July 11, 2001

Incoming UNC freshman Nikita Bell earned Most Valuable Player honors Wednesday night in the Georgia North-South All-Star girls basketball game after leading all scorers with 23 points. Bell's team, the South squad, fell 85-84 in a game that came down to free throw shooting, but the future Tar Heel earned the game's highest honor.

Bell, a 6-0 graduate of Spencer High School in Columbus, Ga., was the state Player of the Year for 2000-01. She'll join fellow freshmen Jenni Laaksonen, Kenya McBee, Leah Metcalf and Tiffany Tucker on the UNC roster this fall.