University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
25-4,13-3ACC
Louisville
19-8,12-4ACC
Comeback Complete, WBB Storms Back To Down Louisville On The Road
February 23, 2025 | Women's Basketball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – With its back against the wall, No. 9 North Carolina once again showed its grit to overcome a double-figure deficit and come away with the 79-75 win over Louisville from the KFC Yum! Center on Sunday. The Tar Heels picked up their first win over the Cardinals on their home court in program history to move to 9-0 in away games and remain the last undefeated team on the road in the nation.
Despite trailing through the first three quarters, North Carolina (25-4, 13-3 ACC) put its foot to the gas in the fourth quarter to topple Louisville (19-8, 12-4 ACC) and earn its seventh straight victory. Carolina moves to 6-0 in February and earns its 25th regular season win for the most in a single season since 2012-13.
Powered by the duo of Trayanna Crisp and Lanie Grant, with some of their best performances of the season, Carolina only led for 58 seconds in Sunday's meeting. Grant tallied a new career-high 19 points off of five made field goals and went a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line.
In her third game back from injury, Crisp scored a season-high 19 points off of seven made field goals and dished out two assists.
Remaining hot, Reniya Kelly tallied 16 points and dished out a team-high five assists. With a smooth shot, Lexi Donarski shot a perfect 5-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 from beyond the arc to end her day with 13 points.
Nearly totaling a double-double, Maria Gakdeng led all off the glass with 11 rebounds and added nine points.
A 13-0 run from Louisville created an early deficit for Carolina, working to adjust to a hostile environment from the KFC Yum! Arena. Draining three triples in the first quarter, Carolina began to close the gap on the Cardinals to trail 20-14 through the first 10 minutes.
Struggling to get in a rhythm offensively, Louisville built a 12-point advantage over the Tar Heels midway through the second quarter. Three straight buckets from UNC gave the Tar Heels a spark, starting to light it up from three. A 13-3 run forced a one possession game with the halftime break approaching. Scoring two straight baskets in the final minute, Louisville went ahead 35-29 through the first half.
Working to close in on the Cardinals, Carolina pulled within five through multiple stretches in the third. Trailing by eight with the last possession of the quarter, a clean assist from Townsend to Crisp for three allowed Carolina to cut its deficit to 55-50 heading into the fourth.
All grit from Carolina, the duo of Crisp and Grant spearheaded the continued comeback. A huge triple from Grant followed by a made free throw allowed Carolina to meet Louisville at 72 and then grab its first lead of the game by one with 2:30 remaining. Once again tied at 73, Louisville played hard to earn a trip to the free throw line to grab a two-point advantage with 1:39 left.
Putting on a defensive clinic, back-to-back buckets from Kelly and Crisp put the Tar Heels ahead by two with a mere 39 seconds on the clock. Locking down the Cardinals from the field, Carolina held Louisville without a field goal for the final minute and a half of the game. Sealing it at the free throw line, Kelly drained her two free-throws to put a win in sight. Scoring 29 points in the final frame off of shooting 80% from the field, Carolina earned its largest comeback win of the season 79-75.
The Tar Heels return to the Triangle for the short trip down Tobacco Road for the second meeting this season against Duke, this time from Durham. Tip on Thursday from Cameron Indoor is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, airing on ESPN.
