GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Jasmine Thomas scored 21 points and No. 8 Duke won its second straight Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship by beating No. 19 North Carolina 81-66 on Sunday.
Freshman Haley Peters added 14 points and Karima Christmas had 13 for the top-seeded Blue Devils (29-3). They shot 46 percent against a stingy North Carolina defense and held the Tar Heels (25-8) scoreless for 612 minutes down the stretch.
Jessica Breland scored 27 points for North Carolina, and her free throw put the Tar Heels up 54-53 with 9:28 left. The Blue Devils then reeled off 15 straight points as part of a 20-2 run to take command and beat their top Tobacco Road rivals for the second time in eight days.
Allison Vernerey finished with 10 points for Duke, the first team to repeat as ACC tournament champion since North Carolina won the event four straight years beginning in 2005. The Blue Devils, who won the tournament for the seventh time, enter their 17th straight NCAA tournament on a six-game winning streak.
