One step, two steps.
A human wall. Nowhere to pass the ball.
Three steps. A travel.
That was the story of the afternoon for Norfolk State as No. 19 North Carolina dominated the Spartans, 90-47, at Carmichael Arena on Saturday. UNC’s on and off-ball defense excelled against the Spartans, stifling their ball movement and forcing them into isolation, leading to turnovers and travel calls.
Graduate guard Grace Townsend led the team with three of UNC's eight steals. In the third quarter, Townsend plucked the ball right out of Norfolk State guard Niya Fields’ hands at mid court, stopping the Spartan possession before it even began. Though her layup on the fast break missed the mark, her defensive effort eventually resulted in free throws for the Tar Heels.
“We take pride in our defense that even if our shots aren’t going in, we try to get stops every possession,” Townsend said.
And that's exactly what North Carolina did. Norfolk State averaged 13 assists a game prior to Saturday, but recorded a season-low one assist in its loss to the Tar Heels. While their 28.6 percent field goal shooting didn’t allow for many assists, the Spartans were able to find some open looks when their ball movement was fluid. But it was UNC’s off-ball defense that prevented that movement throughout the game.
With about seven minutes left in the second quarter, Norfolk State guard Anjanae Richardson drove into the paint on Townsend as all of her teammates waited around the perimeter. A few feet away from the rim, she picked up the ball.
But before the guard could put up a shot or kick the ball to one of her teammates outside, Townsend smacked the ball out of her hands, collected it and threw an outlet to graduate forward Alyssa Ustby for an easy layup at the other end.
