University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
10-3,0-1ACC
UNCW
3-6,0-0CAA
No. 18 Tar Heels Roll Past In-State Foe UNCW, 84-34
December 17, 2025 | Women's Basketball
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – In the penultimate non-conference matchup, No. 18 North Carolina women's basketball picked up a commanding, 84-34 win against in-state foe UNCW on Wednesday night in Carmichael Arena. Leading the way for the Tar Heels was first-year standout Nyla Brooks with 16 points, tying her career-high baskets from deep with four triples.
North Carolina (10-3, 0-1 ACC) earned their seventh straight win over UNCW (3-5, 0-0 CAA), the tenth non-conference win of the season. On the defensive end for Carolina, the team held UNCW to just 34 points on the night, the lowest the Tar Heels have allowed this season. Ferocious around the rim, the team posted a new season high in blocked shots with eight. Ciera Toomey led the way with four, tying her career high to lead UNC.
Off the glass UNC set a new season high in rebounds, accumulating 54 total. Causing chaos, 20 of those came on the offensive end, just one shy of the season high. Indya Nivar led the way with nine, followed by Toomey with eight.
At the tip, the Tar Heels were nailing the three-pointer left and right from contributors Elina Aarnisalo, Lanie Grant and Brooks. Before the first quarter was over, UNC had drained four baskets from deep. North Carolina finished the first quarter with 27 points, the most this season in the opening frame for the Tar Heels.
Defensively, the Tar Heels were hustling up and down the court forcing 13 Seahawk turnovers. Many of these takeaways led to easy open layup baskets, totaling 16 points in the first half off the UNCW miscues.
At the helm of the offense in the first half was the helping hands of the guards, dishing out passes to find the open Tar Heels for the score. At the end of the first half, North Carolina tallied 11 assists on 19 made field goals to lead comfortably at 47-18.
Down low, Toomey continued to dominate the paint with 15 points, her ninth game this season with double digit points. Blanca Thomas got her first block of the season, contributing to the efficient Tar Heel defense.
After the intermission the North Carolina bench continued to propel the Tar Heel offense, scoring 13 out of 20 Tar Heel points in the third quarter with major additions from Laila Hull and Taliyah Henderson adding five and three respectively.
Closing out the game, the Tar Heels rallied a 17-1 run in the last nine minutes of the game. Off the bench, Queiroz made a significant impact with six points and three assists, both of which are career highs for the Tar Heel. On the opposing side of the game, North Carolina held the Seahawks to just four points in a quarter, shooting a mere 7.1%, an opponent low for a UNC opponent. Overall, 11 players reached the bucket in its largest victory of the year as Carolina cruised to the 83-34 victory over UNCW.
Carolina wraps up non-conference action with a Sunday matinee, hosting Charleston Southern from Carmichael Arena at noon. Tip against the Buccaneers can be streamed on ACC Network Extra.
