Ten players may have been on the court Sunday night when the Maryland women?s basketball team hosted North Carolina, but for much of the second half, two players stood out in a game full of All-American candidates.
Maryland?s Shay Doron and North Carolina?s Ivory Latta took over in the final 20 minutes ? both senior guards doing everything they could to lead their team to victory.
Doron scored 13 of her 19 points in the second half as Maryland pulled within 67-66 with 3:15 remaining after trailing by as many as 20 points. But Latta was even more impressive, connecting on four three-pointers in the first five minutes of the second half and finishing with 32 points overall in the Tar Heels? 84-71 victory.
Doron, Latta and Duke?s Lindsey Harding are all expected to provide veteran leadership for their respective teams as they battle it out for the top spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Harding (14.2 points per game) also had one of her best games against Maryland, scoring 28 points in a 81-62 Duke win on Jan. 13.
“I think the story of this game was the seniors, especially Shay Doron and the leadership she showed tonight in stepping up for our team,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said of Sunday?s contest. “Obviously, the leadership of [North Carolina guard] Camille Little and Ivory Latta was punishing against our team in terms of what they were able to do against us.”
Doron, who is averaging 12.3 points per game, said she decided to take it upon herself to get Maryland back in the game against North Carolina. Along with her offense, Doron also volunteered to defend Latta.
“I was just trying to keep everyone?s heads up in order to stay in the game,” Doron said. “I was doing anything I could do to keep our energy up.”
Latta took a similar approach to the game for North Carolina. She is currently fourth in the ACC in scoring (16.2 points) and second in three-point field-goal percentage (.448).
“I just kept driving,” Latta said. “[North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell] kept telling me to drive and penetrate, and that?s what I did. I was just there when we needed a big basket.”
ACC SENIOR GUARD CLASS
» Maryland?s Shay Doron is an 81-percent free-throw shooter. Her 19 points against North Carolina was the most she has scored since her 23-point performance Nov. 25 against Mississippi.
» North Carolina?s Ivory Latta now has 2,042 career points, becoming the 15th ACC player and fifth Tar Heel to reach the 2,000-point plateau. She also averages 4.7 assists this season and has 545 for her career, which is tied for ninth all-time in the ACC.
» Duke?s Lindsey Harding is averaging 4.1 assists this season. She is 10th all-time in the ACC with 534 assists.
