No. 19 UNC women's basketball defeats No. 14 Duke, 53-46, in overtime

The No. 19 UNC women’s basketball team (14-3, 2-2 ACC) upset No. 14 Duke (12-4, 3-1 ACC), 53-46, on Thursday night at home.

Both teams struggled to find offense among a litany of turnovers in the first half, and runs in the second half left the teams even after four. Duke struck first in overtime, but a 3-pointer from graduate guard Lexi Donarski put a dagger in the game. 

Graduate guard Alyssa Ustby started off the scoring almost a minute into the game with a layup off an assist from junior guard Indiya Nivar. 

“Just to get it going, we deserved to score,” Nivar said. “I feel like we put so much effort in on the defensive end and to getting rebounds.”

But Duke’s Reigan Richardson hit a turnaround jumper a minute later to even the score. 

While the teams played at a fast pace, the score progressed slowly.  Halfway through the quarter, the teams combined for five turnovers and the score stood at 4-4. 

The rest of the quarter unfolded similarly. On one UNC possession, the Tar Heels missed a 3-pointer, a mid range jumper, and a layup before committing a foul on a rebound. 

Duke kickstarted the scoring again with two layups. But first year guard Lanie Grant brought North Carolina back within two on the next play when she drove the baseline and sent in a reverse layup from under the basket. 

The Blue Devils got the jump on UNC in the second quarter, with a turnaround jumper and a fast break layup, but the Tar Heels managed to stay in the game from the foul line, including three shots after Grant was fouled shooting. 

North Carolina’s  first field goal in almost five minutes came when sophomore guard Reniya Kelly drove the baseline after a baseline inbounds and put in a layup to make the score 14-13. 

UNC led by three points late in the quarter, but a Duke jumper and a free throw tied the game at 16-16 at the half. Each team recorded three blocks in the first and the Blue Devils led with five steals. 

Senior center Maria Gakdeng struck first in the second half, taking a pass from Ustby before pivoting towards the basket and splitting two defenders for a layup. 

Then, North Carolina broke away. They went on a 16-0 run, holding Duke to their halftime score. On one play, Nivar sent a halfcourt pass up to Ustby, who bounded towards the basket for a layup and her ninth point. 

On their next possession, first year center Blanca Thomas put in a layup, also assisted by Nivar. 

“I thought Indiya came in and played with a lot of confidence in the third quarter,” head coach Courtney Banghart said. “Obviously Blanca did what she did.”

With just over three minutes left in the third quarter, Donarski stepped around a defender on the perimeter before passing the ball to Nivar in the corner. Wide open, Nivar hit the first 3-pointer of the game for either team. 

Duke finally scored a layup with just under two minutes remaining in the quarter to make the score 32-18, then hit two straight 3-pointers to cut the lead to 8. 

The Blue devils came back alive in the fourth quarter, going on an 8-4 run to bring the deficit to two points. 

Three minutes later, Duke’s Richardson drained a 3-pointer from the wing to tie the game. 

Both teams had the chance to make a game winning shot, but a UNC turnover and a Duke miss sent the game to overtime, where Duke started the scoring with a wide open layup.  

But a minute later, after Thomas tied the game at the line, Donarski nailed a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to put the Tar Heels up three. 

“Growing up a North Carolina kid, I’ve always known how important this game is in all sports,” Thomas said. “So I just knew the win would just mean so much more.”

The Blue Devils hit their own three with under a minute left, but couldn’t keep from sending UNC to the line, and North Carolina held on. 

The Tar Heels will be back at home to play Boston College on Sunday at 2 p.m. 

@BeckettBrant