Carolina To Honor Cherry On Thursday's Senior Night

Thursday, February 22

Chapel Hill, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

North Carolina

Syracuse

Photo by: UNC Athletic Communications

February 21, 2018 | Women's Basketball

Watch on ACC Network Extra Live Stats Game Notes Purchase Tickets Be The Match Event on Thursday

By: Mark Kimmel

CHAPEL HILL - Carolina wraps up its regular season home schedule by hosting Syracuse on Thursday inside Carmichael Arena at 7 p.m. Jamie Cherry will be honored pre game as part of Senior Night festivities. Cherry is one of only seven UNC players to accumulate career totals of over 1,500 points and 400 assists. Cherry is also sixth all-time with 438 career free throws made, and has played in all 125 games in her four-year career, making 92 starts.

GAME INFORMATION
North Carolina (14-13, 4-10) vs. Syracuse (20-7, 8-6)
Chapel Hill
Carmichael Arena
Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018
Tip: 7 p.m.

TICKETS
• $10 regular-priced tickets
• $4 Group Tickets (10+)

PROMOTIONS
• Senior Night
• Be the Match
• Tykes Night
• Giveaway: Free 'Be the Match' t-shirts for first 150 students
• Kids Day: First 150 kids eat free; Face painting until end of halftime

WHERE TO WATCH
Fans can watch the game on ACC Network Extra and the ESPN app.

TUNE IN
The radio broadcast with Walter Storholt is available locally in the Triangle on WCHL 97.9 FM and worldwide on GoHeels.com, and also on the TuneIn app.

SERIES HISTORY
The series is tied 4-4. The Orange won both meetings last season. The regular season game went in favor of Syracuse, 95-64, at the Carrier Dome. The two met again in the second round of the ACC Tournament in Myrtle Beach. SU came away with an 83-64 win.

LAST TIME OUT
Asia Durr scored 19 points to help the fourth-ranked Cardinals rally past North Carolina 67-57 on Sunday. Arica Carter added 14 points for Louisville, which finished 8-0 on the road in conference play for the second time in four years. Janelle Bailey scored 20 points and Paris Kea had 14 for North Carolina, who led 31-29 at halftime and had the game tied 45-45 going to the fourth quarter.

LAST MEETING WITH SYRACUSE
North Carolina had its run through the 2017 ACC Women's Basketball Tournament come to an end after an 83-64 second-round setback at the hands of No. 21 Syracuse from the HTC Center. A night after upsetting the 11th-seeded Pitt Panthers, Carolina was unable to overcome the Orange's 50-23 rebound advantage and a combined 45 points from Alexis Peterson (29) and Brittney Sykes (16).

Jamie Cherry and Paris Kea continued their torrid scoring pace for the Tar Heels. A night removed from scoring a career-high 32 points, Cherry scored 24 points, while Kea had 17 and Olivia Smith added 12.

WALKER, WATTS OUT FOR THE SEASON
Destinee Walker and Stephanie Watts are officially ruled out for the 2017-18 women's basketball season. Both players suffered knee injuries late in the 2016-17 season and will return with two years of eligibility remaining with the Tar Heels.

"We can't wait to have these two outstanding young ladies back on the court next season. It's been tough for all of us to see them on the sidelines," said North Carolina head coach Sylvia Hatchell. "They've worked closely with our medical and strength and conditioning staffs in rehabbing knee injures that occurred last season. As a program, we've exercised extreme caution during the rehab process with the anticipation that they'll be back to full health for next season."

Watts, a preseason All-ACC selection leading into the 2017-18 campaign, ranks 10th in program history as a 15.7 points per game scorer and sits ninth all-time with 7.5 rebounds per game. The 2016 ACC Freshman of the Year was named second team All-ACC after averaging 14.7 points and 7.2 rebounds in her rookie season.

Walker, from Orlando, Florida, is a solid two-way player that has twice been named the program's defensive player of the year and is a prolific scorer in her own right, owning a 13.3 point per game average in two seasons in Chapel Hill. She was named to the 2016 ACC All-Freshman Team after a fine rookie season that saw her put up 13.9 ppg.

FAST BREAK POINTS
• Paris Kea has taken over as Carolina's all-time scoring average leader at 18.3 points per game.
• Kea became just the fourth UNC player to score 1,000 points in the first two seasons with the program, joining an exclusive group that includes Ivory Latta, Marion Jones and Allisha Gray.
• Cherry is shooting 88.3 percent (68-of-77) from the free throw line in conference games.
• Janelle Bailey has a league-leading six ACC Rookie of the Week honors this season.
• Carolina is 3rd in the ACC in free throw shooting (74.3%). The Tar Heels are even better in conference play ranking 2nd at 76.5%.
• The school record for free throw shooting was set in 2005-06 at 72.4%

NEXT UP
Carolina faces No. 20 Duke on Sunday at 2 p.m.