Which UNC lineup combinations have been most productive?

CHAPEL HILL – Michael Malone is trying to blend in 11 new players, and the lineup data are beginning to offer clues about which combinations are working. Through three exhibitions and Monday’s 80–72 season-opening win over Western Carolina, the five-man unit with the best scoring margin has been Neo Avdalas, Terrence Brown Jr., Jarin Stevenson, Sayon Keita and Jaydon Young.

Shootout heartbreak, consequential whistle end UNC’s nine-year ACC title run

CHAPEL HILL — Carolina’s missed chances in regulation and consequential whistle proved costly. After nine consecutive trips to the ACC field hockey tournament championship game, all of them ending in titles, the top-seeded Tar Heels made a rare early exit. A video review wiped out a goal from star fifth-year forward Ryleigh Heck, whose penalty stroke in the 58th minute went high.

Tar Heel Tribune Podcast

The “Tar Heel Tribune Podcast,” with hosts Britt Whitmire and R.L. Bynum, gives Tar Heel Tribune readers a conversational companion to the site’s written coverage of Carolina athletics with interviews, opinions and insights.

‘Two steps forward, three steps back’: Malone wants to sustain best stretches

CHAPEL HILL — A lot went wrong for Carolina in its opening-game victory over Western Carolina, and it led to the Tar Heels’ inability to put away a mid-major team until late in the game. After the 80–72 win in his UNC debut, Coach Michael Malone said his team got off to an outstanding start, then watched the Catamounts work their way back into the game before UNC  pulled away late by getting to the free-throw line, handling pressure and making timely baskets.

Unfamiliar path, same expectations: Heck’s fourth brace leads surging UNC to blowout win

CHAPEL HILL — The route here may not have been familiar to a Carolina field hockey program with a rich history, but expectations didn’t change as the postseason began. The No. 1 seed in the ACC tournament for the fifth consecutive season, the No. 10-ranked Tar Heels led 34 seconds in and rolled. Five players scored in a 6–0 first-round victory over Stanford at Karen Shelton Stadium.

Cones on the rim, scores kept on stops: How UNC is trying to fix rebounding problem

CHAPEL HILL — The drills have no hoops, and in some cases a cone sits on top of the basket, a setup North Carolina’s coaches hope will teach players that they win rebounds through positioning and effort. After the Tar Heels got outrebounded in their last two exhibition games, it happened again in Monday’s 80–72 opening-game win at the Smith Center over Western Carolina. The coaches are trying to fix the problem, but the progress was hard to spot.

Tracking transfers: High, Lubin score 20, Powell hits 6 3s as 12 of 13 former Heels in Monday openers start

Ven-Allen Lubin didn’t miss a shot from the floor, Zayden High scored more points in one game than he did all last season at North Carolina, and Jonathan Powell made six 3-pointers. All three started and won, setting the pace for the 13 former UNC men’s and women’s players who opened their seasons on Monday. Ten scored in double figures and Luka Bogavac, the lone reserve, led Oklahoma State in scoring.

Malone says Heels need to trust each other as they work through issues

CHAPEL HILL — These Tar Heels are clearly a work in progress and are lucky to begin the season with a soft schedule. In the meantime, Coach Michael Malone says his team will have to trust each other and accept that a different player might lead the way on any given night. In no slight to this season’s team, he acknowledged that no player on this roster is of Caleb Wilson’s caliber.

Belichick says college football pay negotiations tougher than in NFL

CHAPEL HILL — Carolina coach Bill Belichick says that college football’s revenue-sharing era is a different world from the NFL system he worked in for decades. Belichick described how college sports, particularly college football, are in flux. He compared it to a period in his pro coaching career when rookie contracts were not yet governed by a wage scale.

Tar Heels in NFL: Maye sparks second-half comeback with three TDs; Downs scores in Colts loss

Drake Maye needed a half to find his footing in rainy Miami. Once he did, the former Carolina quarterback supplied every touchdown New England needed. Maye threw two long touchdown passes and ran for another score Sunday, rallying the Patriots from a 13–3 halftime deficit to a 24–19 victory over the Dolphins. Josh Downs also reached the end zone, scoring Indianapolis’ only touchdown on a difficult afternoon for several former Tar Heels in Week 8.