By R.L. Bynum

Under Coach Courtney Banghart, North Carolina is becoming a nationally respected program, and more evidence of that comes next season when the Tar Heels play perennial national power Connecticut for the first time in nearly 12 years in a showcase tripleheader.

UNC (22–11 last season) takes on UConn (31–6) at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., on Sunday, Dec. 10, as part of the 10th annual Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase, with perennial national power South Carolina (36–1) facing Utah (27–5) and UCLA (27–10) going up against Florida State (23–10) in that facility the same day. Starting times and television will be announced later, with tickets going on sale Sept. 8.

“Scheduling competitive opportunities against the best programs in the country remains the priority for us every season,” Banghart said. “This coming season, we are excited to play UConn at the Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase. This event will bring together many of the great traditions in women’s basketball, shining a spotlight on the greatness of our game. We already look forward to December.”

Three of the four teams are top 10 in a ranking AP poll voter Mitchell Northam released last week, with UConn No. 2, UCLA No. 6, UNC No. 9, Utah No. 10 and Florida State No. 21. The Utes lost 66–63 in the Sweet 16 to eventual national champion LSU.

The only other element of next season’s UNC schedule that’s been announced is that the Tar Heels will meet Oklahoma (26–7) in the second Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte, nine days after the UConn game, on Dec. 19. Carolina will also play in the Gulf Coast Showcase, which includes Iowa, in Estero, Fla., on Nov. 25–26 but that official announcement hasn’t been made.

The Huskies are expected to play in North Carolina against the Tar Heels the following season at a neutral site, possibly the Greensboro Coliseum.

“It’s a great opportunity for our fans in that part of the state to see our team,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “The Hall of Fame has planned some really strong matchups this season, and I think it’s going to be a great day of basketball in Connecticut.”

Ohio State ousted both from the NCAA tournament last season, with the Buckeyes slipping by UNC on their home court 71–69 in the second round and beating UConn 73–61 in a Sweet 16 game in Seattle.

The Huskies’ loss ended a streak of 14 consecutive Final Fours.

UConn will also play three other ACC teams next season, hosting Louisville on Dec. 16 and Notre Dame (date not set) and visiting N.C. State (date not set).

Like UNC, the Huskies dealt with several injuries last season, with eight players missing at least one game. Junior 5–11 guard Paige Bueckers (torn left ACL) and 6–3 freshman forward Ice Brady (dislocated left patella) missed last season. In addition, 5–11 guard Azzi Fudd (right knee injury) was limited to 15 games.

Bueckers, who led UConn to two Final Fours, said Wednesday that she’s “very close” to being fully cleared.

UConn leads the series 7–5, but the Tar Heels are 3–1 in neutral-site games, including meetings in Piscataway, N.J., Richmond, Va., and Hartford, Conn. It will be the first neutral-site meeting between the programs since No. 9 Carolina’s 71–65 victory on Nov. 21, 2004, in the Jimmy V Classic in Raleigh over No. 4 UConn.

The winner of UNC-UConn games has won the national championship four times: UNC in 1994 and UConn in 2002, 2009 and 2010.

The Huskies have won the last five meetings since No. 2 UNC beat No. 8 UConn 82–76 in Chapel Hill on Jan. 15, 2007. During that streak, UConn was No. 1 in the first three games and No. 3 for the other two meetings.

The first meeting, Carolina’s 84–51 win in Chapel Hill on Jan. 12, 1980, is the only one of the 12 in which neither team was ranked. The Huskies were ranked in the 11 other meetings and the Tar Heels in all but one.

Both were ranked in the top 10 for eight meetings, with Carolina winning the first four and UConn taking the last four. Both were top five for three meetings, with UNC’s only victory coming in their only NCAA tournament meeting — when the No. 4 Tar Heels beat the No. 3 Huskies 81–69 in the East Regional final in Piscataway, N.J., on their way to winning the 1994 national championship.

In the last meeting on Jan. 16, 2012, in Storrs, Conn., No. 3 UConn rolled to an 86–35 victory over No. 24 Carolina.

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UNC-UConn series

UConn leads 7–5
Jan. 12, 1980, in Chapel Hill — UNC 84, UConn 51
March 26, 1994, in Piscataway, N.J., East Regional final — No. 4 UNC 81, No. 3 UConn 69 (UNC won NCAA title)
Dec. 2, 1995, in Richmond, Va. — No. 2 UConn 77, No. 24 UNC 62
Nov. 15, 2001, in Storrs, Conn. — No. 1 UConn 97, UNC 74 (UConn won NCAA title)
Nov. 21, 2004, in Raleigh, Jimmy V Classic — No. 9 UNC 71, No. 4 UConn 65
Dec. 5, 2005, in Hartford, Conn. — No. 7 UNC 77, No. 8 UConn 54
Jan. 15, 2007, in Chapel Hill — No. 2 UNC 82, No. 6 UConn 76
Jan. 21, 2008, in Storrs, Conn. — No. 1 UConn 82, No. 3 UNC 71
Jan. 19, 2009, in Chapel Hill — No. 1 UConn 88, No. 2 UNC 58 (UConn won NCAA title)
Jan. 9, 2010, in Storrs, Conn. — No. 1 UConn 88, No. 7 UNC 47 (UConn won NCAA title)
Jan. 17, 2011, in Chapel Hill — No. 3 UConn 83, No. 10 UNC 57
Jan. 16, 2012, in Storrs, Conn. — No. 3 UConn 86, No. 24 UNC 35

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Potential UNC 2024–25 roster

Year	No.		Players	Pos.	Height
Freshman	—		Lanie Grant (5 star)	PG	5–10
Freshman	—		Blanca Thomas (5 star)	C	6–5
Freshman	—		Jordan Zubich (4 star)	G	5–11
RS Freshman	21		Ciera Toomey	F	6–4
RS Freshman	4		Laila Hull	W	6–1
Sophomore	10		Reniya Kelly	PG	5–7
Sophomore	15		Sydney Barker	PG	5–6
RS Junior	11		Kayla McPherson	PG	5–8
Junior	24		Indya Nivar	G	5–10
Senior	5		Maria Gakdeng	C	6–3
Graduate	—		Grace Townsend	G	5–5
Graduate	20		Lexi Donarski	G	6–0
Graduate	1		Alyssa Ustby	F	6–1

2023–24 UNC players to enter transfer portal

Class	Player	Date entered	Pos.	Hgt	Next school
Junior	Paulina Paris	March 26	G	5–9	Arizona
Graduate	Ali Zelaya	April 1	F	6–4	UNCW
Graduate	Anya Poole	April 1	F	6–2	TBA
RS junior	Teonni Key	April 2	F	6–4	Kentucky
Sophomore	RyLee Grays	April 5	F	6–3	TBA
Graduate	Deja Kelly	April 8	G	5–8	TBA

Photo courtesy of the ACC