CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Tierra Bumbrey scored all 15 of her points from beyond the arc, but her efforts were not enough as North Carolina had four players reach double digits to help the Tar Heels to a 98-53 win over the Phoenix.  

"This is the best we've ever played them," said Phoenix mentor Brenda Paul.  "There's a reason they are one of the best teams in the country."

Ceter DeGraffenreid recorded a double-double, pouring in 12 points and grabbing 11 boards for UNC (3-0), and Rashanda McCants scored a game-high 16 points, going 7-of-14 (50%) from the floor.

Katie Whidden led the Phoenix with five rebounds, while Bumbrey dished out five assists.

Elon (1-3) outshot UNC from the perimeter in the second half, going 7-of-14 (50%).

The Tar Heels forced 19 of the Phoenix's 32 turnovers in the first half, scoring 22 of their 56 points as a result.  Elon got in foul trouble early, sending Carolina to the charity stripe 17 times in the first half alone, where the Heels shot 76.5% (13-of-17).

Bumbrey grabbed a team-leading three boards in the first frame, and hit back-to-back treys at 11:52 and 10:32 to bring the score to 29-13 in favor of the Tar Heels, but was otherwise held scoreless in the stanza.  She added nine points from downtown after the break to set a career high with five made three point shots.

UNC grabbed 30 first-half rebounds, led by DeGraffenreid's nine, holding the Phoenix to just 15 as a team.

The Phoenix stuck with the Tar Heels for the opening of the second half, scoring nine points to UNC's 11 before the first media timeout.  But Elon went nearly five minutes without a bucket in the second half as Carolina pulled ahead 91-40 with just over five minutes remaining in the ball game.

"There's a reason you play these games," added Paul. "You want to put your players up against the best person at their position and see how you match up, and I thought we did well."

UNC scored 42 points off of Phoenix turnovers while Elon only capitalized on five points from Tar Heel turnovers.

Elon's 53 points were the most put up by an Phoenix team versus North Carolina since Dec. 28, 2000 when the Phoenix fell 77-58.