North Carolina
WBB Falls In OT At Duke – University of North Carolina Athletics
Playing at Cameron Indoor Stadium, senior Deja Kelly scored a game-high 20 points, with 18 of them coming after halftime and 11 in the third quarter alone. Her total included 7-7 shooting from the foul line. Freshman Reniya Kelly added 13 points and graduate student Lexi Donarski 11 as both played in a Carolina-Duke matchup for the first time. Senior Alyssa Ustby led UNC with nine rebounds and three assists.
For the Blue Devils, Delaney Thomas came off the bench for a career-high 19 points, Taina Mair scored 13 and Ashlon Jackson had 10.
The Tar Heels scored the first six points of the game and, although Duke tied the game at 12-12 late in the first quarter, never trailed until the fourth quarter. They held the advantage throughout the first three quarters, eventually stretching it to 14 points, 46-32, after a driving layup by Deja Kelly with 1:15 to play in the third period.
Duke outscored UNC 19-7 in the fourth quarter and grabbed its first lead of the game on a three by Mair with 2:52 remaining. The Tar Heels got the lead back on a three-point play by Donarski to go up by two. Duke tied it at 53-53 on a pair of free throws by Oluchi Okananwa with 1:31 on the clock, and neither team scored again after that. A steal by Reniya Kelly with four seconds to play gave Carolina a late chance for the win, but Duke tied up the ball on Kelly’s drive to the basket with less than a second on the clock, and Ustby’s shot on the inbounds play hung on the rim before falling out to send the game into overtime.
Deja Kelly opened overtime with her first three of the game, but that was the Tar Heels’ largest lead of the period. The Tar Heels were 3-10 from the field in OT and the Blue Devils hit four of their seven shots to take the win. The final score was the home team’s biggest lead of the day.
Free throws were a bright spot for UNC as the Tar Heels made 18 of 21, paced by Deja Kelly’s 7-7 day. Carolina also won the rebounding battle, 44-33. Duke held a 30-14 advantage in the paint and 31-6 lead in points off the bench.
The win gives Duke two in a row in the series, following a victory in the 2023 ACC Tournament. UNC had won four regular-season matchups in a row heading into Sunday’s game.
Carolina is back in action on Thursday, hosting Pitt for a 6 p.m. game at Carmichael Arena.
Notes:
• The game was the 10th time this season that Deja Kelly has scored 20+ points and the 31st time in her career
• With 1,726 career points, Kelly moved into 14th place on UNC’s career scoring list.
• Lexi Donarski finished the game with 1,497 career points and is set to become the second Tar Heel this season, following Kelly, to pass the 1,500-points milestone.
• The game marked the first time in ACC play this season that UNC has led at halftime (26-25) and lost.
• Duke’s nine blocks were a high by a UNC opponent this season and the Blue Devils’ nine turnovers matched the low by an opponent.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — The Party for Socialism and Liberation has organized a petition calling on legislators to pass a statewide ban on new data center construction.
“We see that they pollute these communities, they use a lot of water, and ultimately the cost of these data centers are passed on to working-class consumers,” said Cody Cogdell with the Party for Socialism and Liberation Western North Carolina.
According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, a large data center can use up to 5 million gallons of water per day. That’s equivalent to the use of a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people.
ASHEVILLE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES 1-YEAR PAUSE ON NEW DATA CENTER DEVELOPMENT
“I don’t support them at all. I think it’s terrible for the environment,” said Asheville resident Madeline Boltinghouse.
She says a statewide ban would be nice.
But Ken Brame, with the environmental organization Sierra Club, says the ban is unlikely to happen.
JULY 1, 2026 – A flyer protesting data centers in Asheville, N.C. (Photo credit: WLOS Staff)
“Banning them all is probably a stretch and I’m just not sure I see our North Carolina legislature going that far,” said Brame.
The petition also calls on the state to repeal the state’s tax incentives for data centers.
“There should be no debate about that. We should not be subsidizing something that hurts our environment,” said Brame.
WEAVERVILLE COUNCIL VOTES TO BLOCK DATA CENTERS IN TOWN, CITING LIMITED RESOURCES
It’s also calling on the legislature to stop Duke Energy from raising rates to pay for more data centers.
