Lexi Donarski scored 20 points and 14th-ranked North Carolina rallied from a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit to defeat upset-minded Boston College 78-71 in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament’s second round Thursday at Greensboro, N.C.
Indya Nivar had 14 points for the Tar Heels. Aylssa Ustby, who played for the first time since Feb. 16 because of an injury, and Lanie Grant each had 11 points. Donarski made five 3-pointers and reached the 20-point mark for the first time since Nov. 7. Guard Reniya Kelly remained out with an injury.
North Carolina (26-6), which is seeded fifth in the tournament, faces No. 22 Florida State, the fourth seed, in Friday’s quarterfinals.
Tatum Greene had 18 points and Kaylah Ivey posted 15 points on five 3-pointers for No. 12 seed Boston College (16-17), which made 12 of 26 shots from 3-point range.
The Eagles scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter to go up 63-54 before North Carolina responded with seven straight points in a span of less than two minutes. Nivar’s three-point play with 3:07 left put the Tar Heels ahead 68-66 and they led the rest of the way.
Georgia Tech 72, Virginia Tech 57
Tonie Morgan scored 19 points and ninth-seeded Georgia Tech used a huge fourth-quarter burst to pull away in the ACC tournament’s second round.
Kara Dunn had 16 points and reserve Dani Carnegie provided 15 points for the Yellow Jackets. They both pulled in nine rebounds as did teammate Kayla Blackshear.
Next for Georgia Tech (22-9) is a matchup against No. 7 North Carolina State, the top seed, on Friday.
Rose Micheaux scored 19 points and Matilda Ekh added 17 for eighth-seeded Virginia Tech (18-12), which shot 38.1 percent from the field.
Virginia Tech was within 50-48 before the Yellow Jackets went on a 17-0 run that included two 3-pointers and a layup from Dunn.
Cal 75, Virginia 58
The Golden Bears had a hugely successful debut in the ACC tournament behind 16 points apiece from Marta Suarez, Ugonne Onyiah, and Lulu Twidale in the win over the Cavaliers.
Cal, which also received 12 points from Kayla Williams, led 41-25 at halftime and extended the margin to 26 points in the second half. Seventh-seeded Cal (25-7) meets No. 6 Notre Dame, the second seed, on Friday.
Kymora Johnson posted 18 points and Paris Clark had 15 for No. 10 seed Virginia (17-15), which had a four-game winning streak snapped and shot 33.3 percent from the field. It was the Cavaliers’ second loss to California in a 15-day period.
Louisville 70, Clemson 68 (OT)
The sixth-seeded Cardinals made four consecutive free throws over the last 38 seconds of overtime to advance past the No. 14 Tigers, who forced the extra period on a Hannah Kohn 3-pointer with four seconds left in regulation.
Tajianna Roberts and Ja’Leah Williams each poured in 16 points for Louisville (21-9), while Mackenly Randolph had 11 off the bench. Olivia Cochran supplied 10 points, and Izela Arenas contributed nine.
Louisville takes on No. 11 Duke, the third seed, in Friday night’s final quarterfinal.
Kohn notched 14 points for Clemson (14-17), and Mia Moore, Loyal McQueen and Raven Thompson all scored 12 points.
–Field Level Media
Comments