Carmichael Comments: BC/NC State Roundup

CARMICHAEL COMMENTS — Inside Carolina Women's Basketball: Edition 19
By: Matt Krause (@MattKrausePxP)

BOSTON COLLEGE WIN RADIO HIGHLIGHTS

The stage was set.

Nearly 5,000 fans in Carmichael Arena. Special pink uniforms for Play4Kay Day. A chance at a third straight win, a third top 10 win of the season, and a season sweep of a Triangle rival in NC State.

It would have been quite the Carmichael sendoff for Greensboro's Paris Kea.

But despite 32 points from the Tar Heel superstar, one of the most prolific scorers in school history, the visiting No. 9 Wolfpack spoiled the party with a 74-69 win.

Don't get me wrong, it was still a memorable day for Kea. Just not quite perfect.

Instead, Kea and the Tar Heels will enter the month of March with pressure mounting to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

Sunday's game started as a defensive struggle, with the Tar Heels up 29-26 at the half. Carolina was playing without Stephanie Watts, who has now missed the last five halves with a hyperextended knee. As to be expected under those circumstances, Kea was Carolina's leading scorer at the break with 12 points. She chipped in 20 more in the second half, but despite several heroic plays down the stretch, the Wolfpack picked up the win.

"She's special," Carolina Head Coach Sylvia Hatchell said of Kea. "She's great with the ball in her hands and she can take it in there. She waits until the defense actually comes down lots of times, so now she's open because you can't go up and down at the same time. She waits for them to start to come down, then she goes up."

The 32 points for Kea marked a season-high, surpassing the 30 she scored in Carolina's upset win over No. 1 Notre Dame. Plenty of highlights from that game were played on the video board as Kea walked out to the center of the court pregame, flanked by her family. With a standing ovation raining down upon her, Kea was presented with a framed 22 jersey, which she promptly raised aloft while sporting a gigantic grin.

"Today was kind of emotional," Kea reflected postgame. "The fans were absolutely amazing tonight. A lot of my family came out, and it was just great seeing a lot of family I haven't seen in a while. It was awesome."

The scene was emotional for Hatchell as well.

"She will go down as one of our best guards that we have ever had here," the 33rd-year Tar Heel leader remarked. "I think her best is yet to come. She will be a great WNBA player."

But even with summertime play on national television and a professional contract on the horizon, Kea knows that the first task at hand for her is to get the Tar Heels off the mat and back on track headed into March.

"Playing at UNC has been great," Kea said. "It's not over yet, we still have some important games coming up."

Especially after Sunday's result, she's right. The Tar Heels will enter March at 17-12 overall and 8-7 in the ACC. With just one regular season game — the rematch against Duke —and the ACC Tournament separating Carolina from selection Monday, the Tar Heels likely need 1-2 more wins to solidify their NCAA Tournament berth.

Hopefully, the "bye" week this week allows Carolina to rest up and grab those necessary wins.

Here's a few other nuggets from the week that was…

BAILEY BATTERS BC
In Carolina's 93-78 win over Boston College on Thursday night, the Tar Heels shot 57% and put up an ACC-play high 93 points. 31 of those points came from Janelle Bailey, who established a new career high in the process. The Charlotte sophomore was 12-for-18 from the floor, and drained six of her eight free throws.

While Bailey's physicality and athleticism are key factors in a performance like that, Coach Hatchell credits the presence of a fellow sophomore on the floor.

"Leah [Church] didn't score that much, but she stretches the defense, she really does," Hatchell said. "She helps because they're going to guard her. They're all over her when she's out there, so that makes it better for everybody else. Janelle gets seen."

WATTS' ABSENCE FELT
Stephanie Watts missed both games this week as she recovers from the injury she sustained against Virginia on Feb. 17. While Carolina posted a win without her on Thursday, Coach Hatchell lamented her absence on Sunday. After all, Watts posted a team-high 20 points in the Feb. 3 win against NC State, and hauled in eight rebounds in the victory.

"Had Stephanie been out there, it would have really helped a lot," Hatchell said. "She helps us not just scoring, but she also helps on defense."

PLAY4KAY
Sunday was Carolina's annual Play4Kay Day celebration, an event where both teams wear pink-themed uniforms to help raise awareness of Breast Cancer and honor the legacy of former NC State Head Coach Kay Yow.

As a cancer survivor herself, having missed the 2013-14 season while undergoing treatments for Leukemia, Hatchell appreciates the symbolism of the day.

"It is special in a lot of ways," she said. "Yesterday with the team, before we did our film work, I did a thing about the game today and about Kay [Yow] and my relationship with her and everything like that and just how special today was for the Kay Yow foundation. Also, Lineberger, our cancer center, and what they've done for me."

UP NEXT
Carolina will have its second of two "bye" weeks during the midweek portion of the schedule this week, meaning no Thursday game for the Tar Heels. With the opportunity for rest presented to them, Carolina will spend the week practicing for a critical rematch against Duke. The second of two meeting this season between the Tobacco Road archrivals is set for Sunday, March 3 at Noon from Cameron Indoor Stadium. Join us on the Tar Heel Sports Network via 97.9 FM/1360 AM WCHL, GoHeels.com, the GoHeels app, or TuneIn (search "Tar Heel Sports Network").

In the meantime, we'll have another edition of Sylvia Hatchell Live on Thursday (Coach Hatchell's birthday!) at The Carolina Club. Join us at 6:00 in the O'Herron Grill as we talk all things Carolina Women's Basketball. If you can't be there in person, listen live on GoHeels.com, the GoHeels app, and TuneIn. Also, catch the show at 8:00 on Thursday on WCHL 97.9 FM/1360 AM.

That's all for now! Go Heels!

-Matt