By R.L. Bynum
GREENSBORO — No. 14 North Carolina turned the Corbett Sports Center court into a runway for the transition game to take off and the perimeter shots to fly.
After averaging 26 3-point attempts in the first four games, the Tar Heels put up 22 by halftime. When they started falling, so did the Aggies in an 85–50 victory Thursday night as UNC scored a season-high 12 3-pointers.
Coach Courtney Banghart said the plan from the start was to come out and be aggressive.
“We are on our journey to continue to build our defensive habits,” she said after the Tar Heels turned 26 Aggies turnovers into 33 points and scored 22 fast break points and 16 layups. “A lot of good things there.”
Using crisp ball movement — 19 of 33 field goals were assisted (11 of 17 in the first half) — out of what was a four-out offense at times, Carolina (4–1) picked apart the Aggies’ zone, which was collapsing on post entry passes.
“We were prepared to play out of a high-low a little bit,” said Banghart, whose team was 12 of 34 from outside the arc, the most 3s since hitting 14 against Norfolk State on Dec. 21, 2024. “But they really didn’t want that. And, so, they were conceding the arc.”
Senior guard Indya Nivar (14 points, 10 rebounds, three assists) led the charge again, with impressive games from freshman Nyla Brooks (14 points, four 3-pointers, five rebounds and two blocks), redshirt sophomore Ciera Toomey (12 points, four rebounds and two steals) and sophomore Elina Aarnisalo (13 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals).
Nivar, who had two steals and two blocks, says the Tar Heels’ identity is on defense and is an integral part of her game.
“Offense is there, but I feel like I find my rhythm on the defensive end and then get easy ones, and then I feel like the offense comes easier after that,” Nivar said. “We want to lock in on the defensive end, and I feel like each game we’ve been making steps.”
The old mantra of playing good defense without fouling clashed for Carolina with a whistle-happy officiating crew. While A&T only got called for 12 fouls, UNC was called for 24, the most in a game since getting whistled for 25 twice two years ago (in a 65–58 home loss to South Carolina on Nov. 30, 2023, and in a 61–52 win in Charlotte over Oklahoma on Dec. 19, 2023.)
“I’ll have to go back and watch the film,” Banghart said. “But it’s not often you’re in a discrepancy with both teams being really aggressive. And we’re a pretty aggressive group to have it be two to one? These guys know the ones that are their fault, they’ll see.”
The other negative from an otherwise impressive victory was the 18 turnovers, after combining for only 19 in the previous two games. Banghart said that some of that is the price for playing at such a fast pace.
“We like to pick up [the pace],” Banghart said. “We don’t want people to get comfortable. We want to have them play less on a shot clock; it just gets us going. And we’ve got great depth.”
While the calls didn’t keep coming for both teams, Nivar said the Tar Heels needed to respond to how the game was officiated.
“I feel like we could have adjusted better to the calls, maybe managing our aggressiveness on the defensive end, staying straight up instead of bailing people out,” she said, “just things that we know we can learn from and grow from leading into the next game.
Banghart said that her team can learn from a game like this.
“As Indya said, we didn’t adjust enough to the calls,” Banghart said. “We kind of got a little bit lackadaisical playing behind in the post. Those are things we’ll take away, so that when we play on Sunday, we’ll be a little bit better.”
The Tar Heels wanted to keep the tempo up for 40 minutes last season, but didn’t have the depth to do that. This season is a different story, with nine players playing at least 15 minutes against A&T (2–4).
“We feel like we have the depth to put a lot of pressure on people and wear on them over and over and over,” Banghart said. “Whether that’s to get steals, or whether that’s you getting yourself moving and going, or whether that’s you [forcing] a short shot clock, they’re all wins for us.”
It was the second consecutive season that UNC has played at A&T, which gives the Tar Heels experience playing in a smaller road venue with loud fans.
Nivar (right) called the environment electric, adding that she could hear the fans on the floor, particularly when the Aggies made runs.
“Playing in these away gyms where we can kind of feel the pressure [is helpful], and then wanting to perform in that so that we can do that later on in the season,” Nivar said.
Banghart said that confidence and decisiveness are key for Brooks as she seems to have found a good rhythm in the last two games.
“I always say there’s three decisions, the good decision, the bad decision and the no decision,” Banghart said. “And we’ve told Nyla, we’ll live with good or bad. We’re not going to live with no decision, right? So right now, what she knows is to catch and shoot, and that’s the good decision right now.”
She added that Brooks’ development is already showing signs of progress beyond just shooting.
“You’re starting to see her go off the dribble and find others better and better as it goes on, too,” Banghart said.
