Ustby scores 16, No. 8 North Carolina beats UNC Wilmington

Updated Dec. 7, 2022 8:11 p.m. ET

Associated Press

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Alyssa Ustby scored 16 points and No. 8 North Carolina rebounded from its only loss of the season and beat UNC Wilmington 64-42 on Wednesday night.

Kennedy Todd-Williams scored 12 points and Deja Kelly added 10 for the Tar Heels (7-1), who dropped a 24-point decision at undefeated Indiana last week and played their first home game in three weeks.

Ustby had 10 rebounds and shot 8 for 10 from the field for North Carolina, which shot 5 for 16 (31%) from long distance and 24 for 60 (40%) overall.

Lexi Jackson’s 11 points and 11 rebounds led UNCW (2-6), and Jayde Gamble added 10 points. The Seahawks are 0-39 all-time against ranked opponents.

UNCW, which has just two victories against Division I teams in the past calendar year, couldn’t take full advantage of a 37-33 rebounding edge.

The Tar Heels made three 3s and four 2s in the first quarter. North Carolina had its first double-digit lead at 24-14 with about 6½ minutes left in the second quarter on the way to a 35-22 halftime lead.

BIG PICTURE

UNCW: The Seahawks remain a work in progress, but they had some good stretches of defense that could be something to build on. For a team that was coming off season-low 25.4% shooting in a loss at Virginia, connecting on 36.7% of its shots from the field was encouraging despite 2-for-11 shooting on 3-pointers.

North Carolina: The Tar Heels didn’t put together many head-turning stretches in the game, but they were steady most of the way. Some of their shooting woes were covered up by pulling down 14 offensive rebounds. This was just their third win by a dozen or more points this season.

TIP-INS

North Carolina’s three previous games came against ranked opponents. … UNCW fell to 3-40 all-time versus teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference. … After a hefty travel itinerary, North Carolina won’t have to leave the state again until January.

UP NEXT

UNCW: At Coastal Carolina on Dec. 18.

North Carolina: Host Wofford on Sunday.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25