By R.L. Bynum
ATLANTA — The young No. 11 Tar Heels already knew that they would give a significant preseason test against No. 2 South Carolina, and it got even tougher with two key players sitting at the end of the bench.
Preseason All-ACC pick Reniya Kelly and sophomore center Blanca Thomas missed the exhibition game as UNC battled the Gamecocks well at times before falling 91–82 Thursday night at the State Farm Arena.
The Tar Heels surged late with an 11–2 run to make the score more respectable and outscored South Carolina by two after halftime, but ran out of gas in the third quarter against last year’s national runner-up.
“We knew this was going to be a slim margin of error,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said. “We weren’t necessarily sharp enough yet. And that’s OK — it’s November.”
There’s a reason Coach Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks made the NCAA championship game last season and are near the top of the preseason poll; they showed it with a dominant effort.
After the Tar Heels thrived on tough defense last season (giving up 57.3 points per game, 32nd in the country), giving up 91 points, even to the talented Gamecocks, was a bit of a jolt.
What were the most points the Heels gave up last season? In an 86–84 loss to Florida State, which was led by dynamic point guard Ta’Niya Latson, who transferred to South Carolina in the offseason. That was also the most points UNC scored against a power conference team last season.
“Some of that is [that] they’ve got first-round draft picks. I get it. But part of that is that we need to be better at the things that happen all the time,” said Banghart, admitting that it’s a totally new offense and she’s asked her team to learn a lot.
“There’s a lot of learning happening with this young team,” she said. “It doesn’t matter where you start. For either side, they’re going to get better. It’s a good team, and we damn well better get better, too.”
The challenge grew when UNC had to defend Latson, who led the Gamecocks with 19 points, with that job mostly falling to senior guard Indya Nivar.
Nivar, who finished with 14 points and five rebounds, credited Latson’s impact but pointed to UNC’s growth areas.
“She’s a great player,” said Nivar, who collected 14 points (seven at the line) with five rebounds, three assists and three steals. “She was very aggressive driving the lanes. It exposed our help-side defense and what we needed to get better at.”
Still, North Carolina flashed promise in transition and on the glass. Banghart acknowledged, “We ran out of gas at times… but we took advantage of the ones we could.”
Although North Carolina had more turnovers than assists (15–14), the Tar Heels took better advantage of the Gamecocks’ mistakes with a 20–13 advantage in points off turnovers.
Staley praised UNC’s pace and tenacity.
“When you turn the ball over as much as we did, it becomes a lot easier,” Staley said. “They did a really good job of just being scrappy and getting loose balls. [They were] super physical.”
Louisville transfer Nyla Harris was aggressive under the boards and posted her ninth career double-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and a steal, one of five Tar Heels who scored in double figures.
“It was really fun playing today,” Harris said. “Although we didn’t get the outcome we wanted, just playing with these girls, it’s actually fun. And I’m looking forward to what we have for this season.”
Banghart called Harris “a problem,” adding, “We’re glad that this problem is now on our side. I can be hard on her because I have high hopes for her.”
Freshman Nyla Brooks impressed with 12 points, two 3-pointers and seven rebounds, showing that she can drive hard to the basket to create opportunities.
Banghart highlighted the youth movement — and the leadership holding it together.
“Outside of [Brooks and Nivar], it’s basically freshmen and sophomores,” she said. “Our leadership is really strong. Our young guys are here to compete.”
Redshirt sophomore Ciera Toomey, who started once last season, drew a tough matchup starting at center, giving up two inches to 6–6 Kenyan center Madina Okot, but still managed 11 points, eight rebounds, and two assists. Without Thomas, Harris played some at the five, and they got Okot into foul trouble as she finished with only 11 points.
Staley said that she sees a high ceiling for UNC once it gets healthy.
“They defend,” said Staley, who also got 19 points from Tessa Johnson. “They’ve got people that can flat out shoot and get to the basket. They’re not totally healthy, so it’s allowing the young players to get great minutes. They’re going to challenge in the ACC for sure.”
Even without Kelly and Thomas, were tenacious and aggressive on defense. Banghart didn’t celebrate moral victories but embraced the grit.
“To outscore them in the second half is great,” she said. “There’s going to be people that say there’s no quit — and I get it — but that’s not something we celebrate. It’s just who we are.”
Banghart didn’t specify the physical issues that led to Kelly and Thomas not playing, but noted they were moving around before the game.
“This was such a great opportunity, but our season’s right around the corner, too,” Banghart said. “You don’t want to put anybody at risk, so that isn’t fully clear to do that. We feel very confident that they’ll be joining us soon. But, unfortunately, tonight wasn’t that night.”
UCLA transfer Elina Aarnisalo anchored a three-guard starting lineup with Lanie Grant (10 points) and Nivar, with Harris, who had four rebounds in the first few minutes, at the forward spot. Grant and Nivar both had four turnovers.
