By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — All season, opposing coaches will have nightmares trying to figure out how to solve North Carolina’s tenacious defense.
Count UNCG as the latest opponent to suffer a convincing loss against the No. 14 Tar Heels still wondering how to deal with their defense for 40 minutes.
Carolina (10–1) coasted to an 80–56 victory Wednesday at Carmichael Arena, its seventh consecutive victory. It’s the Tar Heels’ best start since the 2021–22 team won its first 13 games in 2021–22 on the way to the Sweet 16.
“This far along in the season, we’re certainly glad to be sitting where we are,” said UNC coach Courtney Banghart, who had 12 of 13 players score, tied for the most in her time at UNC. “I thought we were OK tonight, quite honestly. We need our guys to finish getting through exams so that we can move on.”
When the Spartans (7–3) had reasonable offensive success early, Banghart saw some sluggish play from her defense. She unleashed a sliding, active 2–3 zone, combined with full-court pressure that cut off passing lanes and forced tough shots, leading to 15 turnovers in the final three quarters.
“I needed to find a way to get them a little more energy,” Banghart said. “This group gives you everything they have. They just were a bit slow tonight. I thought they were a little lethargic, not intentionally. It was just like their bodies [were] moving slower than their brains, so it was a way to get them moving differently.”
It worked. With little depth last season, constant aggressive defense like that wasn’t an option last season. But tonight, when every player played fewer than 15 minutes and eight played more than seven minutes, the Tar Heels kept the pressure coming.
By getting into the passing lanes, UNC constantly frustrated the Spartans, who scored 11.8 fewer points than their average and went without a field goal for the final five minutes.
Fifth-year wing Alyssa Ustby, who led UNC’s scoring for the fourth time this season with 15 points (with 8 rebounds and 4 assists), was the ringleader.
She blocked two shots and credited her team-high four steals to the full-court defensive position, with one defender up top and two guards behind her.
“Their activity and ball pressure made those guards throw loopy passes,” Ustby said. “That’s where I’m able to time [it]. … Big credit to our front line of my teammates because they made those steals possible for me. If it’s a direct-line pass, there’s no way I’m getting to those. I think the zone defense helped spark some intensity, and it made it tough for Greensboro to move the ball around and get some good looks.”
Junior guard Indya Nivar (11 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal) said that the team has been working on getting in the passing lanes defensively since the summer.
“We worked with [assistant coach Adrian Walters] making sure we’re in those gaps, stunting at drives,” Nivar said. “And I think our positioning is what gives us those steals.”
Nivar, who shot 4 of 19 in the previous two games, broke out of her shooting slump with a pair of 3-pointers.
“I was working on it,” Nivar said. “So, it just finally showed. Coach Banghart has just been feeding me with confidence, making sure that I believe in the work that I put in. And today, it was a good night.”
UNCG came into the game No. 9 in the country scoring defense at 50.7 per game, but the Tar Heels (who came in No. 3) already had 44 by halftime and bettered the season-high for an opponent by 11 points.
“I think it speaks to our ability to adjust in-game,” Ustby said of the defensive switch. “That changed the intensity to slow them down, creating more offense opportunities because we picked it up on that end.”
Six of UNC’s nine first-quarter field goals were layups as the Tar Heels shook off a slow start (missing 7 of their first 9 shots) to lead 20–15 after the opening quarter with 3-pointers from Reniya Kelly (5 points, 1 assist) and Nivar.
UNCG only trailed UNC by two at halftime in last season’s 81–55 Tar Heels win. But Carolina took control with a 22–9 run with six layups to take a 17-point advantage on a 3-pointer from Lexi Donarski (7 points, 3 assists, 3 steals) with 1:16 left in the first half as UNCG went scoreless for 5½ minutes.
Jaila Lee led UNCG with 10 points when she went to the bench at the 4:15 mark with three fouls, and she only scored four the rest of the way to lead the Spartans with 14.
