By R.L. Bynum
Redshirt sophomore guard Kayla McPherson will miss the rest of Carolina’s women’s basketball season after suffering a knee injury that required surgery.
The 5–8 guard redshirted during her first season (2021–22) in Chapel Hill while she rehabilitated from surgery after tearing her right ACL in high school. She missed the first of 13 games last season before making her college debut Jan. 29 at Clemson, and averaging 6.8 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 20.4 minutes.
“While I’m devastated to miss the rest of the season, I know that I can play an important role on the team even when I’m not in uniform,” said McPherson, who used crutches to get around at Thursday’s Syracuse game. “I’ll be cheering for my teammates from the bench and continuing to work hard to get back on the court. I want to thank our sports medicine team, our coaching staff, my teammates, my family and all of our fans for their support.”
Since she has already taken a redshirt season, she would have only two more seasons of eligibility unless the NCAA grants her a medical redshirt.
“I continue to be amazed and inspired by Kayla’s resilience,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “We are all heartbroken on her behalf as she faces more time away from playing the game she loves and excels at, but her mindset remains so positive. While she attacks this setback, she is determined to impact our team in every way she can. We’re a better team with Kayla, even when she is on the sidelines. Our entire program is behind her as she faces this new challenge.”
Before the season started, UNC announced that two freshmen, forward Ciera Toomey (recovering from a torn right ACL) and guard Laila Hull (torn right labrum), would redshirt.
After sitting out this season’s opener, she played seven games, averaging 4.7 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 17.7 minutes. In her last game against No. 1 South Carolina on Nov. 30, she had three points and three assists in 27 minutes.
During her high school career at Madison County High School in Hull, Ga., McPherson earned McDonald’s Girls All-American Team and the Jordan Brand Classic Girls National team honors.
As a junior, she led the nation in scoring at 36.3 per game and scored 63 points in one game. McPherson was the Georgia Player of the Year in her sophomore and junior seasons.
She arrived at UNC the same year as redshirt sophomore forward Teonni Key, who also redshirted during the 2021–22 season after tearing her right ACL before the season. Key played 28 games last season, averaging 2.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 0.4 of a block and 10.1 minutes.
Key didn’t debut this season until scoring seven points in the Dec. 15 home 96–34 victory over Western Carolina.
UNC season statistics
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 9 Duke | 15–0 | 20–6 | 10 |
| No. 8 Louisville | 14–1 | 24–4 | 9 |
| No. 22 North Carolina | 11–4 | 22–6 | 19 |
| Syracuse | 11–4 | 21–5 | 38 |
| N.C. State | 10–5 | 17–9 | 24 |
| Virginia | 10–5 | 18–8 | 37 |
| Virginia Tech | 10–6 | 20–8 | 40 |
| Clemson | 9–6 | 18–9 | 39 |
| Notre Dame | 9–6 | 17–9 | 25 |
| California | 8–7 | 17–11 | 53 |
| Georgia Tech | 7–8 | 12–15 | 84 |
| Miami | 6–9 | 14–12 | 54 |
| Stanford | 5–10 | 16–12 | 45 |
| Florida State | 4–11 | 9–18 | 109 |
| Wake Forest | 3–12 | 13–14 | 127 |
| SMU | 2–13 | 9–18 | 206 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–14 | 8–20 | 256 |
| Boston College | 1–15 | 5–23 | 244 |
* — Through Thursday games
Thursday’s games
No. 22 North Carolina 66, Virginia Tech 63, OT
Notre Dame 78, Wake Forest 54
Georgia Tech 84, Pittsburgh 68
California 76, Florida Stat2 62
No. 9 Duke 83, N.C. State 65
Boston College 77, SMU 59
Miami 66, Stanford 51
Sunday’s games
Virginia at No. 8 Louisville, noon, The CW
Pittsburgh at No. 22 North Carolina, noon, ACC Network
Wake Forest at Boston College, noon, ACCN Extra
No. 9 Duke at Clemson, 2 p.m.
Georgia Tech at Virginia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
California at Miami, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Stanford at Florida State, 2 p.m., ACC Network
Syracuse at N.C. State, 2 p.m., The CW
Notre Dame at SMU, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Thursday, Feb. 26, games
No. 8 Louisville at Georgia Tech, 6 p.m., ACC Network
No. 22 North Carolina at Virginia, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Syracuse at Notre Dame, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Pittsburgh at Miami, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Wake Forest at N.C. State, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Florida State at No. 9 Duke, 8 p.m., ACC Network
SMU at Stanford, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
Clemson at California, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
| 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. 2 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. 4 Texas | 8–2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 82–40 | vs. Boston Univ. | 9–2 |
| 14 | Sunday | L, 76–66, OT | vs. No. 8 Louisville | 9–3, 0–1 ACC |
| 17 | Wednesday | W, 84–34 | vs. UNCW | 10–3 |
| 21 | Sunday | W, 93–74 | vs. Charleston Southern | 11–3 |
| 29 | Monday | W, 90–38 | at Boston College | 12–3, 1–1 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 1 | Thursday | W, 71–55 | vs. California | 13–3, 2–1 |
| 4 | Sunday | L, 77–71, OT | vs. Stanford | 13–4, 2–2 |
| 11 | Sunday | L, 73–50 | at Notre Dame | 13–5, 2–3 |
| 15 | Thursday | W, 73–62 | vs. Miami | 14–5, 3–3 |
| 18 | Sunday | W, 82–55 | at Florida State | 15–5, 4–3 |
| 22 | Thursday | W, 54–46 | at Georgia Tech | 16–5, 5–3 |
| 25 | Sunday | W, 77–71, OT | vs. Syracuse | 17–5, 6–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 61–59 | at N.C. State | 18–5, 7–3 |
| 5 | Thursday | W, 53–44 | vs. Clemson | 19–5, 8–3 |
| 8 | Sunday | W, 84–56 | vs. Wake Forest | 20–5, 9–3 |
| 12 | Thursday | W, 94–42 | vs. SMU | 21–5, 10–3 |
| 15 | Sunday | L, 72–68 | at No. 9 Duke | 21–6, 10–4 |
| 19 | Thursday | W, 66–63, OT | at Virginia Tech | 22–6, 11–4 |
| 22 | Sunday | Noon | vs. Pittsburgh | ACCN |
| 26 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at Virginia | ACCN Extra |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | Noon | vs. No. 9 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
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