While the No. 19 Tar Heels have historically experienced success in the ACC Tournament, this year’s team came into Friday’s matchup on a four-game losing streak. With the regular season over, UNC is ready to put their poor play behind them and focus on their “new” season.
“We said this is a new season,” senior guard Cetera DeGraffenreid said. “That season’s over. Now we have a championship to win.”
With the regular season behind them, the Tar Heels (23-7) were able to put away a pesky Clemson (10-20) team by dominating play down low. Led by senior forward Jessica Breland and junior Chay Shegog, the Tar Heels finished with 40 points in the paint.
“It was a focus to go inside, that’s what we were wanting to do,” UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. “When you get the ball inside, you are going to get good shots. When we go inside with the ball, the defense collapses and that gives Italee (Lucas) better looks.”
Senior guard Lucas got plenty of good looks on the night, finishing with a team-high 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting. While Lucas thrived with open looks, it was Degraffenreid who was the motor behind the Tar Heel’s offense.
“Cetera did a really good job running the team tonight and not just with her shooting,” Hatchell said. “She had eight assists, one turnover and six steals. That’s pretty doggone good.”
DeGraffenreid needed to be good Friday, as the 11th-seeded Tigers would not go down without a fight.
The senior was able to constantly drive to the basket and create open layups. When DeGraffenreid wasn’t able to penetrate Clemson’s defense, she was able to find Breland or Shegog down low.
“We were bigger then them,” said the 6-foot-5 Shegog. “The coaches really wanted us to focus on getting the ball inside, so our size and athleticism really helped us beat their zone.”
The Tar Heels saw four players in double figures. UNC ran a two-guard set for most of the game against a Tiger three-guard lineup that saw Kirstyn Wright nab a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
In what turned out to be a game of runs, the Tar Heels were able to lead wire to wire. After a 9-0 UNC run to start the game, Clemson battled back with zone defense and a 15-3 run of their own. After the Tigers cut the lead to one, UNC pulled away at the half 41-34.
“Clemson gave us some runs in there,” Hatchell said. “They kept coming back after us.”
With the victory against Clemson, the Tar Heels continued their recent domination of the Tigers. North Carolina is 50-26 all-time against Clemson, including a 10-4 mark in the ACC Tournament. UNC won the lone matchup in 2011 between the two teams, disposing of Clemson 60-47.
Seniors on UNC’s team now focus on finishing off their new season the same way they started their North Carolina careers: with an ACC title.
“They won an ACC Championship when they were freshman,” Hatchell said. “Go out like they came in, that’s what I keep telling them.”
source : http://www.dailytarheel.com/index.php/article/2011/03/unc_womens_basketball_wins_in_first_round_of_acc_tournament
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