By R.L. Bynum
Could stars Alyssa Ustby and Reniya Kelly play in Greensboro at this week’s ACC tournament?
North Carolina coach Courtney Banghart had some hopeful words on the day that the Tar Heels fell six spots in the AP Top 25 poll to No. 14 after losing back-to-back games for the first time this season.
“There’s a good possibility,” Banghart said Monday during an ACC Zoom press conference for the league’s coaches. “Holding them to put them in the best position for the postseason was important.
“I know they’re not going to let me hold them much longer, I’ll tell you that much,” she said. “There’s a good chance. Definitely, for the NCAA tournament. But, most likely, I’ll have to [play them.] They won’t listen to any longer, and I’ll have to play them sooner.”
No. 5-seed UNC (25–6) plays its ACC tournament opener at Greensboro’s First Horizon Coliseum at 11 a.m. Thursday (ACC Network) against the winner of Wednesday’s 1 p.m. game between No. 12 Boston College (15–16) and No. 13 Syracuse (12–17). UNC won the regular-season games against both, beating the Eagles 80–67 at home on Jan. 12 and the Orange 68–58 on the road on Feb. 20.
A Thursday win would give the Tar Heels an 11 a.m. Friday rematch with No. 22-ranked and No. 4-seed Florida State (23–7), which escaped Carmichael Arena on Jan. 26 with an 86–84 victory.
The Tar Heels badly missed both players in losses at Duke, 68–53 on Thursday, and 78–75 on Sunday, senior day, against Virginia.
Ustby left early in the N.C. State victory on Feb. 16 with a right knee injury and missed the last four regular-season games. She is second on the team in scoring (10.7 points per game), leads the team in rebounding (9.4 per game) and brings so many intangibles to UNC.
While Kelly, who is working through a left knee issue, is only fourth on the team in scoring (10.1), she leads the team in assists (2.3) and has become the primary catalyst for the Tar Heels’ offense with her aggressiveness.
With graduate guard Grace Townsend taking over her starting spot while Kelly missed both games last week, the offense is completely different and hasn’t been effective. When Kelly started and Townsend came off the bench, the Tar Heels had been clicking.
Having Ustby and Kelly back would also help Banghart distribute minutes to more players. After both losses last week, Banghart lamented that her team ran out of gas. It is important to avoid this, considering that UNC will have to win four games in as many days to win the ACC title.
“You’re going to have to continue to get as much as you can from your bench. You know that that’s going to continue to be important,” said Banghart, who pointed out that her team won three games in as many days in winning the Battle 4 Atlantis title in November. “You condition them for these types of opportunities.”
Carolina’s NET ranking held steady at 14th through most of the Tar Heels’ seven-game win streak, but it fell to 20th after the losses last week. The home loss to Virginia was damaging because it was the Tar Heels’ first Quad 3 defeat.
Banghart is confident that her team had banked enough wins before last week to still be in a good position to earn a top-four regional seed and the right to host first- and second-round games.
“When you look at the body of work, I think that’s what has to happen overall,” said Banghart, hoping the selection committee considers that the last two losses came without Ustby and Kelly. “They’ll be back for the tournament, so we’ll be better. That will help. I think you have to take that into consideration, that having those two out make a big difference for us, for sure.”
In Charle Creme’s ESPN projection released Monday, UNC is a No. 4 seed and a first- and second-round host.
ACC tournament
No. 10 California 75, No. 15 Wake Forest 52
No. 11 Georgia Tech 72, No. 14 Florida State 60
Thursday’s second round
No. 9 Clemson 63, Virginia 50
No. 5 Notre Dame 69, Miami 54
No. 7 Syracuse 70, California 59
No. 6 Virginia Tech 62, Georgia Tech 54
Friday’s quarterfinals
No. 1 Duke 60, Clemson 54
Notre Dame 81, No. 5 N.C. State 63
No. 2 Louisville 87, Syracuse 61
No. 3 North Carolina 85, Virginia Tech 68
Saturday’s semifinals
Duke 65, Notre Dame 63
Louisville 65, North Carolina 57
Sunday’s championship
Duke 70, Louisville 65, OT
UNC schedule
| Date | Day/ month | Time | Opponent/event (rank in final poll) |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | |||
| 18 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Davidson (exhibition) |
| November | |||
| 2 | Monday | TBA | Oui-Play in Paris vs. No 12 Oklahoma |
| 8 | Sunday | 5:30 | Ally Tipoff in Charlotte vs. No. 2 South Carolina |
| 11 | Wednesday | TBA | vs. N.C. Central |
| 14 | Saturday | TBA | at Penn in Palestra |
| WBCA Showcase | Orlando | ||
| 19 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | vs. Texas Tech |
| 21 | Saturday | 5 p.m. | vs. No. 24 Alabama |
| ——— | |||
| 24 | Tuesday | TBA | vs. Gardner-Webb |
| 27 | Friday | TBA | vs. Army |
| 29 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Brown |
| December | |||
| 2 | Wednesday | TBA | ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge vs. No. 8 LSU |
| 6 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Elon |
| 9 | Wednesday | 11 a.m. | vs. Winthrop |
| 13 | Sunday | TBA | vs. N.C. State |
| 17 | Thursday | TBA | vs. Georgia Tech |
| 21 | Monday | TBA | vs. Norfolk State |
| 28 | Monday | TBA | vs. UNCW |
| 31 | Thursday | TBA | at Syracuse |
| January | |||
| 3 | Sunday | TBA | at Clemson |
| 7 | Thursday | TBA | vs. Wake Forest |
| 10 | Sunday | TBA | at No. 11 Louisville |
| 17 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Boston College |
| 21 | Thursday | TBA | at California |
| 24 | Sunday | TBA | at Stanford |
| 28 | Thursday | TBA | vs. No. 9 Notre Dame |
| 31 | Sunday | TBA | vs. No. 5 Duke |
| February | |||
| 4 | Thursday | TBA | at Miami |
| 7 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Virginia Tech |
| 14 | Sunday | TBA | at SMU |
| 18 | Thursday | TBA | at Pittsburgh |
| 21 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Florida State |
| 25 | Thursday | TBA | vs. No. 19 Virginia |
| 28 | Sunday | TBA | at No. 5 Duke |
| March | |||
| 3–7 | Wed.-Sun. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
