ACC Tournament: Tar Heels lose to Virginia Tech Hokies in overtime

The UNC women’s basketball team fell to the Virginia Tech Hokies in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday.

The Tar Heels had their chances in a Friday afternoon ACC Tournament quarterfinal matchup with the shorthanded Virginia Tech Hokies, but they simply couldn’t take advantage when it mattered most.

There were also a number of questionable calls by yet another subpar ACC officiating crew that somehow all went against the Tar Heels in the waning moments of the tightly-contested game. I’d be remiss to blame the Tar Heels’ loss solely on the officiating because it’s the players and not the referees that shoot free throws in the fourth quarter of games. But the combination of missed opportunities at the foul line and multiple 50/50 calls going the Hokies’ way was simply too much to overcome for the fourth-seeded Tar Heels.

Thus, the Hokies will make their first-ever semifinal appearance in the ACC Tournament, and the Tar Heels will await Selection Sunday (March 13 at 8:00 p.m. EST on ESPN) to find out when and where their next game of the season will be played.

After a slow first half, North Carolina’s Deja Kelly turned it on following the intermission. She finished the game with 18 points, six assists, three rebounds and just two turnovers in 40 minutes of play. Alyssa Ustby, who fouled out of the game with 1:32 remaining in overtime, also scored 18 points for the Tar Heels. She hit 7-of-13 shots for the game including 2-of-4 from three-point range and 2-of-2 at the free throw line. She also pulled down seven rebounds and dished out four assists.

Anya Poole added 14 points and 10 rebounds in 34 minutes, and Kennedy Todd-Williams gave the Tar Heels 11 points and nine rebounds. Eva Hodgson scored 13 points, including the most clutch three-pointer of the game to tie the score at 69 as time expired. She hit a team-high three treys on the day while adding three assists, two steals and a rebound off the UNC bench.

The Tar Heels shot 43.7 percent (31-for-71) from the floor, 35 percent (7-for-20) from long-range, and 64.7 percent (11-for-17) at the foul line. The latter proved to be quite costly late in the game. North Carolina held a 35-32 rebounding edge overall and a commanding 11-3 margin on the offensive glass. The Tar Heels only committed eight turnovers to the Hokies’ 14, but got whistled for 22 personal fouls — seven more than Virginia Tech.

Virginia Tech, who improved to 23-8 overall, played without junior guard Cayla King and got just 11 minutes from ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley before she was sidelined with an injury, but still managed to come away with the victory.

The Hokies got 22 points apiece from Georgia Amoore and Aisha Sheppard, as well as 19 from Kayana Traylor. The Hokies shot 50.9 percent (27-for-53) from the floor, 37.9 percent (11-for-29) from long-range, and 81.5 percent (22-for-27) at the foul line.

North Carolina, now 23-6 on the season, will have nearly two weeks off before their next game.

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