There's no place like home!
Courtney Banghart and the UNC women's basketball program returns home for two games at Carmichael Arena this week, starting with a clash with the Virginia Tech Hokies on Thursday evening.
The Hokies will look a lot different than the last time the two programs met, as they feature a new head coach and a roster that is much different than last year's squad. However, a very familiar face returns to Chapel Hill as Itoro Coleman makes a visit to North Carolina for the first time since leaving the program this offseason.
Winners of three in a row, can the UNC women's basketball program keep it going?
2024-2025 Season
North Carolina Tar Heels
Overall record: 21-4
Conference Record: 9-3
Home Record: 10-3
Away Record: 7-0
Neutral Site Record: 4-1
Virginia Tech Hokies
Overall record: 16-8
Conference Record: 7-6
Home Record: 10-4
Away Record: 5-2
Neutral Site Record: 1-2
Key Players
North Carolina
Alyssa Ustby (Gr. Guard/Forward) – 11.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists
Maria Gakdeng (Sr. Forward/Center) – 11.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.3 blocks
Lexi Donarski (Gr. Guard) – 10.0 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists
Virginia Tech
Carleigh Wenzel (So. Guard) – 14.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists
Rose Micheaux (Sr. Forward) – 12.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists
Carys Baker (So. Forward)– 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists
Keys to Victory for North Carolina
Shoot better from the perimeter.
North Carolina connected on just three of 18 attempts from three-point range in their nail-biting victory over Clemson. This team is a much better shooting team than that, as it simply wasn't their best offensive performance overall.
Now, returning to their home court, the Tar Heels will need to shoot the ball better, especially with a big-time duel with NC State approaching this weekend.
Something to Watch for
Ciera Toomey has been very limited over the last three games.
The redshirt freshman forward has played less than six minutes in each of the previous three games, including just a two minute stint against the Tigers on Sunday afternoon.
Alyssa Ustby has been logging a ton more minutes as of late, which could be a major factor into Toomey's playing time. While her minutes have sporadic this season, it will be interesting to see if this trend continues for the talented forward, especially given that she has the skillset and ability to make a big impact off the bench down the stretch.
Projected Starters
No. 1 Alyssa Ustby (Gr. 6'1)
No. 5 Maria Gakdeng (Sr. 6'3)
No. 10 Reniya Kelly (So. 5'7)
No. 20 Lexi Donarski (Gr. 6'0)
No. 24 Indya Nivar (Jr. 5'10)