Three Aarnisalo layups, one on a twisting baseline drive at the end of the shot clock and the other in transition, 3-pointers from Kelly and Brooks and a Toomey transition layup gave UNC a 14–4 lead seven minutes into the game.
Subscribe to read Tar Heel Tribune ad-free
Subscribe for a cleaner, smoother reading experience without the flashing banners, slow-loading elements, or those especially annoying pop‑up ads that interrupt the flow of the story. You’ll also get the first version of each story emailed to you. The only ads you’ll see are static, non-intrusive ads for UNC‑related books, and there are none currently on the site.
The Heels led 14–8 after taking 10 of their 14 shots from 3-point range and only making two in the first quarter.
The perimeter shots started falling in the second quarter. Brooks’ third 3 of the period began a 12–1 UNC run to open a 20-point lead on Jordan Zubich’s 3-pointer with 2:51 left in the first half. Carolina made 7 of 12 3-point attempts in the second quarter, with Nivar’s 3 giving UNC a 43–21 halftime lead. Brooks had a season-high four 3s by halftime.
The Heels’ lead ballooned to 37 on a 17–2 run to start the second half, which, naturally, began with a 3-pointer, this one from Kelly, and they led 69–33 after three quarters. The lead hit 43 on a Zubich 3-pointer with 5:25 left.
UNC held A&T’s center, Preseason All-CAA First Team pick Chaniya Clark, to 14 points and seven rebounds.
Notes
— UNC plays its first home game in 17 days — and only one in 31 days — at 6 p.m. Sunday (ACC Network), facing UNC Greensboro, which went 25–7 last season and is picked to finish second in the Southern Conference. The Spartans (1–3), who play their home opener against Gardner-Webb at 7 p.m. Friday (ESPN+), have road losses to Stanford (87–42), San Francisco (64–40) and Auburn (64–57) and a 57–53 win at Presbyterian.
— Carolina’s previous high foul total this season was 22 against Fairfield. Nyla Harris fouled out late in the game, and Toomey finishing with four fouls.
— UNC’s Blanca Thomas and Taissa Queiroz weren’t in uniform. Thomas has only played in one game, and Queiroz in two. Banghart said that she expects them to be ready for Sunday’s game.
— Carolina’s 22 first-half 3-point attempts were a season high in any half, topping the 19 in the first half against UCLA.
— UNC has won all five meetings with N.C. A&T, including the last two in Greensboro. The teams will play in Carmichael Arena next season.
— Last season’s game drew 3,593 fans, but Thursday’s crowd was 2,043.
— With A&T limited to eight points in the first quarter, UNC has held opponents to single-digit quarters five times this season.
— Carolina has won its first true road game for the fifth consecutive season.
No. 14 UNC 85, N.C. A&T 50
| Date | Day/month | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 30 | Thursday | L, 91–82 | No. 4 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. 3 Texas | 8–2 |
| ——————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 82–40 | vs. Boston Univ. | 9–2 |
| 14 | Sunday | L, 76–66, OT | vs. No. 13 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 No. 22 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 | W, 61–59 | at N.C. State | 18–5, 7–3 |
| 5 | Thursday | W, 53–44 | vs. Clemson | 19–5, 8–3 |
| 8 | Sunday | W, 84–56 | vs. Wake Forest | 20–5, 9–3 |
| 12 | Thursday | W, 94–42 | vs. SMU | 21–5, 10–3 |
| 15 | Sunday | L, 72–68 | at No. 8 Duke | 21–6, 10–4 |
| 19 | Thursday | W, 66–63, OT | at Virginia Tech | 22–6, 11–4 |
| 22 | Sunday | W, 78–50 | vs. Pittsburgh | 23–6, 12–4 |
| 26 | Thursday | W, 82–70 | at Virginia | 24–6, 13–4 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 72–69 | vs. No. 8 Duke | 25–6, 14–4 |
| ACC tournament | Gas South Arena, Duluth, Ga. | |||
| 6 | Friday | W, 85–68 | Quarterfinal vs. Va. Tech | 26–6 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 65–57 | Semifinal vs. No. 13 Louisville | 26–7 |
| NCAA tournament 1st two rounds in Chapel Hill | ||||
| 21 | Friday | 5:30 p.m. | First round: vs. Western Illinois | ESPN News |
| 23 | Sunday | TBA | (With win) Second round: No. 17 Maryland or Murray State | TBA |
| 27, 29 or 28, 30 | Fri., Sun. or Sat., Mon. | TBA | Fort Worth 1 Regional | TBA |
| April | ||||
| 3, 5 | Fri., Sun. | Final Four Phoenix | ESPN (Fri.); ABC (Sun.) |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
