University of North Carolina Athletics
Friday, November 29
Cancun, Mex.
6:30 PM ET
North Carolina
vs
Missouri
With her mom yelling at her to play defense, Madinah Muhammad led the Tar Heels with 20 points against Temple.
With Mom In The Stands, Muhammad Has Her Best Scoring Game Yet
November 29, 2019 | Women's Basketball
CANCUN, Mexico – As senior Madinah Muhammad scored 10 of the game's first 12 points in UNC's 71-58 women's basketball win over Temple Thursday night, there was one voice she heard above all the others in the announced crowd of 186 at the Hard Rock Hotel Riveriera Maya.
And that voice was yelling at her to play defense.
Rasheda Muhammad traveled to Mexico from Chicago to see her daughter play in a Tar Heel uniform for the first time. After sitting out a year following her transfer to UNC from Mississippi, Madinah Muhammad ("Dino" to her teammates) is five games into her UNC career and the fifth game was the best so far.
"Any time my mom comes to a game I just play so much different," Muhammad said. "She's always watching online, but the few times that she gets to see me in person I just try to play as hard as possible for her."
On Thursday, the Tar Heels tipped off at 9 p.m. in a converted hotel ballroom with a handful of families and staff members making up the entirety of the Carolina crowd. Still, Muhammad hadn't spotted her mom before the action started.
"I was looking for her and I couldn't find her," Muhammad said, "and then all I heard her say was 'D up!' and I was like, 'OK, she's here.' She's been saying that same thing since I was in AAU, so I know her voice."
While her mom was reminding her to play defense, Muhammad led UNC on the offensive end, hitting two three-pointers to open the game. She had 17 by halftime and finished with a team-best 20 points, her high score in a Tar Heel uniform.
Through five games, she's averaging 13.4 points per game. She's hit at least one three-pointer in each game, with Thursday's four her season high.
More Tar Heel Notes
• Against Temple, Janelle Bailey grabbed her 600th career rebound. She's the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 points and 600 rebounds.
• Shayla Bennett played a season-high 39 minutes against Temple as the Tar Heels got all of their scoring from starting five.
• Freshman Malu Tshitenge is averaging a double-double with 14.0 points and a team-high 10.6 rebounds.
• Four players have scored in double figures in each of the Tar Heels' first five games.
• Temple's 58 points and 50 rebounds were both highs by a Carolina opponent this season.
• The Tar Heels hit season highs in free throws made (24) and attempted (37).
• UNC and Missouri have played just one other time, in 1985. UNC leads the series 1-0.
• With the win over the Owls, UNC is 5-0 for the first time since 2014, when the Tar Heels opened the season with nine wins in a row.
• UNC is now 5-1 in this event. The Tar Heels were 2-1 in their last visit, in 2013, and 2-0 in 2005, the first year of the event.
And that voice was yelling at her to play defense.
Rasheda Muhammad traveled to Mexico from Chicago to see her daughter play in a Tar Heel uniform for the first time. After sitting out a year following her transfer to UNC from Mississippi, Madinah Muhammad ("Dino" to her teammates) is five games into her UNC career and the fifth game was the best so far.
"Any time my mom comes to a game I just play so much different," Muhammad said. "She's always watching online, but the few times that she gets to see me in person I just try to play as hard as possible for her."
On Thursday, the Tar Heels tipped off at 9 p.m. in a converted hotel ballroom with a handful of families and staff members making up the entirety of the Carolina crowd. Still, Muhammad hadn't spotted her mom before the action started.
"I was looking for her and I couldn't find her," Muhammad said, "and then all I heard her say was 'D up!' and I was like, 'OK, she's here.' She's been saying that same thing since I was in AAU, so I know her voice."
While her mom was reminding her to play defense, Muhammad led UNC on the offensive end, hitting two three-pointers to open the game. She had 17 by halftime and finished with a team-best 20 points, her high score in a Tar Heel uniform.
Through five games, she's averaging 13.4 points per game. She's hit at least one three-pointer in each game, with Thursday's four her season high.
More Tar Heel Notes
• Against Temple, Janelle Bailey grabbed her 600th career rebound. She's the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 points and 600 rebounds.
• Shayla Bennett played a season-high 39 minutes against Temple as the Tar Heels got all of their scoring from starting five.
• Freshman Malu Tshitenge is averaging a double-double with 14.0 points and a team-high 10.6 rebounds.
• Four players have scored in double figures in each of the Tar Heels' first five games.
• Temple's 58 points and 50 rebounds were both highs by a Carolina opponent this season.
• The Tar Heels hit season highs in free throws made (24) and attempted (37).
• UNC and Missouri have played just one other time, in 1985. UNC leads the series 1-0.
• With the win over the Owls, UNC is 5-0 for the first time since 2014, when the Tar Heels opened the season with nine wins in a row.
• UNC is now 5-1 in this event. The Tar Heels were 2-1 in their last visit, in 2013, and 2-0 in 2005, the first year of the event.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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/ Women's Basketball
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/ Women's Basketball
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