The North Carolina women’s basketball team lost 75-85 to Kentucky in the last game of the Paradise Jam tournament in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.
What happened?
UNC (5-2) started the game out well, propelling to a 22-11 lead by a 13-2 run in the first quarter. Kentucky (7-0) would go on to cut the lead to just two by the end of the quarter, with star Wildcats guard Rhyne Howard hitting two three pointers and and a pair of free throws.
In the second quarter, North Carolina managed to push its lead up to nine off the back of Stephanie Watts, who made three 3-pointers in the quarter. The third quarter saw the Tar Heels maintain a six point lead, albeit while only scoring 13 points in the period.
It all fell apart for UNC in the fourth quarter, as Kentucky went on an offensive explosion, outscoring North Carolina 31-15 to eventually win the game by 10. North Carolina struggled with turnovers, registering five in the quarter. The Wildcats shot 16 free-throws in the fourth quarter alone, compared to just four by the Tar Heels.
Who stood out?
Stephanie Watts had her best game of the season, scoring 27 points in 39 minutes and compiling four rebounds, three assists and three blocks. Watts was the only Tar Heel to score over 13 points, and one of only two players who took more than 10 shots.
North Carolina struggled the entire game with turnovers, giving up 27 by the end of the game. The lack of possessions led to Kentucky having 15 more shots on the game than UNC, as well as getting to the free throw line six more times. Kentucky outscored North Carolina on points off turnovers 34-17.
The rest of the team struggled to find offensive rhythm. Paris Kea, usually an efficient and reliable scorer, scored just 13 points on 3-15 shooting. Taylor Koenen scored just five points in 37 minutes of action, while being counted for eight turnovers. Koenen also had 11 rebounds, including three offensive rebounds.
