ESTERO, Fla. (AP) — Deja Kelly scored 10 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter to rally No. 18 North Carolina to a 54-51 win over Vermont in the Gulf Coast Showcase on Friday.
The Tar Heels trailed 45-34 with less that six minutes to play but it wasn’t until a 13-1 run that North Carolina took the lead.
Kayla McPherson made a layup to give her six points in the rally and put North Carolina up 50-49 with 1:47 to play. Kelly followed that up with a jumper before Emma Utterback cut it back to 52-51 with 42 seconds left, ending a 4 1/2-minute drought between baskets for the Catamounts.
The Tar Heels ran down the clock and missed a jumper but the ball was given to North Carolina after a video review reversed the call. That led to a foul that sent Kelly to the line with six seconds left. She made the first for a 53-51 lead and then grabbed the rebound after she missed the second.
Following a timeout, Lexi Donarski got the inbounds pass and then made 1 of 2 free throws. Vermont did not get off a final shot.
Alyssa Ustby had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Tar Heels (5-0), who play No. 16 Kansas State on Saturday.
Utterback had 18 points for the Catamounts (3-2), who will play Western Kentucky.
North Carolina came in averaging 76.5 points and shooting 41%. Even making 7 of 14 shots in the fourth quarter the Tar Heels finished at 33%. They also went 2 of 16 from 3-point range and 12 of 26 from the foul line.
The Catamounts controlled the first half, holding the Tar Heels to 24% shooting and taking a 28-17 lead. Vermont scored the last six points of the first quarter to lead 13-8 and also scored the last eight of the second quarter.
North Carolina trailed 39-30 going into the fourth quarter.
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