North Carolina
Maryland’s season ends with 74-66 loss to North Carolina in women’s NCAA Tournament
Elina Aarnisalo had 21 points, Lanie Grant scored 20, and North Carolina used a strong fourth quarter to beat Maryland 74-66 on Sunday and reach the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.
Nyla Harris had 14 points and eight rebounds and Indya Nivar added 11 points to help the fourth-seeded Tar Heels (28-7) advance in the Fort Worth 1 Regional later in the week. They will play the winner of No. 1 UConn vs. No. 9 Syracuse.
“We just had to stay aggressive,” North Carolina coach Courtney Banghart said. “But you don’t go this long into the season and not trust your (players). These are close games. We know they’re going to be. We’re prepared for it. I trust them.”
Oluchi Okananwa, who helped eliminate North Carolina last March in the Sweet 16 when she played for Duke, scored 21 points for No. 5 seed Maryland (24-9). Addi Mack had 13 points and Mir McLean had 12 points and 14 rebounds. The Terrapins couldn’t overcome 3-for-23 shooting on 3-pointers.
“I felt like it was there for the taking for us,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. “We didn’t manage enough plays to take it.”
After briefly falling behind, the Tar Heels used a 13-4 run, sparked by six points from Nivar, early in the fourth quarter for a 63-56 lead.
“They gave us a good run, and we kind of just did a good job of absorbing that and not panicking, not trying to do too much, not getting away from the game plan,” Grant said.
Maryland pulled within three in the final two minutes, but freshman Nyla Brooks drained a 3-pointer from in front of the North Carolina bench.
“Nyla Brooks has been shooting those 3s all season,” Aarnisalo said. “She’s not afraid to take any shots.”
The Terrapins failed to convert as part of 30.6% shooting in the second half.
“We had a lot of uncharacteristic missed shots in this game,” Frese said.
North Carolina took a 42-33 halftime lead, shooting 56.7% in the half.
Nivar picked up her fourth foul with 7:06 left in the third quarter. Maryland was even at 50-50 by the final minute of the quarter.
North Carolina has reached the Sweet 16 in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2014 and 2015.
Board work
Maryland was relentless on the boards, tracking down 21 offensive rebounds. Eventually, Banghart was hoping some of those shots would just go in.
“I got to the point where I was praying Oluchi would make her free throws because I didn’t want to have to rebound it,” Banghart said.
The Terrapins scored 21 second-chance points.
Needing more assists
Maryland’s three assists were its fewest this season and lowest total in an NCAA Tournament game.
The 66 points marked the third-lowest total of the season for Maryland, which entered averaging 82.8.
Up next
The Tar Heels advanced to the Sweet 16 for the 20th time.
Friends and family members gathered in Washington state on Saturday, remembering former Miss North Carolina Carrie Everett, who died on Easter Sunday. Another memorial service is planned in North Carolina next month.
Web Editor : Sydney Ross
Posted
Virginia 3, North Carolina 0 | First Quarter
Virginia 3, North Carolina 0 | Q1 8:19
After a faceoff win by Henry Metz, Brendan Millon finds Truitt Sunderland to give the Hoos a 3-0 lead. Timeout North Carolina.
Virginia 2, North Carolina 0 | Q1 9:00
Brendan Millon gets the scoring started for the Cavaliers with a question mark style goal. On the defensive end, Jake Marek opens the game with three early saves with his third save setting up a transition goal by Tommy Snyder.
Virginia vs North Carolina pregame notes
UVA owns a 59-33 advantage since the series began in 1938.
The 59 wins are UVA’s most against any opponent in program history (followed by 51 against Duke).
In Chapel Hill last year, the Tar Heels defeated the Cavaliers 18-9, snapping UVA’s six-game series win streak.
UVA has won nine of the last 11 meetings, dating back to 2018.
The Hoos have won the last two meetings with Carolina at Klöckner Stadium, 11-4 in 2022 and 14-6 in 2024.
The Tar Heels’ four goals in 2022 marked the fewest goals in a game under Joe Breschi, who was named UNC’s head coach in 2006.
The last time the Tar Heels knocked off the Cavaliers at Klöckner was a 16-13 decision during the first of three games between the two teams in 2021.
Later that year, UVA claimed back-to-back meetings against the Heels, including in the NCAA semifinals on the way to capturing the 2021 national title over Maryland.
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HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Fire crews are responding to a brush fire near Howard Gap Road in Hendersonville on Friday evening.
The fire is across the street from the Ebenezer Baptist Church and near the Highlands Square Shopping Center.
Henderson County Fire Marshal Glen Gillette said crews are fighting “blowdown from Helene.”
NEW WILDFIRES IGNITE IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA FOREST AMID WORSENING DROUGHT
Around 11 p.m., the fire appears larger than it did an hour ago because crews are backburning, which refers to using fire to help control the wildfire.
Dana Fire Department Chief Jimmy Womack said that what was a 3-acre fire an hour ago will be an 8-acre fire due to back burning. He said the fire is 80% contained.
Womack said the cause of the fire is unknown, but one of the conditions contributing to the blaze is the Helene blowdown.
“There’s a lot of blowdown in these woods behind us. That’s what creates most of the problem,” said Womack.
Womack said there has been no property damage and no injuries have been reported for this fire in the woods that 24 personnel are fighting. They got the call to arrive at 6:05 p.m.
LOCAL NEWS
Dana Fire and Rescue and Henderson County Fire Department are supporting the U.S. Forest Service with this fire.
Glen said no structures are threatened at this time and Howard Gap Road is closed.
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This story will be updated as new information is discovered.
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