By R.L. Bynum
With plenty of offseason changes and an influx of talent, North Carolina is ranked No. 15 in the preseason Top 25 women’s poll released Tuesday.
The Tar Heels were ranked No. 16 in last season’s preseason poll, but that turned out to be their highest rank of the season. They were unranked from the first February poll until the end of the season after coming in at No. 24 on Jan. 29.
UNC, which went 20–13 and made the NCAA tournament, is one of six ACC teams in the poll. The others are No. 6 Notre Dame, No. 9 N.C. State, No. 11 Duke, No. 17 Louisville and No. 19 Florida State. Stanford, Miami, Georgia Tech and Syracuse also got votes.
Reigning national champion South Carolina is No. 1, followed by No. 2 UConn, No. 3 USC, No. 4 Texas and No. 5 UCLA. The Gamecocks are preseason No. 1 for the fourth time in five seasons. Last season, they were No. 6 in the first poll.
UNC has eight (and possibly nine) games against ranked teams: UConn in Greensboro on Nov. 15, No. 22 Kentucky in Chapel Hill on Dec. 5, Notre Dame at home on Jan. 5, Duke on Jan. 9 and Feb. 27, Florida State at home on Jan. 26, N.C. State at home on Feb. 16 and at Louisville on Feb. 23. The Tar Heels could face No. 12 Baylor or No. 25 Indiana on Nov. 25 on the second day of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Carolina opens the season at Carmichael Arena at 11 a.m. on Nov. 4 against Charleston Southern.
AP Top 25
| Rank | Team (first-place votes) | Poll points | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Carolina (27) | 745 | 1 |
| 2 | UConn (2) | 708 | 3 |
| 3 | Southern California (1) | 697 | 5 |
| 4 | Texas | 641 | 7 |
| 5 | UCLA | 628 | 10 |
| 6 | Notre Dame | 614 | 11 |
| 7 | LSU | 549 | 6 |
| 8 | Iowa State | 521 | 25 |
| 9 | N.C. State | 510 | 4 |
| 10 | Oklahoma | 441 | 21 |
| 11 | Duke | 439 | 17 |
| 12 | Baylor | 422 | 13 |
| 13 | Kansas State | 390 | 19 |
| 14 | Ohio State | 372 | 16 |
| 15 | North Carolina | 285 | NR |
| 16 | West Virginia | 277 | 24 |
| 17 | Louisville | 250 | NR |
| 18 | Maryland | 227 | NR |
| 19 | Florida State | 191 | NR |
| 20 | Ole Miss | 165 | NR |
| 21 | Creighton | 152 | 23 |
| 22 | Kentucky | 108 | NR |
| 23 | Nebraska | 106 | NR |
| 24 | Alabama | 67 | NR |
| 25 | Indiana | 46 | 12 |
Others receiving votes: Iowa 37, TCU 30, Utah 24, Illinois 23, Stanford 17, Michigan St. 16, Gonzaga 16, Vanderbilt 12, South Dakota St. 7, Miami 4, Tennessee 3, Fairfield 3, Middle Tennessee 3, Georgia Tech 2, Syracuse 1, Princeton 1.
UNC schedule
| Date | Day/month | Time | Opponent/event (current rank) | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November | ||||
| 4 | Monday | 11 a.m. | vs. Charleston Southern | ESPN3 |
| 7 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. UNCW | ESPN3 |
| 12 | Sunday | TBA | at N.C. A&T | ESPN3 |
| 15 | Friday | 6 p.m. | vs. No. 2 UConn in Greensboro | ESPN2 |
| Battle 4 Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas | ||||
| 23 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | Ball State | FloHoops |
| 24 | Sunday | 1:30 or 6:30 | Texas A&M or Villanova | FloHoops |
| 25 | Monday | Noon, 2:30, 5 p.m. or 7:30 | No. 12 Baylor, No. 25 Indiana, Columbia or S. Miss | ESPN2, ESPNU or FloHoops |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 29 | Friday | TBA | vs. N.C. Central | ESPN3 |
| December | ||||
| ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge | ||||
| 5 | Thursday | 5 p.m. | vs. No. 22 Kentucky | ESPN2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 8 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Coppin State | ESPN3 |
| 11 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. UNCG | ESPN3 |
| 15 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte | ||||
| 18 | Wednesday | 6:30 | vs. Florida | ESPNU |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 21 | Saturday | Noon | vs. Norfolk State | ESPN3 |
| ACC season | ||||
| 29 | Sunday | 4 p.m. | at Miami | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 5 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. No. 6 Notre Dame | ESPN |
| 9 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 11 Duke | TBA |
| 12 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Boston College | ACCN |
| 16 | Thursday | 8 p.m. ET | at SMU | ESPN3 |
| 19 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at Pitt | ACCN |
| 23 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ESPN3 |
| 26 | Sunday | Noon | vs. No. 19 Florida State | ACCN |
| 30 | Thursday | TBA | at Cal | ESPN3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Sunday | 3 p.m. ET | at Stanford | The CW |
| 9 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at Clemson | ESPN3 |
| 13 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN3 |
| 16 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. No. 9 N.C. State | ESPN |
| 20 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | at Syracuse | ACCN |
| 23 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at No. 17 Louisville | ESPN |
| 27 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at No. 11 Duke | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 2 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Virginia | The CW |
| 5–9 | Wed.–Sun. | ACC tournament Greensboro Coliseum |
UNC roster
| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | 0 | Lanie Grant (5 star) | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | 34 | Blanca Thomas (5 star) | C | 6–5 | |
| Freshman | 3 | 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 | |
| Junior | 14 | Trayanna Crisp | G | 5–8 | |
| Senior | 5 | Maria Gakdeng | C | 6–3 | |
| Graduate | 2 | Grace Townsend | G | 5–5 | |
| Graduate | 20 | Lexi Donarski | G | 6–0 | |
| Graduate | 1 | Alyssa Ustby | F | 6–1 |
Class of 2025 commitments
| Player | Rating | ESPN rank | Position | Height | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nyla Brooks | Five star | No. 17 | Wing | 6–1 | Alexandria, Va. |
| Taliyah Henderson | Five star | No. 21 | Wing | 6–1 | Tucson, Ariz. |
| Taissa Queiroz | Four star | No. 76 | Forward | 6–1 | Santa Rosa, Calif. |
Players transferring in offseason
| Class | Player | Pos. | Height | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sophomore | RyLee Grays | F | 6–3 | Virginia |
| Junior | Paulina Paris | G | 5–9 | Arizona |
| RS junior | Teonni Key | F | 6–4 | Kentucky |
| Graduate | Deja Kelly | G | 5–8 | Oregon |
| Graduate | Ali Zelaya | F | 6–4 | UNCW |
| Graduate | Anya Poole | F | 6–2 | Clemson |
Photo courtesy of the ACC
tarheeltribune.com 