The North Carolina A&T women's basketball team lost to a score of 66-47 to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill(UNC) on Tuesday night at Corbett Sports Center before a crowd of 3,593, including future A&T Hall of Famer Tarik Cohen.
It was the first meeting between the two teams in 15 years, and the game lived up to the hype despite the Aggies' struggles. UNC, a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), used a strong second half to pull away after a close start.
A&T (0-3) was without their top shooter, graduate student Maleia Bracone, who missed her second consecutive game due to a leg injury. Bracone, who has been sidelined since suffering the injury during the team's game against Rice, had started 65 consecutive games before this injury. Her absence was felt as the Aggies shot just 2-for-10 from beyond the arc.
“We wanted to take more than 10 threes, and we absolutely need to make more than two,” A&T head coach Tarrell Robinson said. “It goes back to what they allowed us to do.”
Despite the shooting woes, the Aggies kept the game tight in the opening period, trailing just 13-10 after the first quarter. However, the Tar Heels (3-0) surged in the second, outscoring A&T 22-11 to take a 35-21 lead at halftime. The Aggies struggled with ball control, committing 14 turnovers in the first half, and finishing with 21 for the game.
“Twenty-one turnovers, which was uncharacteristic,” Robinson said. “We're still a work in progress. Still trying to get healthy.”
A&T guard Jordyn Dorsey, who had averaged 24.5 points in the team's previous two losses, was held to just 12 points as North Carolina's defense focused on limiting her offensive output. Paris Locke led the Aggies with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Dorsey and Locke were the only two Aggies to score in double digits. Of the 10 A&T players who saw action, only four scored more than four points. In contrast, eight of the 10 Tar Heels scored more than four points.
UNC dominated in the paint, scoring 28 points inside compared to 16 for A&T. The Tar Heels also capitalized on turnovers, scoring 29 points off the Aggies' miscues, compared to just eight for A&T. UNC's bench also outscored the Aggies' reserves 34-9.
Chaniya Clark, the Aggies' center, made her season debut after recovering from injury. However, Clark, who had not yet participated in two full practices, was limited to just 20 minutes of play, scoring five points and picking up two fouls.
“She does so much for us,” Robinson said. “She's a leader.”
While the Aggies were able to trim the lead to 37-29 midway through the third quarter, their shooting struggles continued as they finished the game with just a 34% shooting percentage.
“We have to get better offensively,” Robinson said. “We have a lot of young players, a lot of transfers who are still trying to figure out our system.”
UNC head coach Courtney Banghart praised the atmosphere at Corbett Sports Center, noting that the crowd made it difficult for her team to communicate on the court.
“A great crowd,” Banghart said. “A&T did a lot of work to make this environment. It made it really hard to communicate.”
Next, the Aggies will travel to Mercer on Sunday, before returning home for games against Winston-Salem State on Nov. 21 and North Carolina Central on Nov. 25. Despite the loss, Robinson remains hopeful that playing against top-tier competition will pay off later in the season.
“I think we're competing,” Robinson said. “We want to play the best because that's who we want to be playing in March.”
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