North Carolina and Boston College battled to the end in game one of the ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament. The highly physical, highly offensively efficient game ultimately led to a 69-64 Tarheel victory.
FINAL
— Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) February 28, 2018
Carolina 69 | Boston College 64
We advance to face 5th seed NC State on Thursday at 11 a.m. #GoHeels pic.twitter.com/McygerjqvN
North Carolina guard Paris Kea stressed how it was a “dream come true to play in front of hometown.” Finishing with a game-high 28 points, she did not disappoint.
Kea set the tempo for the game, scoring her first three within seconds. By the half, she nailed four of five from distance. Kea concluded the first 20 minutes with 20 points, leading all scorers. Finishing 12-22 shooting, she was half of Carolina’s it-factor.
A perfect complement to Kea, newly named Rookie of the Year Janelle Bailey proved why she was voted to such position. After a slow first half, due to a strategic Boston College double and triple-team defense, Bailey went from shooting 0-10 to 7-17, with a game total of a team second-best 16 points.
Boston College had a counter for North Carolina’s offensive production in sophomore guard Taylor Ortlepp. In the last two UNC/BC match-ups, she has not scored less than 20 points. Today, she finished with 23 points, including game-leading seven threes, and went 7-17 shooting. She now averages 22 points against Carolina.
Overall, very physical play ruled the game, and within the first quarter, three offensive fouls were called. Players scrambled to maintain possession of the ball, leading to jumpball after jumpball. The aggression continued the entire game, with some hard fouls in the last two minutes. But, as Bailey discussed in the press conference, “It’s just basketball. I look at it as a part of the game.”
Neither team lacked offensive efficiency. Carolina was simply able to score more. After a tough Boston College challenge resulting in a frozen first half for Bailey, she was able to step back and hit some critical mid-range jumpers to add to Kea’s clutch shots on the wing. The versatility of key players separated them. Carolina, known for Kea, Bailey and Cherry producing the majority of points on any given night, players like Murray and Koenen created runs that sparked their team at just the right time. Though true, Carolina’s transition defense must improve to advance far in this tournament.
The Summitt spoke with Kea after the game and she shared her thoughts on today’s matchup as well as excitement for the playoff environment. Check it out below:
To date, North Carolina has the most wins in ACC Tournament history (61) and has won nine ACC titles, second only to former ACC-school, Maryland. North Carolina will advance and play North Carolina State tomorrow at 11 am ET.