This was quite possibly the most physical women's basketball game I've ever
seen: Two Tar Heels had to be helped from the floor (La"Tangela Atkinson,
who did return to the game, and Erlana Larkins, who did not), and another
player -- Alex Miller -- was carried from the floor on a stretcher. Miller
had x-rays on her neck, but that's all the info Carolina has released as of
this writing. I did see her move her legs on her own, so that certainly is a
good sign.
Carolina did a great job of containing Shea Doron in the first half -- but
not in the second. Doron didn't exactly drop 37 on the Heels (as she did in
their last meeting), but she hit several key shots to keep Maryland in the
game.
Then there were the two off-balance heave-up-a-prayer three-point shots.
Ashleigh Newman's tied the game at the buzzer, and Marissa Coleman's beat
the shot clock in overtime to put Maryland up by five. Both shots were of
the "I can't believe that went in" variety.
Carolina shouldn't get TOO discouraged over this: They lost with two players
knocked out of the game and Maryland hitting unbelievable shots. But the
flip-side is a bit more disturbing: The Heels were out-toughed in their own
building.
And now the ACC's a 3-team race.
Ken Medlin
