Cal falls at No. 16 North Carolina on New Year’s Day

Indya Nivar had 16 points and six assists, Nyla Harris had 13 points, 10 rebounds and five steals as No. 16 North Carolina beat California 71-55 on Thursday.

Ciera Toomey also scored 13 and finished with nine rebounds and three blocks for North Carolina (13-3, 2-1 ACC).

The Tar Heels have won four in a row.

Cal led 17-14 after one quarter and 34-32 at halftime, but North Carolina went ahead for good in the third quarter.

Lanie Grant hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer that sparked a 10-2 run that culminated when Reniya Kelly made another 3 that made it 50-45 with 1:05 left in the third quarter.

Nivar scored six points before Kelly converted a three-point play that capped a 16-4 run to open the fourth that pushed UNC’s lead to 16 points with 3:56 to play.

Sakima Walker led Cal (9-6, 0-2) with 19 points on 9-of-13 shooting. The rest of the team shot 33% (13 of 39) from the field as starting point guard Puff Morris was out with a leg injury.

North Carolina scored 19 points off 22 Bears turnovers and outscored Cal 50-26 in the paint.

Up next

North Carolina: Hosts Stanford on Sunday.

Cal: Visits North Carolina State on Sunday.