CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Elina Aarnisalo had 21 points, Lanie Grant scored 20 and North Carolina used a strong fourth quarter to beat Maryland 74-66 on Sunday and reach the women’s Sweet 16 for the second year in a row.
Nyla Harris had 14 points and eight rebounds and Indya Nivar added 11 points to help the fourth-seeded Tar Heels (28-7) advance in the Fort Worth 1 Regional.
Oluchi Okananwa, who helped eliminate North Carolina last March in the Sweet 16 when she played for Duke, scored 21 points for No. 5 seed Maryland (24-9). Addi Mack had 13 points and Mir McLean had 12 points and 14 rebounds. The Terrapins couldn’t overcome 3-for-23 shooting on 3-pointers.
After briefly falling behind, the Tar Heels used a 13-4 run, sparked by six points from Nivar, early in the fourth quarter for a 63-56 lead.
Maryland pulled within three in the final two minutes, but Nyla Brooks drained a 3-pointer from in front of the North Carolina bench. The Terrapins failed to convert as part of 30.6% shooting in the second half.
North Carolina took a 42-33 halftime lead, shooting 56.7% in the half.
Nivar picked up her fourth foul with 7:06 left in the third quarter. Maryland was even at 50-50 by the final minute of the quarter.
North Carolina has reached the women’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2014 and 2015.
Maryland was aiming for another notable road victory after Big Ten trips that included victories at Minnesota, Michigan State, Ohio State and Southern California.
Up next
North Carolina will play the winner of No. 1 UConn vs. No. 9 Syracuse in the Sweet 16, which begins Friday. The Tar Heels advanced to that round for the 20th time.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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