Allisha Gray leads Tar Heels to wins over Howard and UCLA

With the shot clock winding down and the ball in her hands, sophomore Allisha Gray turned left, turned right, hoping to find any teammate for an open look.

But she was trapped at the top-left corner of the 3-point arc. And after a strong right-foot pivot, she faded back and heaved a desperation turn-around jumper.

“All I heard was, ‘3…2...1…’ and I turned around and shot it,” Gray said. “I (saw) the rotation of the ball, and I was like, ‘This shot is not about to go in.’”

But it was a clean swish, as the crowd erupted in response to her miracle shot. Moments later, she nailed a pull-up jumper from the left elbow, prompting UCLA Coach Cori Close to call a timeout and regroup her squad, who ultimately lost to the No. 13 Tar Heels 84-68 Sunday. 

“You can’t just take away Gray’s 3-point shot and think, ‘Oh, got her,’” said Close, who formerly coached in the ACC and has been familiar with Gray’s game since she was in the eighth grade. “You have to be collectively focused together for 40 minutes, otherwise she’s going to find her spots.”

And find her spots she did. Gray hit a wide-open, fast-break 3-pointer just a minute later, smiling wide as she got back on defense. The shot punctuated a 15-2 run by the North Carolina women's basketball team, during which Gray scored 11 of her team-high 19 points, against the No. 23 Bruins on Sunday.

“She had 30 against us last year, so you would think we might have learned our lesson,” Close said. “It’s a credit to her. She’s a really, really good player.”

But the modest leader, who also had a team-leading 19 points in UNC's 83-49 win over Howard on Friday, credited her teammates for her scoring success.

"My teammates did a good job of helping me get open," Gray said. "Without them I wouldn't have these points." 

It seemed the only one capable of stopping Gray was herself. After getting into foul trouble early Sunday, she finished the game with four personals, limiting her to 21 minutes.

As the team’s second-leading rebounder thus far, Gray’s absence led to the team’s woes on the glass.

“UCLA is a great rebounding team, but some of it was the foul trouble,” Coach Sylvia Hatchell said. “Anytime those kids aren’t in there, we’re usually not as quite as strong on the boards.”

But despite being confined to the bench, Gray’s trademark smile never wavered.

“It’s definitely frustrating to get the four fouls, but I was on the bench cheering my butt off for my teammates,” said Gray, whose exuberance showed even while she recalled the game. “They’re scoring, I’m celebrating. So it wasn’t a problem for me.”

Even with the immense talent that she displays, Gray’s demeanor is what makes her such a dangerous threat.

“She’s just got so many different ways she can hurt you, but she’s mentally steady,” Close said. “She doesn’t ride the highs and lows.”

This hasn’t been apparent the entire season. Though she led her team in scoring for both exhibition games this season, her shooting performance was below her standard of play.

But an altered mindset before the team’s first regular-season game resulted in her strong performances.

“I changed my mentality, (and) I told myself to stay positive throughout the whole game,” Gray said. “If you miss, you miss; you make, you make. It just so happened to click for me.”

And if this weekend is any indication, her emotional consistency is sure to put a smile on North Carolina basketball fans’ faces this season.

sports@dailytarheel.com