By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — With seven newcomers and a deep roster, No. 15 North Carolina showed off plenty of talent as the team builds chemistry.
But the Tar Heels’ 83–53 opening-game victory Monday over Charleston Southern before hundreds of screaming kids on field trip day showed their high ceiling.
“It just takes some time to get your game rhythm,” said Coach Courtney Banghart after her 97th win at UNC. “It’s just the game rhythm against somebody else. We’ve had 70 days of training sessions without that. It’s typically why you schedule the way you do, to get your rhythm.”
The tempo and ball movement improved from last season, and they feasted on second-half transition points off a more aggressive defense.
But the ringleader was the same — fifth-year wing Alyssa Ustby, who led the team in points (18), rebounds (8), assists (4) and blocks (2). Fifth-year guard Lexi Donarski poured in 14 points and two 3-pointers and played outstanding defense.
“These two, they need to do what they do,” Banghart said, sitting beside Ustby and Donarski at the postgame press conference. “That has to happen. Just because we’re deeper and have more talent and we’re healthier doesn’t mean that these two [don’t have to] put their foot on the break. The more help they get, the better.”
The last of the offseason acquisitions, Arizona State junior transfer Tray Crisp, showed the impact she could have with 11 points, two assists and two steals.
“I think this team is so deep that you don’t know which game is going to be your night,” Banghart said. “But we know that we need a contribution from everybody. [Today], we needed a stat line that she was able to provide us. She’s one of those players on our team who are capable of that. So really happy for her.”
Carolina showed that it will put a lot of pressure on other teams with its transition game.
“This group has done a really great job of getting out and running,” said Ustby, who also scored a 3-pointer. “We have a lot of ballhandlers who can bring the ball against pressure, especially, so that definitely helps us keep an up-tempo pace.”
With a roster full of excellent perimeter shooters, that potent weapon will come, but UNC was 6 of 28 for the game. Donarski, the only Tar Heel with multiple 3-pointers, isn’t worried.
“We have a lot of people on this team that can really shoot the ball,” Donarski said. “We’ll continue to get more comfortable. We’ll continue to play better together. And I feel like the shots that we got were shots that we liked. I feel like we’ll continue to make more 3s as the season progresses. “
UNC scored 28 points off turnovers and 48 inside points while outrebounding the Buccaneers 47–34 but also committed 10 turnovers. UNC held Charleston Southern to only 0.62 of a point per possession.
It was a mostly veteran starting lineup with three fifth-year players — Ustby and guards Grace Townsend, the Richmond transfer, (6 points, 3 rebounds) and Donarski — senior center Maria Gakdeng (4 points, 7 rebounds) and sophomore Reniya Kelly (9 points, 3 rebounds).
“We don’t have a consistent five in practice. We just keep mixing it up,” said Banghart when asked if the starting lineup is fluid. “I don’t know yet in terms of our lineup, but fortunately, I don’t think they’re that worried about it. I think they know that this is going to be by committee as a holistic approach, and they’ve got to continue to keep their feet on the gas.”
Freshman Blanca Thomas (8 points, 6 rebounds) was first off the bench (blocking a shot seconds later), followed by Crisp, freshman Lanie Grant (4 points, 2 rebounds) and redshirt freshman Ciera Toomey (5 rebounds), all making their UNC debuts and on the court together with Kelly late in the first quarter.
Banghart played all 12 available players, but how deep she goes in the heart of the ACC season remains to be seen. She said she’d love Ustby and Donarski to play fewer than 30 minutes a game (Donarski played 26 and Ustby 24 on Monday).
“We’re in a constant state of evaluation,” Banghart said. “The beauty of film is that every session is filmed, and we can assess where we’re at. I’ve loved the progression and the growth of each of our guys. It allows the competitors to continue to rise.”
Later in the first quarter, freshman Jordan Zubich (2 points, 1 rebound) checked in for Kelly for her college debut, meaning all five players were playing their first UNC games. Redshirt freshman Laila Hull (5 points, 1 3-pointer, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) made her UNC debut early in the second quarter.
Other than Kelly, Donarski was playing with many newcomers in the backcourt.
“I think it’s been a really good mix,” Donarski said. “We’ve had new people this year that have made such a big impact, both on offense and defense, and it’s just been a lot of fun. I feel like every practice, every week, we’re continuing to play together more and play better together. It’s been a lot of fun, and I’m excited to see where we’ll continue to grow throughout the season.”
A pair of Kelly buckets, one a 3-pointer, helped UNC jump to a 7–2 lead. A pair of Buccaneers 3-pointers cut the lead to three, and they only trailed 20–16 after one quarter.
“There were a lot of jitters out there on both ends,” Banghart said. “I thought we played with a little bit too much energy defensively, which hurt us a little bit in our discipline. We didn’t shoot as well as we know we can.”
In the first half, UNC tended to shoot early in the shot clock, and Banghart suggested that this wasn’t her plan.
“We were antsy,” she said. “I think we didn’t go to our second action in the first half very well. And I give these guys a lot of credit. At halftime, I challenged them to go to their second action, and they did. We don’t want to take contested shots early.”
After Charleston Southern cut the lead to three, Ustby’s 3-point play and transition bucket started a 16–4 run, including a Donarski 3-pointer, to end the first half and take a 38–23 halftime lead.
“A lot of our talk at halftime was that our defensive intensity needed to take a step forward,” Donarski. “I feel like we came out in the second half, both the third and the fourth quarter, and really stepped that up all together, just focusing on putting more pressure on the ball, getting a couple more steals. I feel like we accepted that challenge at halftime, and we’ll continue to get better at that.”
A Hull 3-pointer off a Crisp assist to end a 9–2 UNC run shoved the lead to 21 with 4:37 left in the third quarter. Crisp took a transition pitch-ahead pass from Grant for a layup in the final minute of the third quarter as UNC took a 60–40 lead in the final period.
The lead ballooned to 30 on a Donarski jumper and transition layup with 4:46 left.
Junior guard Catherine Alben led three Charleston Southern players scoring in double figures wiht 18 points.
NOTES — UNC is at home again Thursday for Ali Zelaya’s homecoming game as her UNCW team visits Carmichael Arena at 7 p.m. (ESPN3). The Seahawks, who were 5–25 last season, opened their season Monday evening at Virginia Tech. … Neither junior guard Indya Nivar (left foot in a boot, considered day-to-day) nor redshirt junior guard Kayla McPherson (lower-body, not expected back soon) were in uniform. … UNC was the first of three ranked teams Charleston Southern will play on the road. The Buccaneers visit No. 7 LSU on Nov. 12 and No.1 South Carolina on Dec. 19. … Carolina has won all 11 meetings (10 of those in Chapel Hill) with Charleston Southern, but this was the first since Nov. 15, 2019. … UNC is 44–7 in season openers and 6–0 under Banghart. … The Tar Heels are 26–3 in November under Banghart.
No. 15 UNC 83, Charleston Southern 35
| Date | Day/month | Time/ score | Opponent/event (current rank) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November | ||||
| 4 | Monday | W, 83–53 | vs. Charleston Southern | 1–0 |
| 7 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. UNCW | ESPN3 |
| 12 | Sunday | 7 p.m. | 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 |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
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