebounds and one turnover in 33 minutes of play. Teasley struggled from the field, hitting two three-pointers in 11 field goal attempts, but was 7-for-8 from the free throw line for 13 points and added five rebounds, four assists and four steals. Freshman guard Leah Metcalf also scored in double figures for UNC with 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting from the field.
Senior guard Charlotta Wennefors led Winthrop with 14 points. The Lady Eagles shot 23.1 percent from the field to the Tar Heels' 44.4.