No. 23 WBB Drops Back-And-Forth Battle At Virginia Tech

Sunday, February 13

Blacksburg, Va.

1 PM

North Carolina

19-5,9-5ACC

Virginia Tech

19-6,11-3ACC

North Carolina

Virginia Tech

The Tar Heels fell at Virginia Tech on Sunday afternoon.

Photo by: Virginia Tech Athletics

February 13, 2022 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Despite leading by as many as 12 points in the first quarter, the No. 23 North Carolina women's basketball team fell at Virginia Tech on Sunday afternoon, 66-61.

The Tar Heels are now 19-5 overall and 9-5 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. Virginia Tech, which is receiving votes in both national polls and knocked off No. 11 Georgia Tech on Thursday, improved to 19-6 (11-3) and remained unbeaten at home in ACC play.

"Hats off to Virginia Tech," UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. "This is a really tough team to beat on the road and they're playing really well right now. We knew the challenge was going to be a big one today."

Great fight, Heels. Credit to VT…shot lights out. You have yourselves a group of fighters, Tar Heel nation. This crew is going to win a lot of games in the Carolina Blue. https://t.co/Ow6zsai9DU
— Courtney Banghart (@CoachBanghart) February 13, 2022

The Tar Heels claimed the season's first meeting with a lopsided 71-46 win in Chapel Hill on Jan. 9. Carolina jumped out to a big advantage in this one as well, looking for a third consecutive road win. The visitors hit five of their first eight shots and put together a 9-0 run out of the first media timeout to lead 21-9 after the first quarter. It marked the fourth game in a row and the 11^th time this season that the Tar Heels had held their opponent in single-digit scoring in the first quarter.

Carolina scored five points in the final 59 seconds of the period, capped by a Deja Kelly three-point play with 13 seconds on the clock to give the sophomore guard more points in the period – 10 – than the entire Virginia Tech team had scored.

But the second quarter saw the momentum swing back the other way, with Virginia Tech outscoring UNC 22-7 to take a three-point lead, 31-28, into halftime. The Hokies grabbed their first lead of the day with 1:11 to play in the period on a three by Georgia Amoore, who finished the day with a team-high 17 points. She hit five from long range and the Hokies got four more from Aisha Sheppard, who became the ACC's career leader in three-pointers with her second of the day. Virginia Tech, the top three-point shooting team in the ACC, finished with 11 threes (on 28 attempts).

The Tar Heels tied the game early in the third quarter after a three from Kelly and a lay-up by Alyssa Ustby, 33-33 with 8:13 to go in the period. After a Virginia Tech free throw, a jumper by Ustby gave the Tar Heels a one-point advantage with 7:28 to play, 35-34. Amoore again answered, hitting a three 14 seconds later, and the Tar Heels didn't lead again.

"Amoore played awesome for them and was able to create some separation and get into her shot," Banghart said. "They shot really well today – that was a huge difference in the game.

"They made big shots when they counted and we had a tough time countering that."

After the home team went up by as many as 12, the Tar Heels got the margin down as low as four points on a three-point play by Ustby with 4:07 remaining (47-43) but got no closer. Ustby hit her only three of the game with just over a minute to play to draw within five, and that 66-61 margin would stand for the final score.

Ustby finished with a game-high 12 rebounds and also had 12 points for her 11^th double-double of the season and fourth in a row. Kelly led the Tar Heels with 17, and UNC got 10 each from Eva Hodgson and Carlie Littlefield.

UNC won the rebounding battle 39-32, including an 18-9 advantage in offensive rebounds.

For the third game in a row, the Tar Heels were stellar from the foul line, hitting 12-13 (92.3).

Next up for the Tar Heels is another steep challenge, a home game against third-ranked Louisville on Thursday. Banghart is confident her team is better prepared after Sunday's battle.

"To come in and shoot 26 percent from three, 32 percent from two and almost win this game ... this group is a tough out," she said. "Every game that's like this gets them a little bit better. I think this game, although the result isn't what we came for, we got a little bit better. And that's the goal."