By R.L. Bynum

North Carolina enters the season full of expectations of a potential Final Four run. The players have a sign next to the dressing room entrance that reads, “final four team loading …” But, judging from the AP women’s basketball Top 25 preseason poll released Tuesday, the Tar Heels still have some convincing to do with many voters.

UNC will begin the season ranked lower than expected at No. 16 in Coach Courtney Banghart’s fifth season. Carolina is No. 17 in the Coaches Poll.

UNC (22–11, 11–7 ACC last season), which lost at Ohio State in the second round of last season’s NCAA tournament, is one of five ACC teams in the preseason poll, along with No. 8 Virginia Tech, No. 10 Notre Dame, No. 17 Louisville and No. 18 Florida State. Seven made the Coaches Poll.

Reigning national champion LSU is No. 1, the first preseason top-ranking in school history, and garnered all but one first-place vote, the other going to No. 2 UConn, which the Tar Heels will face at the Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase in Uncasville, Conn., on Dec. 10. The Huskies, who get Paige Bueckers back after she missed last season, are in the preseason poll for a 30th consecutive season.

Carolina will play seven (potentially eight) games against teams ranked in the preseason poll: the Hokies (twice), the Irish, the Cardinals, the Seminoles, the Huskies, No. 6 South Carolina and potentially No. 3 Iowa on the third day of the Gulf Coast Showcase.

Carolina — No. 12 in last season’s AP preseason poll and No. 20 in the final poll — is ranked in back-to-back preseason polls for the first time since the Tar Heels made that poll in 15 consecutive seasons from 2001–02 until 2015–16. It’s the 26th time the Tar Heels have made the preseason poll since 1981–82.

Of the last seven times the Tar Heels have made the preseason poll, it’s the lowest rank since they were No. 22 in 2015–16. UNC was No. 12 in 2013–14 and No. 13 in 2014–15. Carolina hasn’t been ranked in the top 10 of the preseason poll since it was No. 5 in 2009–10.

Mitchell Northam of WUNC, the only North Carolina-based AP voter, has the Tar Heels No. 9.

Sam McKewon of the Omaha World-Herald voted UNC No. 12, with six voting the Tar Heels No. 13, five voting them No. 14 and three voting them No. 15.

Ranking UNC the lowest at No. 24 were Jeff Linder of the Cedar Rapids Gazette and Jeff Vozzelli of The News-Gazette in Champaign, Ill.

Stanford, which lost Indya Nivar to UNC and had other players transfer, is No. 15, the lowest preseason ranking since the Cardinal was No. 16 in 2015. Stanford is in its last season as a member of the Pac-12, which has the most ranked teams with six, before joining the ACC next summer.

Returning starters for UNC are guard Deja Kelly and forwards Alyssa Ustby and Anya Poole. Post players Teonni Key and Alexandra Zelaya and guards Kayla McPherson and Paulina Paris are also back. In the transfer portal, the Tar Heels lost two (Kennedy Todd-Williams to Ole Miss and Destiny Adams to Rutgers) and gained three (Nivar, Lexi Donarski from Iowa State and Maria Gakdeng from Boston College).

The Tar Heels welcome five freshmen — Ciera Toomey, RyLee Grays, Laila Hull, Reniya Kelly and walk-on Sydney Barker — but Toomey (torn right meniscus) and Hull (torn right labrum) are redshirting to recuperate and recover from offseason surgery.

Carolina is also No. 16 in the preseason Massey Ratings. The rankings of other ACC teams are: No. 8 N.C. State, No. 9 Virginia Tech, No. 12 Louisville, No. 13 Notre Dame, No. 22 Duke, No. 30 Florida State, No. 33 Miami, No. 44 Georgia Tech, No. 50 Syracuse, No. 56 Wake Forest, No. 57 Clemson, No. 48 Virginia, No. 59 Boston College and No. 84 Pittsburgh.

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AP preseason Top 25

Rank	Team (1st-place votes)	Poll points
1	LSU (35)	899
2	UConn (1)	855
3	Iowa	780
4	UCLA	757
5	Utah	742
6	South Carolina	713
7	Ohio State	711
8	Virginia Tech	661
9	Indiana	625
10	Notre Dame	546
11	Tennessee	540
12	Ole Miss	450
13	Texas	428
14	Maryland	392
15	Stanford	389
16	North Carolina	375
17	Louisville	308
18	Florida State	292
19	Baylor	268
20	Colorado	257
21	Southern California	209
22	Creighton	123
23	Illinois	82
24	Washington State	61
25	Mississippi State	54

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Kansas St 47, N.C. State 34, Kansas 26, Texas A&M 20, Iowa St. 18, Gonzaga 15, Duke 7, Nebraska 5, Miami 3, UNLV 2, Washington 2, Toledo 1, Oregon 1, Villanova 1, Arizona 1. Point values in parentheses indicate the number of first-place votes.