After UNC led 44–29 at halftime, it scored the first six second-half points to lead by 21. UNCG ended the third quarter with an 11–5 run and trailed 57–42 entering the final period. A 6–2 UNCG run cut a 19-point fourth-quarter lead to 14.With all reserves on the court, freshman guard Jordan Zubich knocked in a 3-pointer to start a 7–0 game-ending run to make the final margin 24 points.
NOTES — UNC opens ACC play at 2 p.m. Sunday at Carmichael Arena against No. 25 Georgia Tech (10–0; NET ranking of 23), which beat Louisiana-Monroe (1–5; 193 NET ranking) at home Wednesday afternoon 97–37. … Banghart said there is no clear timeline on the season debut for Kayla McPherson, who is recovering from a knee issue, but said that the redshirt junior guard is running now. … UNCG shot 40.7%, only the second UNC opponent to shoot better than 37% (UConn shot 43.1%). … UNCG was the fourth team to score at least 53 points on the Tar Heels. … Carolina was only 16 of 29 on layup attempts. … UNC shot above 60% at the free throw line for only the second time in five games (70%). … The Tar Heels are 14–0 against UNCG (194 NET ranking) and have beaten the Spartans two consecutive seasons. … Former UNC players Cetera DeGraffenreid — a three-time All-ACC selection — and Alex Miller are UNCG assistant coaches.
No. 14 UNC 80, UNCG 56
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 6 Louisville | 11–0 | 21–3 | 8 |
| No. 17 Duke | 11–0 | 16–6 | 14 |
| Syracuse | 8–3 | 18–4 | 40 |
| Virginia Tech | 8–3 | 18–5 | 42 |
| N.C. State | 8–3 | 15–7 | 28 |
| No. 25 North Carolina | 7–3 | 18–5 | 22 |
| Virginia | 7–4 | 15–7 | 37 |
| Clemson | 7–4 | 16–7 | 38 |
| Notre Dame | 6–5 | 14–8 | 31 |
| Georgia Tech | 5–6 | 10–13 | 91 |
| Stanford | 4–5 | 15–7 | 36 |
| California | 4–6 | 13–10 | 54 |
| Miami | 4–7 | 12–10 | 45 |
| Florida State | 2–8 | 7–15 | 109 |
| Wake Forest | 2–9 | 12–11 | 118 |
| SMU | 1–9 | 8–14 | 180 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–9 | 8–15 | 260 |
| Boston College | 0–11 | 4–20 | 250 |
* — Through Saturday games
Sunday’s results
No. 17 Duke 80, Wake Forest 44
No. 6 Louisville 71, California 59
Virginia Tech 76, Virginia 64
Syracuse 65, Miami 60
Georgia Tech 70, Boston College 60
Notre Dame 78, Stanford 66
Clemson 77, Florida State 58
Monday’s game
No. 25 North Carolina 61, N.C. State 59
Thursday’s games
Syracuse at Boston College, 6 p.m.
Stanford at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m., ACCN Extra
Clemson at No. 25 North Carolina, 6 p.m., ACC Network
No. 17 Duke at No. 6 Louisville, 7 p.m., ESPN
Virginia Tech at Notre Dame, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Miami at Virginia, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
California at Georgia Tech, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Wake Forest at SMU, 7:30, ACCN Extra
Florida State at N.C. State, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Sunday’s games
No. 6 Louisville at Syracuse, noon, ACCN Extra
N.C. State at Virginia Tech, noon, ACC Network
California at Pittsburgh, 1 p.m. ACCN Extra
No. 25 North Carolina at Wake Forest, 2 p.m., ACC Network
SMU at No. 17 Duke, 2 p.m. The CW
Notre Dame at Virginia, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Miami at Florida State, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Stanford at Georgia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Boston College at Clemson, 2 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. 78 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 | 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 No. 20 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. No. 20 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 |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
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