UNC Basketball: Deja Kelly shines in Tar Heels’ victory over Seminoles

The UNC women’s basketball team followed up their impressive victory over third-ranked Louisville with a convincing road win at Florida State.

Deja Kelly scored a game-high 26 points for the 24th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in a 64-49 victory over the Florida State Seminoles on Sunday.

Kelly was hot early in this one, as she scored nine of the Tar Heels’ first 14 points and had 14 of her own at the half. After adding another dozen to her total in the second half, she finished the game with a 9-for-15 mark from the floor and 2-for-4 from three-point range. She hit all six of her attempts at the free throw line while adding five assists, four rebounds and a steal in 40 minutes of play.

Alyssa Ustby earned her fifth double-double in the last six games, scoring 12 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Kennedy Todd-Williams added 10 points and eight rebounds, while six other Tar Heels combined for just 16 points on 7-of-24 shooting for the game.

The Tar Heels hit 39.7 percent (25-for-63) of their shots on the day and 33.3 percent (6-for-18) beyond the arc. They only made it to the free throw line nine times as a team but converted eight of their attempts. North Carolina assisted on 12 of their 25 made buckets and outrebounded the Seminoles by eight (40-32).

Morgan Jones was Florida State’s only player to score in double figures (11) and 10 other Seminoles combined to score just 39. Although the Seminoles didn’t shoot that poorly for the game (37.5 percent), they struggled mightily from long-range where they hit a meager 4-of-15 and also made it to the free throw line just four times. The loss drops FSU to 14-12 overall and 8-8 in Atlantic Coast Conference play.

North Carolina, now 21-5 on the season and 11-5 in league play, will now prepare for a Thursday night game against the Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville.

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