Duke Women’s Basketball Sweeps UNC in Season Series

CHAPEL HILL –  The Tobacco Road Rivalry ensued today as the Duke Blue Devils women’s basketball team played the North Carolina Tar Heels on senior day at Carmichael Arena, Sunday, Mar. 1.

The Tar Heels trailed the Blue Devils 41-32 at halftime, but a second-half run gave the Duke their largest lead of the game with 7:32 left in the fourth period and they defeated the Tar Heels 73-54.

North Carolina  (16-13, 7-11 ACC) shot poorly from all levels of the court; Duke  (18-11, 12-6 ACC) outrebounded North Carolina 43-to-30 due to junior center Janelle Bailey missing another game.

Duke capitalized on their second chance opportunities and 3-pointers. They made eight and the Tar Heels had two 3-pointers.

Duke senior guard  Haley Gorecki was player of the game racking up 23 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Duke also had a strong contribution from sophomore post player Onome Akinbode-James with 10 points and 5 rebounds. 

North Carolina senior guard Taylor Koenen finished as the team’s leading scorer with 18 points. Freshman forward Malu Tshitenge recorded a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, and senior guard Shayla Bennett also scored in double-figures with 10 points.

What’s Next

UNC finished the regular season on a seven-game losing streak. ACC Tournament beings Tuesday,  Mar. 10, at the Greensboro Coliseum.

“It’s feels like a new season,” said North Carolina senior guard Shayla Bennett, “and it’s zero-zero. We go out there and [will] play like we’ve never lost a game.”

Janelle Bailey is a gameday decision for North Carolina’s first game in the Tournament, and the only chance they have of making it to the big dance is if they win the conference tournament.

The Blue Devils won seven of their last eight games of the regular season and finished third in the conference. They will play their first game of the conference tournament Friday, Mar. 6, at 8 p.m.

(Feature image courtesy of Landon Bost)