March 6, 2009

North Carolina 74, Clemson 55

Streak Continued: North Carolina continued its dominance over the Clemson, winning its 14th consecutive game over the Tigers.

Winning in the Tournament: North Carolina has now won 13 in a row in the ACC tournament with an average margin of victory of 15.5 points.

Double-Trouble: North Carolina had two players post double-double performances in the win over Clemson. Italee Lucas scored 10 points to go along with 11 rebounds and teammate Jessica Breland posted 22 points and 11 rebounds. It is the second and 14th double-double this season for Lucas and Breland, respectively. The performance moves Breland into first place for ACC double-doubles this season.

Hanging Tough: The Tigers held their own in the first half, taking a one point lead, 29-28, with 3:27 left to play in the opening period. The lead was due to a 15-7 scoring run that lasted nearly six minutes, capped by a Bryelle Smith 3-pointer to give the Clemson the lead. The two teams continued to battle, with Carolina edging Clemson 31-29 at the half.

Steals Leader: With her steal at 1:32 remaining in the first half, Lele Hardy recorded her 11th theft of the tournament, a two-game record. The previous record was 10 steals, held by four players, including Hardy, who tied the mark last year. Hardy had seven steals in Clemson's upset win over Georgia Tech a day earlier to go along with her five against Carolina. The record now stands at 12 steals through two ACC Tournament games.

Pulling Away: Coming out of the locker room, North Carolina opened the second half with a 16-2 scoring run to pull away from the Tigers. The run over the opening 5:20 of the second half was fueled largely by Jessica Breland and Rashanda McCants, each of whom scored six points over that stretch.

Crash the Glass: North Carolina dominated the boards, pulling down 59 rebounds. The 59 boards are the most in an ACC Tournament game since Clemson grabbed 68 in the 1981 quarterfinals. The Tar Heel rebound effort is fifth-best all-time in the history of the ACC Tournament.

Halftime Success: North Carolina improves to 22-1 when leading the game at the half. The Tar Heels held a 31-29 halftime lead.

Amazing Attendance: The crowd in today's game is the largest in ACC Tournament history with 13,599 fans. The previous single-game high was 12,969 in the quarterfinals last year as Virginia faced Georgia Tech.

Largest Crowds by Session

Most Rebounds