Cal Women Battle No. 16 North Carolina Before Falling 71-55

For most of three quarters, the Cal women’s basketball team seemed intent on pulling off a New Year’s Day upset against No. 16 North Carolina.

But the Tar Heels took charge with a 18-4 run straddling the third and fourth quarters and went on to claim a 71-55 victory at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, NC.

The Bears (8-6, 0-2 ACC) recovered from a 9-0 deficit to start the game and had leads after the first and second periods.

The Tar Heels (13-3, 2-1) were too much down the stretch, scoring the first eight points of the fourth quarter to extend their lead to 58-47 and outscoring Cal 21-8 in the fourth quarter.

The Bears played without starting freshman point guard Puff Morris, who averages 7.9 points and 3.7 assists, but stayed home with a lower leg injury. Reserve forward Claudia Langarita was sidelined by illness.

Center Sakima Walker overcame early foul trouble to post 19 points and eight rebounds for the Bears. Gisella Maul hit three 3-pointers to score nine points, but she was scoreless in the second half.

Junior guard Lulu Twidale, the Bears’ leading scorer, shot 2 for 11 and scored just five points to go with five of her team’s 22 turnovers.

Taylor Barnes releases shot vs. North Carolina | Photo by Mollie McClure, KLC fotos

Carolina, bigger and deeper than the Bears, made just 1 of their first 10 attempts from 3-point range. But the ACC’s most efficient 3-point shooting teams finally found the target when a 3-pointer by Lanie Grant tied the score at 43-all with 3:57 left in the third quarter, triggering a decisive run.

Indya Nivar had 16 points, six assists and four steals for the Heels, who have won four games in a row by a combined margin of 126 points. Nylas Harris produced 13 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.

The Tar Heels scored 50 points in the paint and 19 points off Cal’s turnovers.

The Bears fell behind 9-0 to start the game, missing their first four shots and turning the ball over three times.

But Cal responded with a 17-2 run, fueled by excellent 3-point shooting. Maul and Twidale each hit once from deep before Lola Donez, starting in place of Morris, delivered twice.

The sophomore, who entered the game shooting just 29.6 percent on 3’s and averaging 2.3 points, hit back-to-back 3’s, the second one pushing the Bears into a 17-12 lead with 14 seconds left in the opening period.

Cal’s lead reached 19-14 on a putback by Walker with 8:08 left in the second quarter. The Tar Heels stayed close and tied the game four times before halftime.

Walker scored seven points but the 6-foot-5 South Carolina transfer picked up her third foul with 1:31 left in the half.

But Cal didn’t trail again in the half and took a 34-32 lead into the break after a running bank shot by Mjracle Sheppard with 3 seconds left.

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