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Where voters ranked UNC

9: Mitchell Northam, WUNC
12: Sam McKewon, Omaha World-Herald
13: Danny Davis, Austin American-Statesman; Kim Adams, Fox Sports; Payton Titus, The State (Columbia, S.C.); Sabreena Merchant, The Athletic; Stefan Krajisnik, Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, Miss.); and Stu Durango, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
14: Emily Adams, The Greenville (S.C.) News; Kelly Gramlich, ACC Network; Marisa Ingemi, San Francisco Chronicle; Mark Story, Lexington (Ky.) Herald Leader; and Meghan McKeown, Big Ten Network
15: Cora Hall, Knoxville News Sentinel; Robert Cessna, Bryan-College Station Eagle (Texas); and Zack Smith, Waco Tribune  
16: Kent Youngblood, Minneapolis Star Tribune; Kevin Tresolini, Delawareonline.com; Michael Voepel, ESPN; Percy Allen, Seattle Times; and Reed Darcey, The Advocate (Baton Rouge, La.)
17: Cassandra Negley, Yahoo; Michael Katz, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal; Michelle Smith; Roger Cleveland, Waterbury (Conn.) Republican-American; P.J. Brown, Arizona Daily Star; and Rebecca Lobo, ESPN
20: Christy Winters Scott, NBCSW
21: Lindsay Schnell, USA Today
24: Jeff Linder, Cedar Rapids Gazette; and Jeff Vozzelli, The News-Gazette (Champaign, Ill.)

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UNC in preseason poll

(Since 1981–82)

Season	Weeks in poll	Preseason rank	Final rank	Highest rank	Lowest rank
2023–24		16
2022–23	19	12	20	6	22
2015–16	1	22	NR	22	22
2014–15	19	13	15	6	17
2013–14	20	12	12	6	18
2011–12	14	20	NR	14	25
2010–11	19	15	14	8	19
2009–10	14	5	NR	4	18
2008–09	19	6	11	2	11
2007–08	20	8	2	2	8
2006–07	19	2	2	2	4
2005–06	18	7	1	1	7
2004–05	19	9	4	2	12
2003–04	19	14	12	9	16
2002–03	19	13	12	6	16
2000–01	2	22	NR	22	22
1999–2000	10	9	NR	8	15
1998–99	18	10	14	5	14
1997–98	18	5	7	5	11
1996–97	18	23	4	4	23
1995–96	6	23	NR	22	25
1994–95	18	6	11	3	12
1993–94 — X	17	9	4	3	9
1992–93	16	22	17	12	22
1995–86	16	17	16	13	20
1981–82	18	9	12	5	12
X — Won NCAA title

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Date	Day/month	Time	Opponent/event (current ranks)	TV/ record
	October
30	Thursday	L, 91–82	No. 3 South Carolina in Atlanta	Exhib.
	November
3	Monday	W, 90–42	vs. N.C. Central	1–0
6	Thursday	W, 71–37	vs. Elon	2–0
			WBCA Challenge Las Vegas
13	Thursday	L, 78–60	vs. No. 4 UCLA	2–1
15	Saturday	W, 82–68	vs. Fairfield	3–1
			———————————
20	Thursday	W, 85–50	at N.C. A&T	4–1
23	Sunday	W, 94–48	vs. UNCG	5–1
			Cancun Challenge Cancun, Mexico
27	Thursday	W, 83–48	vs. South Dakota St.	6–1
28	Friday	W, 85–73	vs. Kansas State	7–1
29	Saturday	W, 80–63	vs. Columbia	8–1
	December		ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge
4	Thursday	W, 79–64	at No. 2 Texas	8–2
			———————————
7	Sunday	W, 82–40	vs. Boston Univ.	9–2
14	Sunday	L, 76–66, OT	vs. No. 16 Louisville	9–3, 0–1 ACC
17	Wednesday	W, 84–34	vs. UNCW	10–3
21	Sunday	Noon	vs. Charleston Southern	ACCN Extra
29	Monday	8 p.m.	at Boston College	ACCN
	January
1	Thursday	Noon	vs. California	ACCN
4	Sunday	1 p.m.	vs. Stanford	ESPN
11	Sunday	1 p.m.	at No. 20 Notre Dame	ESPN
15	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Miami	ACCN Extra
18	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Florida State	The CW
22	Thursday	8 p.m.	at Georgia Tech	ACCN
25	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Syracuse	The CW
	February
2	Monday	6 p.m.	at N.C. State	ESPN2
5	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Clemson	ACCN
8	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Wake Forest	ACCN
12	Thursday	6 p.m.	vs. SMU	ACCN
15	Sunday	1 p.m.	at Duke	ABC
19	Thursday	6 p.m.	at Virginia Tech	ACCN
22	Sunday	Noon	vs. Pittsburgh	ACCN
26	Thursday	7 p.m.	at Virginia	ACCN Extra
	March
1	Sunday	Noon	vs. Duke	ESPN
			ACC tournament
4–8	Wed.-Sun		Gas South Arena, Duluth, Ga.
			NCAA tournament
20–24	Fri.-Mon.		First, second rounds
27–30	Fri.-Mon.		Regionals Fort Worth, Texas, and Sacramento, Calif.
	April
3, 5	Fri., Sun		Final Four Phoenix