Duke Energy sent News 13 a statement saying in part:
Duke Energy does not develop or select data center projects, but we do have an obligation to serve customers in our territory while protecting reliability and keeping costs as low as possible. That’s why we require large-load customers to make significant financial commitments and pay the costs associated with serving them, while their additional revenue helps support grid investments and reduce pressure on future customer bills.
Meanwhile, state lawmakers are working to pass a bill that would require data centers to pay for their own expansion and regulate how much water data centers can use.
A man kidnapped and killed a U.S. Postal Service worker while she was delivering mail in North Carolina last week, police said, orphaning her two daughters, who lost their father just a few months before.
Brandi Reynolds, 35, was found dead following a call for help to authorities in Hays, North Carolina, Friday afternoon, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said in a statement.
“I can confirm that Brandi Reynolds was delivering mail on her route when the incident occurred,” U.S. Postal Inspector Michael Martel said by email.
Prosecutors in Wilkes County charged William Craig Durham, 56, of the community of Roaring River, with first-degree kidnapping and murder, according to court records.
The defendant, arrested the day of the murder, remained in Wilkes County Jail on Tuesday, according to a third-party inmate information service used by the county. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
A warrant filed in district court alleged Durham committed kidnapping “by unlawfully restraining the victim, removing the victim from one place to another without the consent of the victim.”
It said Durham carried out the alleged kidnapping “for the purpose of terrorizing” Reynolds and “doing serious bodily injury” to her.
It’s unclear how Durham allegedly committed the killing. Any weapons that may have been used were not mentioned in the document, and any motive was unavailable.
On Monday, district court Judge Robert J. Crumpton ordered the defendant to remain in custody without bond, citing his “significant criminal record.”
State prison records show Durham has served time for second-degree kidnapping, assault on a female and possession of a gun by a felon, among other offenses.
An investigation into the killing was being conducted jointly by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the bureau said.
Reynolds was the mother of two girls, according to her obituary. She lost her husband, Brent Reynolds, on Dec. 23, 2025, when the pickup he was driving veered off a road in Rhonda, North Carolina, and struck a tree, according to NBC affiliate WXII of Winston-Salem.
His obituary stated at the time that he was the father of the couple’s two girls — “the light of his life.”
Reynolds’ obituary, likewise, stated that her daughters “were her whole world.”
She left behind her mother, two sisters and several nieces and nephews, it said.
“The U.S. Postal Service is deeply saddened about the death of our colleague, Brandi Byrd Reynolds,” Postal Service spokesperson Martha Johnson said by email. “We extend our heartfelt sympathies to her family, friends, and co-workers at the Hays Post Office.”
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — North Carolina lawmakers have released a long-delayed state budget proposal that includes higher pay for educators and state employees, along with new funding for community colleges.
The plan, still awaiting legislative approval, outlines several provisions that would directly affect Durham.
The proposal calls for an average 8% raise for teachers and a 3% raise for most state employees, plus one-time bonuses. It also fully funds “Propel NC,” a new community college funding model that rewards schools for training students in high-demand careers rather than focusing solely on enrollment.
Durham Technical Community College President JB Buxton said the model would strengthen programs tied to the region’s growing industries.
“It’s a very good budget for the community colleges,” Buxton said.
Full proposed budget
Durham Tech expects increased support for programs in life sciences, healthcare, and skilled trades — fields that continue to drive the Triangle’s economy. Buxton said those programs reflect the needs of employers across the region.
“If you think about things like electrical systems and technicians, in addition to HVAC, and plumbing and welding, if you think about biomedical engineering, those are areas that are in demand here,” he said.
Buxton said building a strong talent pipeline is essential as the region expands.
“We want to be the workforce development engine in this area, but we also want to be an economic development engine and kind of power our companies,” he said. “Not only bring people to opportunity, but give companies what they need to grow.”
The House and Senate are scheduled to vote on the budget on Wednesday and Thursday. If it passes both chambers, it will go to Gov. Josh Stein, who said he plans to review it closely before deciding whether to sign it.
“What we want is for the state to pass a budget that invests in our people,” Stein said, adding he wants to see more focus on education, public safety and mental health. “There are many things that the state needs to invest in, and we will be scrutinizing it, just as everyone else is, to see if it meets that test.”
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