UNC Basketball: Tar Heels destroy 21st-ranked Blue Devils in Durham

The UNC women’s basketball program traveled to Durham on Thursday night to take on the Duke Blue Devils in the first of two meetings this season.

On Thursday night, the North Carolina Tar Heels made the short trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium, a place where they hadn’t won a game since 2014, and obliterated their longtime rival, the Duke Blue Devils, by a final score of 78-62.

North Carolina was led by sophomore guard Alyssa Ustby, who scored a game-high 20 points on a 9-for-15 shooting performance that included 1-for-1 from three-point range and 1-for-1 at the free throw line. She added six rebounds, three steals and one assist in one of her most dynamic performances of the season.

Kennedy Todd-Williams scored 15 points to go along with seven rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks in one of the most sensational all-around performances we’ve seen from any Tar Heel this season. The Tar Heels also got a pair of nine-point games from Anya Poole and Carlie Littlefield, as well as 18 points from their bench.

Thursday night’s game was the second in a row that UNC leading scorer, Deja Kelly, failed to score in double-figures. She finished the game with seven points on a 2-for-15 shooting night and is now just 5-for-27 from the floor in her last two outings.

As a team, the Tar Heels hit 32-of-71 (45.1 percent) shots for the game, 6-of-16 (37.5 percent) from beyond the arc and 8-of-12 (66.7 percent) at the foul line. They lost the rebounding battle by nine (44-35), but had more assists, blocks and steals, and committed 12 fewer turnovers.

Duke got 14-point games out of Miela Goodchild and Elizabeth Balogun, and 10 points from Shayeann Day-Wilson. The Blue Devils hit 23-of-60 (38.3 percent) shots overall and 7-of-25 (28 percent) from long-range. They committed 18 costly turnovers and never really threatened to win after trailing by 21 points at halftime. The loss drops them to 13-5 on the season and 4-4 in conference play.

North Carolina, now 16-3 overall and 6-3 in the ACC, will face off with No. 3 NC State on Sunday afternoon at Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels lost their first contest of the season against NC State, 72-45.

Check back with Keeping It Heel for coverage of that game, as well as all the latest on the UNC women’s basketball program.