By The Associated Press

In the Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase on Sunday, Paige Bueckers had a strong performance with 26 points, helping No. 17 UConn defeat 24th-ranked North Carolina 76-64 in UNCASVILLE, Conn.

Aaliyah Edwards, a former national player of the year, made 11 out of 14 shots and also had four blocks on defense. She contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskies (6-3).

Maria Gakdeng scored 14 points and had 13 rebounds for North Carolina (6-4) before being disqualified towards the end of the match. She was one of five players from the team to score in double digits.

At halftime, the game was even, but UConn took the lead in the second half by scoring 11 points. They continued to outscore North Carolina in the third quarter, ending with a score of 65-49.

With 3 minutes remaining, North Carolina reduced their deficit to eight points, however the Huskies were able to maintain their lead and secure the victory.

The defeats for UConn were against the third-ranked North Carolina State, second-ranked UCLA, and fifth-ranked Longhorns.

In the first half, Bueckers scored 17 points, contributing to UConn’s 11-point lead in the second quarter.

However, North Carolina utilized an 8-0 streak to take the lead at 30-28, and the game was tied at 36 at halftime.

BIG PICTURE

The state of North Carolina had a height advantage with six players standing at 6-foot-2 or taller. As a result, they dominated the rebounding game with a score of 43-33, including a 19-11 lead on the offensive side.

Bueckers, from UConn, achieved her 1,000th point in her career despite dealing with injuries. She made a driving layup to start the second half and tied Maya Moore as the quickest Husky to reach 55 games. Bueckers was sidelined for a significant portion of the past two seasons due to knee injuries.

UP NEXT

The University of North Carolina’s basketball team, known as the Tar Heels, will be back in their home arena to play against Western Carolina this upcoming Friday.

The University of Connecticut: The UConn team will be hosting the 18th ranked Louisville team next Saturday in Hartford.
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The Associated Press has coverage of the latest rankings for women’s college basketball at https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball.

Source: wralsportsfan.com