University of North Carolina Athletics
Fitting Sendoff For Special Seniors
February 23, 2007 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 23, 2007
By Lauren Brownlow
Ivory Latta was strangely subdued after her Senior Night, perhaps worn out by the emotion of the day. She had 14 points, six assists, three turnovers and four steals - pretty much standard Latta fare. She played just 10 minutes in the first half due to an eye injury, but her brown eyes lit up when asked about her final trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium and an opportunity to exact revenge against the Blue Devils.
"I always love playing in Cameron. I'm happy about it," Latta said. "I definitely know that Coach is going to give us a great game plan and tomorrow we're going to work on it from there. I'm definitely excited. I'm always excited to play in there."
Camille Little, who deals with the media significantly less than her fellow captain, didn't even realize it was her turn to answer the question.
"Oh, is it my turn?" she said. "I'm excited to play. I don't care where the game is, in Cameron or anywhere, I just want to play."
Little is the phrase "business as usual" personified. No flash, no glitz, no glamour - just game. "Little" and "Latta" may accurately describe their personalities, but the contributions of Camille Little throughout her career are hardly "little." Latta and Little came to Carolina as the player of the year in their respective states (South Carolina and North Carolina), and while Latta has revolutionized both Carolina and women's basketball through her dynamic style and personality, Little has just been content to do the yeoman's work.
She had 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 from the free-throw line and added three offensive rebounds, one assist, four steals, and two turnovers in 24 minutes. She had 15 of her 19 points in the first half and played just ten of her 25 minutes in the second half. Looking at the box score, one might be surprised to find that Little led all scorers. It would be one thing if it were every now and then, but more often than not, Little's stat-stuffing contributions are described as "quiet."
"I think that's definitely what it was," Little said. "It's the same old game, same old routine. I just had a couple of open shots and they were going in and it was feeling good."
Little and Latta were equally gracious and brief in their remarks to the crowd, both thanking the fans and coaching staff for their success. Tears pricked the eyes of onlookers, from the fans, to the ushers, to the team.
The extra motivation was there. But the Tar Heels hardly needed it.
"They're a team that plays hard all the time, whether it's Senior Night or Freshman Night or Papa John's Pizza Night. They don't care," Wake Forest head coach Mike Peterson said.
The Tar Heels were relentless on the boards, outrebounding Wake Forest 58-30 and 28-10 on the offensive glass. They forced 22 Wake Forest turnovers on 18 Carolina steals and turned it over just 11 times themselves.
"We were very aggressive on the defensive end. Coach kept emphasizing playing up the line and playing great defense, and that's definitely what our main focus was, playing great defense. That definitely leads to a lot of turnovers and points for us," Latta said.
Little and Latta's teammates, grinning ear-to-ear as the two seniors had their moments to shine and be thanked, were ready to thank their teammates in their own ways as four other Tar Heels scored in double figures. Erlana Larkins banged down low relentlessly all night, scoring 15 points and pulling down 12 rebounds, six offensive. Rashanda McCants had 12 points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. LaToya Pringle played 25 minutes (tied for a team high) and pulled down four offensive rebounds of her own (nine total) and scored three points, all from the free-throw line.
The bench also contributed, as Alex Miller found her shooting stroke, making two three-pointers on her way to 11 points. She added three rebounds, three assists, one turnover and one steal in 22 minutes. Jessica Breland had a fantastic game, showing quite a range of post moves on her way to 14 points (6-of-9 shooting), nine rebounds (four offensive), three assists, a steal, and block and just one turnover in 21 minutes.
"It gives them confidence, because we're going to need them down the stretch here. So I was glad to see them play well. Especially with Alex (Miller) and Jessica (Breland) playing well, that's going to give us depth and help us as we get into tournament time," Coach Hatchell said.
Little and Latta exited the game with 4:37 to go, with chants of "Thank you seniors" echoing through Carmichael. Latta couldn't resist the smile that crept across her face. She spent the rest of the game shouting instructions to her teammates next to the rest of the coaches, perhaps foreshadowing her future career. If she enjoyed the chant as much as Latta, she didn't let on. But that's how Little is - a smile, a brief wave is perhaps all she would have given, barely noticeable to most of the crowd, and then it would be back to business as usual. But she noticed it.
"It was great. I'm just glad that they appreciate us, because we appreciate them. I'm just thankful that they enjoyed the game and that we came out with a win," Little said.
Lauren Brownlow is the managing editor of Tar Heel Monthly.
