Kelly’s Career Night Leads UNC Over Clemson

CHAPEL HILL, NC – The North Carolina women’s basketball team started Sunday’s game with a 12-0 run and ended it 13-0, beating Clemson 81-62 at Carmichael Arena to stay undefeated on the season. The 24th-ranked Tar Heels (13-0) improved to 3-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play for the first time since the 2012-13 season.

Sophomore guard Deja Kelly scored a career-high 31 points, including a career-best five three-pointers, to lead four Tar Heels in double figures. Kennedy Todd-Williams scored 14 points, equal to her season-high, and made a career-high five steals. Alyssa Ustby had a career-high six steals to go with her 10 points, and junior Eva Hodgson chipped in 10 points off the bench, including three buckets from long-range as the Tar Heels combined for 10 three-pointers.

Delicia Washington led Clemson (6-8, 0-3 ACC) with 16 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

As a team, the Tar Heels totaled 18 steals, their second-highest of the season and their best in ACC play, and forced Clemson into 25 turnovers, more than the Tigers’ 24 field goals. 

“There were a lot of things our guys did right – we forced more turnovers than they made baskets,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “That’s a statistic that people like, but I also think when you get 18 steals and 18 offensive rebounds it shows a level of grit and preparedness and accountability that kind of speaks for itself.”

Playing at home for the third game in a row, the Tar Heels got four quick points from Ustby to take a lead they’d never give up. Todd-Williams had five points in that early run, which was capped by a three from grad student Carlie Littlefield to put Carolina up 12-0 just over three minutes into the game. After Clemson’s Delicia Washington scored to get her team on the board, Kelly’s first three of the night that she hit to make it 15-2.

UNC led 22-13 after the first quarter and saw the Tigers get as close as four points at 24-20 with 6:31 to play in the second, but the Tar Heels closed the half on a 22-4 run to make it 46-24 at halftime.

Carolina kept the margin above 20 throughout the third quarter, pushing the advantage to 30 on a layup by Todd-Williams (two of the 27 points UNC scored off turnovers), 58-28 with 6:08 to play.

Clemson started the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run to draw within 14, but an Ustby jumper broke the drought and the Tigers never got closer. Next up was the three-pointer that moved Kelly past her old career-high of 25,  scored by the Texas native in the win at TCU in November. It put the Tar Heels up 19, 73-54, with 7:02 to play and they rolled to the finish from there.

Kelly’s 18 points after halftime are the most in a half by a Tar Heel this season. Her scoring total is the second-highest in ACC play this season and one of just two 30+ games. (Virginia Tech’s Elizabeth Kitley has the other, with 34 points vs Florida State.) Yet when asked about the game, Kelly’s first thought was her team’s defense. 

“Overall I thought we played really well as a unit,” she said. “Our defense was good – we had 18 steals and that just shows how connected we played on the defensive end, and that led to a lot of transition buckets and easy offense for us.”

In addition to her scoring high, Kelly had four assists (tied with Ustby for the team lead), two steals, a block, and just one turnover in 34:30 on the court.

“I think it was Kelly’s best game as a Tar Heel,” Banghart said. “She started the game by distributing play – she was able to get other people great looks because they were focusing so much on Deja, and that forced them to spread out a little bit, and then she was able to attack.

“It was fun to have her on our team, as it always is.”