UNCW men’s and women’s basketball teams drop season openers

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - The UNCW men’s and women’s basketball teams dropped their 2022-23 season openers Monday night in similar fashion.

Coach Takayo Siddle’s squad went on the road Monday night to Chapel Hill, to face Coach Hubert Davis’ top-ranked UNC Tar Heels. The Seahawks stayed with the hosts, battling to a 17-all tie at the 7:57 mark of the first half. The Tar Heels then went on a 15-4 run for the rest of the half behind five points from Armando Bacot and four from R.J. Davis, taking a 32-21 lead into halftime.

UNCW closed to within eight points on a pair of free throws by Trazarien White with 10:30 left to play. But Davis’ team put six quick points on the board to build the lead to 14, and UNC kept it in double-digits for most of the game, winning by a 69-56 final sore.

“We don’t do moral victories, but I was very proud of how hard our guys fought,” Siddle said in an email news release. “There are some things we need to clean up. Down the stretch, I thought we got loose a little bit. We have a lot to be proud of and a lot to build on.”

White led UNCW with 19 points, while Bacot and Caleb Love each had 17 to pace the Tar Heels. UNCW opens the home season Friday against Allen, while UNC will host the College of Charleston.

In the women’s home opener, Lenoir-Rhyne ripped off a 12-2 run in the second quarter to build a double-digit halftime lead, defeating Head Coach Tina Martin’s Seahawks 57-46.

Like the men’s team, Martin’s squad battled back in the second-half and cut the Lenoir Rhyne lead down to eight points. But the Bears scored five in a row, and kept a comfortable lead for the rest of the game.

Carrie Gross led UNCW with 19 points, and came one rebound away from a double-double, finishing with nine. Blaikley Crooks had 20 to lead the Bears’ scoring. UNCW travels to East Carolina on Sunday.

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