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Year	No.		Players	Pos.	Height
Freshman	5		Liza Astakhova (LEE-zah uh-STAH-koh-vuh)	W	6–2
Freshman	7		Nyla Brooks	W	6–1
			Brooks brings dazzling skills, confidence to UNC
Freshman	3		Taliyah Henderson	W	6–1
			Long wait, journey for 5-star freshman Henderson after second knee surgery nearly over
Freshman	26		Taissa Queiroz	G	6–1
			Queiroz came to USA from Brazil to chase her dreams
Sophomore	17		Elina Aarnisalo (EH-lee-nah AHR-nee-sah-loh)	G	5–10
			Aarnisalo brings flash, IQ and pro experience to backcourt
Sophomore	0		Lanie Grant	G	5–9
Sophomore	34		Blanca Thomas	C	6–5
Sophomore	1		Jordan Zubich	G	5–11
RS sophomore	21		Ciera Toomey	F	6–4
RS sophomore	4		Laila Hull	W	6–1
Junior	10		Reniya Kelly	PG	5–7
Junior	15		Sydney Barker	PG	5–6
Senior	2		Nyla Harris	F	6–2
			It was hard for Harris to say ‘no’ to UNC again
Senior	24		Indya Nivar	G	5–10

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Class of 2025

Player	Rating	ESPN rank	Position	Height	Hometown
Nyla Brooks	Five star	No. 13	Wing	6–2	Alexandria, Va.
Taliyah Henderson	Five star	No. 27	Wing	6–1	Vail, Ariz.
Taissa Queiroz	Four star	No. 77	Guard	6–1	Santa Rosa, Calif.
Liza Astakhova	—	—	Wing	6–1	Moscow, Russia

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Date	Day/month	Time	Opponent/event (current ranks)	TV/ record
	October
30	Thursday	L, 91–82	No. 3 South Carolina in Atlanta	Exhib.
	November
3	Monday	W, 90–42	vs. N.C. Central	1–0
6	Thursday	W, 71–37	vs. Elon	2–0
			WBCA Challenge Las Vegas
13	Thursday	L, 78–60	vs. No. 4 UCLA	2–1
15	Saturday	W, 82–68	vs. Fairfield	3–1
			———————————
20	Thursday	W, 85–50	at N.C. A&T	4–1
23	Sunday	W, 94–48	vs. UNCG	5–1
			Cancun Challenge Cancun, Mexico
27	Thursday	W, 83–48	vs. South Dakota St.	6–1
28	Friday	W, 85–73	vs. Kansas State	7–1
29	Saturday	W, 80–63	vs. Columbia	8–1
	December		ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge
4	Thursday	W, 79–64	at No. 2 Texas	8–2
			———————————
7	Sunday	W, 82–40	vs. Boston Univ.	9–2
14	Sunday	L, 76–66, OT	vs. No. 16 Louisville	9–3, 0–1 ACC
17	Wednesday	W, 84–34	vs. UNCW	10–3
21	Sunday	Noon	vs. Charleston Southern	ACCN Extra
29	Monday	8 p.m.	at Boston College	ACCN
	January
1	Thursday	Noon	vs. California	ACCN
4	Sunday	1 p.m.	vs. Stanford	ESPN
11	Sunday	1 p.m.	at No. 20 Notre Dame	ESPN
15	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Miami	ACCN Extra
18	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Florida State	The CW
22	Thursday	8 p.m.	at Georgia Tech	ACCN
25	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Syracuse	The CW
	February
2	Monday	6 p.m.	at N.C. State	ESPN2
5	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Clemson	ACCN
8	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Wake Forest	ACCN
12	Thursday	6 p.m.	vs. SMU	ACCN
15	Sunday	1 p.m.	at Duke	ABC
19	Thursday	6 p.m.	at Virginia Tech	ACCN
22	Sunday	Noon	vs. Pittsburgh	ACCN
26	Thursday	7 p.m.	at Virginia	ACCN Extra
	March
1	Sunday	Noon	vs. Duke	ESPN
			ACC tournament
4–8	Wed.-Sun		Gas South Arena, Duluth, Ga.
			NCAA tournament
20–24	Fri.-Mon.		First, second rounds
27–30	Fri.-Mon.		Regionals Fort Worth, Texas, and Sacramento, Calif.
	April
3, 5	Fri., Sun		Final Four Phoenix

Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications