With a highly energetic crowd in attendance for both sides, North Carolina women’s basketball dropped its second game to its rival No. 3 N.C. State, losing 66-58.
What happened?
Unlike its previous outing against the Wolfpack in Raleigh, North Carolina came out and took control early on. The team got out to an early 5-0 lead after a Carlie Littlefield three-pointer and pair of free throws from sophomore forward Anya Poole. The Tar Heels recorded four steals before N.C. State got on the board.
Sophomore guard Kennedy Todd-Williams began to come alive for North Carolina in the first quarter, knocking down a midrange shot and two free throws to extend the lead to 9-2. Later in the quarter, after a layup and three-pointer from N.C. State guard Kai Crutchfield, Todd-Williams scored a fastbreak layup late in the quarter to put UNC up eight. The Wolfpack cut the lead to 19-13 to close out the period.
Early in the second quarter Todd-Williams knocked down another three-pointer , which was followed by another one from sophomore guard Alyssa Ustby. After a layup from Todd-Williams, Courtney Banghart’s team held a 27-15 lead against the nation’s third-ranked team.
N.C. State cut into the lead slightly, but redshirt-junior guard Eva Hodgson put the Tar Heels back up by 10 with a much needed three-point shot. UNC went into the half up 33-27, much better than its previous effort in early January.
In the third quarter, however, things took a turn for North Carolina.
It did not take long for N.C. State to cut into the six-point deficit, as the team tied the game up less than three minutes into the quarter. Elissa Cunane of N.C. State went on a personal 7-0 run – capped off by a three-pointer – to give the Wolfpack their first lead of the game.
For a stretch, they seemed to dominate the third quarter, putting up basket after basket while UNC experienced a severe scoring drought. The team didn’t score until nearly five minutes into the quarter with a Littlefield layup.
