For any UNC fans dying for a positive experience while watching their favorite college basketball team, look no further than Carmichael Arena.
Sitting at 18-4 and 6-3 in ACC play as of Monday, the UNC women’s basketball team is off to its best start in the Courtney Banghart era. With their fifth straight win over Wake Forest on Jan. 23, the 15th-ranked Tar Heels won 18 of their first 21 games for the first time since Banghart took over as the head coach in 2019, and it marked their best start since going 19-2 to begin the 2012-13 season.
The hot start hit some ice with an 86-84 Quad 1 loss to Florida State at home Sunday, but a close defeat at the hands of a buzzer beater from Ta’Niya Latson, the nation’s leading scorer (26.5 points per game), doesn’t take much light away from the way UNC has played this season. In yet another loaded ACC, the Tar Heels have held their own and have made a significant jump from last season.
So, what’s been working for UNC?
After seeing the Tar Heels score just 40 points in regulation and grind out an overtime win over No. 14 Duke on Jan. 9, it’s imperative to point to their defense.
UNC boasts the best overall scoring defense in the ACC, allowing just 54.9 points per game. Against all of Division I, that figure is good for 13th in the country.
“We have some of the best primary defenders I’ve ever coached,” Banghart said after holding SMU to just 33 points on Jan. 16. “Together, they communicate and have a lot of experience together.”
The Tar Heels have seen an increase in forced turnovers this season, going from opponents averaging 15.8 turnovers per game last year to 18.6 turnovers this year. Prior to the loss to Florida State, UNC recorded at least 10 steals in three straight ACC games for the first time since 2015.
Junior guard Indya Nivar, who Banghart said has been a “menace” defensively, plays a huge role in UNC’s ability to create turnovers with a team-high 43 steals.
It’s also not easy getting buckets against the Tar Heels as they’ve held opponents to an ACC-best 34.7% shooting clip. They’ve been a solid shot-contesting team with graduate Alyssa Ustby, senior Maria Gakdeng and 6-foot-5 freshman Blanca Thomas combining for 64 blocks on the year.
“To be the top defensive team in the league, it takes a lot of effort and energy,” Banghart said.
On the flip side, UNC is a much better three-point shooting team than its been in the past. The Tar Heels have already surpassed last season’s made three-pointer total (172) with 180 made threes in 11 less games, and they’re shooting at an improved clip of 34.1%. Graduate guard Lexi Donarski has been the go-to from beyond the arc as her 41% three-point clip is the team’s best for players with at least 50 three-point attempts. She also hit five threes in three consecutive games prior to Sunday’s loss.
As a whole, UNC’s offense has run more efficiently this season even after losing a highly talented offensive player in Deja Kelly to the transfer portal. The Tar Heels’ assist numbers are way up from last season, averaging 16 assists per outing this year compared to an ACC-worst 12.6 assists last winter.
UNC also has a more even scoring distribution than in recent years with seven players averaging at least six points per game. The Tar Heels are getting a significant boost from their bench this season, averaging 26.2 bench points per game which ranks at 27th in the nation and third in the ACC behind Duke (32.2) and Georgia Tech (33.4).
But as promising as this season has looked, UNC still has much to prove against the nation’s elite squads. The Tar Heels are ranked 15th in the NCAA women’s basketball NET rankings, but they’re just 2-4 in Quad 1 games.
With just nine games left in the regular season, there’s still plenty of opportunities left for UNC to improve its resume for favorable seeing in the NCAA Tournament. As the NET rankings stand Monday, UNC will get Quad 1 games at California, at Stanford on Feb. 2, against NC State on Feb. 16, at Louisville on Feb. 23 and at Duke on Feb. 27.
Without a doubt, the Tar Heels are a good basketball team that has far earned its respect as tournament worthy. However, this final stretch of regular season games should determine whether UNC can provide its basketball faithful some tournament glory.
