By R.L. Bynum
UCLA guard Elina Aarnisalo is transferring to North Carolina, giving Coach Courtney Banghart her second transfer portal commitment of the offseason.
Aarnisalo, a 5–10 rising sophomore from Helsinki, Finland, with three years of eligibility left, averaged 5.1 points and 3.4 rebounds per game last season.
She started at point guard in the first seven games of the season while Kiki Rice recovered from a shoulder injury but only started three games after that, the last of those on Jan. 1, playing mostly at the two spot when Rice was in the lineup. She averaged 8.6 points, 5.3 assists, and 3.2 rebounds as a starter.
“We are thrilled to add Elina to our Tar Heel program. She brings so much competitive experience, including her most recent time in an NCAA Final Four as well as extensive international competition,” Banghart said. “Elina is an elite competitor and a dynamic playmaker for herself and for others. She will help us play fast and connected.
“Also important, she fit in so seamlessly to our culture, as the team went from meeting her to wanting her a part of us in a matter of moments,” Banghart said. “I recruited Elina since her days playing in Finland and Belgium, and I’m overjoyed and eager that now is the time I get to be her coach. Let’s get to work!”
She scored 13 points and dished out four assists in UCLA’s 77–62 victory over South Carolina on Nov. 24, drawing praise from Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley.
“I thought Elina did a really great job,” Staley said after the Nov. 24 loss to UCLA, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. “Really great job. It’s fun watching her on film. I was hoping that she would come off the bench and not get as many minutes. She’s the one that was really, really impressive.”
Aarnisalo also made an official visit to Iowa. She was one of four UCLA freshmen to enter the transfer portal, along with Avary Cain, Kendall Dudley and Zania Socka-Ngueman.
Earlier, UNC got a transfer-portal commitment from rising senior Louisville transfer Nyla Harris.
She’ll be the program’s first European player since guard Petra Holešínská, who is from Czech Republic and played for the Tar Heels during the 2020-21 season after transferring from Illinois.
“She is a great facilitator, she is aggressive, she’s a great shooter and passer, she gets to the free throw line, she is just an impact-level player,” said UCLA’s Cori Close, who was named national coach of the year.
The Bruins, ranked No. 3 in the final AP poll, went 34–3, won the Big Ten tournament title and lost 85–51 to eventual national champion UConn in a national semifinal.
Before coming to UCLA, she played for Finland Korisliiga with HBA-Marksy, averaging 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.7 steals per game. She led Finland with 17.9 points in the 2022 FIBA U18 Women’s European Championships. She added 4.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game to her stat line.
Playing for the Kangoeroes Basket Mechelen in the BNXT League, Belgium’s top division for women’s basketball, she averaged 12.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals on 46.7% shooting duing the 2023–24 Eurocup. In four games, she was 5 of 8 from 3-point range.
Aarnisalo started 10 of 37 games last season, shooting 43.7% from the floor and 27% from 3-point range, with 127 assists and 25 steals in 779 total minutes.
Her best game of the season was in a 91–54 home win Nov. 12 against Pepperdine, when she collected 16 points, nine assists, five rebounds and a season-high three 3-pointers. Her best scoring game was 19 points on Nov. 10 in an 81–63 home victory over Colgate.
Projected UNC roster next season
(Next season’s class listed)
| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | — | Nyla Brooks | W | 6–1 | |
| Freshman | — | Taliyah Henderson | W | 6–1 | |
| Freshman | — | Taissa Queiroz | F | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 7 | Elina Aarnisalo | G | 5–1 | |
| Sophomore | 0 | Lanie Grant | PG | 5–10 | |
| Sophomore | 34 | Blanca Thomas | C | 6–5 | |
| Sophomore | 3 | Jordan Zubich | G | 5–11 | |
| RS sophomore | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| RS sophomore | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Junior | 10 | Reniya Kelly | PG | 5–7 | |
| Junior | 15 | Sydney Barker | PG | 5–6 | |
| RS senior | 11 | Kayla McPherson | PG | 5–8 | |
| Senior | 2 | Nyla Harris | F | 6–2 | |
| Senior | 24 | Indya Nivar | G | 5–10 |
Class of 2025
| Player | Rating | ESPN rank | Position | Height | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nyla Brooks | Five star | No. 20 | Wing | 6–2 | 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. |
Photo via uclabruins.com
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