UNC jumped out to a 7–2 lead after two Nivar free throws 94 seconds into the game. But a Latson 3-pointer capped a 12–3 run to put the Gamecocks up by four with 3:55 left in the first quarter. It went from a 16-all tie with 2:55 left to a 26–19 South Carolina lead by the end of the first quarter, with UNC’s only bucket a 3-pointer from freshman Taissa Quieroz.
The Gamecocks’ lead reached nine early in the second quarter. But UNC went on an 8–0 run that included Brooks’ strong drive to the basket and a nice pocket pass from Nivar to Toomey for a layup to trim the Gamecocks’ lead to one. Also on the court during that run were Aarnisalo and Grant.
But South Carolina shoved it back to seven on Maddy McDaniel’s follow shot with 3:15 left in the first half. UNC went without a field goal for the last 3½ minutes of the first half to trail 49–38 at halftime.
The Gamecocks maintained a double-digit lead throughout the third quarter and took a 75–60 lead into the final quarter despite UNC making 4 of 7 3-point attempts in the period after going 3 of 14 in the first half.
South Carolina’s lead reached 20 on a Joyce Edwards inside bucket with 4:27 left before UNC’s late run.
NOTES — The Tar Heels open the season at Carmichael Arena at 11 a.m. Monday against N.C. Central (ACC Network Extra) for the annual Field Trip Day game featuring more than 4,600 schoolkids and teachers in the stands. … Many players appeared to be confused by the NBA 3-point arc, with several shots going up beyond it. … This was UNC’s first public exhibition game since beating Wingate 82–37 on Nov. 2, 2019, in the only exhibition before Banghart’s first season at North Carolina. … Of UNC’s starters, Harris has 106 starts, Nivar 102, Aarnisalo 10, Grant 3 starts and Toomey 1 start in games that count. … The game was part of the Bad Boy Mowers series, of which UNC’s men’s exhibition game on Friday at BYU was part. In the second game of the Atlanta doubleheader, the men’s teams from Auburn and Memphis played. … Curtains obscured the upper arena seating. … In games that count, South Carolina leads the all-time series with UNC 11–10, including a 7–6 edge in neutral-site meetings. … Kelly is on the watch lists for the Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the year and the Nancy Lieberman Award, which goes to the top point guard. … Harris is on the watch list for the Cheryl Miller Award, which goes to the nation’s top small forward.
No. 2 South Carolina 91, No. 11 UNC 82
UNC lineup combinations
| Score | Time | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Segment score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starters | 10:00 | Aarnisalo | Grant | Nivar | Harris | Toomey | 10–14 |
10–14 | 3:43 | Queiroz | Harris | 6–6 | |||
| 16–20 | 1:24 | Grant | Hull | Brooks | 3–8 | ||
| 19–24 | 0:04 | Toomey | 0–4 | ||||
| 19–28 | 9:47 | Nivar | Brooks | 0–0 | |||
| 19–28 | 8:46 | Aarnisalo | Grant | 8–0 | |||
| 27–28 | 6:48 | Zubich | Harris | 2–6 | |||
| 29–34 | 5:10 | Grant | Brooks | 6–8 | |||
| 35–42 | 2:31 | Grant | Henderson | 3–4 | |||
| 38–46 | 0:50 | Queiroz | 0–3 | ||||
| 38–49 | Half | Aarnisalo | Grant | Harris | Toomey | 6–4 | |
| 44–55 | 6:54 | Grant | Nivar | Brooks | 6–5 | ||
| 50–60 | 4:43 | Hull | 9–13 | ||||
| 59–73 | 1:12 | Nivar | Hull | Henderson | 1–4 | ||
| 60–77 | 9:07 | Aarnisalo | Grant | Nivar | Harris | 5–5 | |
| 65–82 | 6:22 | Toomey | 2–1 | ||||
| 67–83 | 4:59 | Hull | 5–6 | ||||
| 73–89 | 2:49 | Hull | 5–0 | ||||
| 78–89 | 1:50 | Zubich | Astakhova | 4–3 | |||
| 82–91 | Final |
| 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. 4 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. 2 Texas | 8–2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 82–40 | vs. Boston Univ. | 9–2 |
| 14 | Sunday | L, 76–66, OT | vs. No. 16 Louisville | 9–3, 0–1 ACC |
| 17 | Wednesday | W, 84–34 | vs. UNCW | 10–3 |
| 21 | Sunday | Noon | vs. Charleston Southern | ACCN Extra |
| 29 | Monday | 8 p.m. | at Boston College | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 1 | Thursday | Noon | vs. California | ACCN |
| 4 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Stanford | ESPN |
| 11 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | at No. 20 Notre Dame | ESPN |
| 15 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. Miami | ACCN Extra |
| 18 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at Florida State | The CW |
| 22 | Thursday | 8 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| 25 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | The CW |
| 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 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. 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 |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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