University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
17-3,5-2ACC
Pittsburgh
9-11,1-6ACC
Three-Ball Powers No. 14 Carolina Past Pitt, 75-58
January 19, 2025 | Women's Basketball
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Wrapping up its week on the road, No. 14 North Carolina women's basketball withstood a challenge from a pesky Pitt team to come away with a 75-58 victory over the Panthers from the Petersen Events Center on Sunday. In an all-around team effort, the Tar Heels tallied 13 made threes to earn its sixth consecutive win over the Panthers.
North Carolina (17-3, 5-2 ACC) pushed past Pittsburgh (9-11, 1-6 ACC) for its fourth straight win and moves to 3-0 on the road in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The mark is Carolina's best start to conference action on the road since the 2013-14 season.
Remaining on fire from beyond the arc, Lexi Donarski tallied five three's for the second straight game as she went on to end her day with a team-high 15 points. All over the court for UNC, Indya Nivar set multiple career-highs with seven steals and five assists as she went on to add 12 points and eight rebounds.
A force off the glass, Maria Gakdeng snagged a season-high 14 rebounds while tallying seven points and three rejections. In a dominant effort, Carolina out-rebounded the Panthers by a margin of 28.
Continuing on a stellar freshman campaign, Lanie Grant drained three triples as she went on to score 13 points for her sixth game of the year in double-digits.
Going to work in the paint from the opening tip, Carolina fed Gakdeng to grab the first bucket of the day. Thriving in transition, Donarski remained hot from beyond the arc with two made three's in the first quarter as the Tar Heels jumped out to a narrow 14-9 lead.
With both teams' hands going cold, Grant warmed the Tar Heels up with back-to-back triples as Carolina began to create further separation from the Panthers. Holding Pitt to a multi-minute scoring drought, UNC worked to extend its advantage to double-figures for the first time in the game. Despite Pitt challenging back with a three-ball, Pennsylvania native Ciera Toomey responded with a jumper to push the game back to a double-figure Tar Heel advantage. Out-rebounding the Panthers by a margin of 11 in the first half, Carolina headed into the locker room ahead at 35-22.
The Panthers came out with a fight remaining against the Tar Heels, with a 5-0 run while Carolina struggled to get shots off. Another Donarski three ignited UNC to once again extend its lead to double-digits. Despite Carolina facing another cold streak from the field, the Tar Heels found success in transition to remain ahead at 47-35 heading into the fourth quarter.
Finding success from beyond the arc, with seven three's in the final 10 minutes the Tar Heels withstood a spirited run from the Panthers yet remained able to put them away, 75-58.
Carolina returns to Chapel Hill for a week at home hosting Wake Forest and Florida State. The Tar Heels take on the Demon Deacons on Thursday from Carmichael Arena at 7 p.m. ET, streaming on ACCNX.
