By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — Playing on the other side of the world from home, Sophie Burrows came to America to advance her basketball career and pursue her goal of playing in the Olympics for Australia.
When the versatile 6–2 lead guard entered the transfer portal after three seasons at Syracuse, Burrows looked for a program that would keep her on track to play in 2028 for the Opals, as the Aussies call their women’s national team.
What drew her to Carolina, Burrows said, came down to history, culture and the people she met on her visit. She spoke with Coach Courtney Banghart and her staff and left believing the program could help her reach goals she has not yet achieved.
“I really thought that their values aligned with mine,” Burrows said. “I think they’re going to be able to take me the places I want to go. I still have goals that I’m yet to reach, so I think this is the right place for me to be able to reach those goals.”
The decision to leave Australia wasn’t easy, because Burrows could have played professionally at home. She said the pull of college basketball in the United States proved too strong to ignore.
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“I think the opportunity to play college was something I couldn’t pass up, to grow as a person on and off the court,” she said. “I think it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”
After three years in the ACC, Burrows knows the league well. She will now face her former teammates and her former coach, and she said she plans to deal with that when the time comes.
“It’s a little bit strange,” Burrows said. “I think we’ll cross that path when we get to it, but just being in the ACC and having three years of experience in this league, I think I know what to expect when I’m coming into games. I think it’s a really competitive league, and to bring that experience to this team is something that I’m really trying to focus on. I’m excited to see it from another angle.”
She played 30 games as a freshman in 2023–24, making four starts and averaging 4.6 points and 2.8 rebounds while taking most of her shots beyond the arc.
Burrows, whose hometown is Lower Plenty, Victoria, Australia, made a big leap in starting all 30 games as a sophomore, averaging 12.2 points and 5.6 rebounds while making 39.6% of her 3-point attempts. Even as Syracuse struggled to a 12–18 season, she emerged as one of the program’s most consistent scoring options and its most reliable perimeter threat.
As a junior, Burrows averaged 11.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists, and she added 1.9 steals and nearly a block a game. She led Syracuse with 56 3-pointers.
In mid-February, Burrows was named ACC Player of the Week after averaging 18.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in wins over Pitt and Clemson. She scored 19 points and grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds against Clemson, one of her three career double-doubles.
She has experience in international competition. Burrows played for Australia in the U18 Asian Championship in 2022 and the 2023 U19 World Cup in Spain.
“I definitely want to represent Australia,” Burrows said. “That’s my all-time goal, to play for the Opals, hopefully at the Olympics, and then I want to keep playing professionally. I want to keep seeing where basketball can take me.”
Basketball in the United States has also forced some adjustments, and Burrows said the biggest change is the pace of play. She described the game in Australia as slower and more reliant on basketball IQ, while American players tend to be quicker and more athletic. That difference sent her back to work on her shot and her defensive angles.
Off the court, the adjustments have been smaller, though distance from her family remains the hardest part. Burrows sees her parents once or twice a year, and she surprised them with a visit in August. She said her teammates and coaches have made the separation easier to handle.
“I FaceTime my mom pretty much every day, so I still definitely have that connection,” Burrows said. “It would be nice to see them a little bit more if I could.”
Her parents are expected to make the long trip for a game at some point, and Burrows said the plan is for it to happen toward the end of the season.
On the court, Burrows described herself as a poised player who reads the defense, looks to involve her teammates and is most comfortable shooting the 3-pointer. She also said she can impact the game in other ways, including on the offensive glass, and that she can play anywhere from the two to the four.
“I’m pretty versatile, so I feel like anywhere from two to four, wherever the team needs me, really,” Burrows said.
Burrows lost all three meetings with UNC while at Syracuse. Her best game came in the Tar Heels’ 68–58 victory on Feb. 20, 2025, in Syracuse, when she scored 12 points. She had 10 points, six rebounds and four assists in UNC’s 77–71 overtime win in Chapel Hill last season on Jan. 25.
Her versatility fits a roster with plenty of lead guards. Burrows said the depth is one of the team’s greatest strengths because opponents cannot focus on any one player, and she expects the Tar Heels to play faster than she did at Syracuse.
“Whether they scout one of the guards, someone else is going to go off,” she said. “I think we have that opportunity to really use both sides of the floor, and we’re very comfortable with that.”
Impressed by Burrows’ command of the game, Banghart pointed to her experience and steady approach as reasons she can help right away. Even though she did not shoot as well last season from 3-point range (30.1%), she brings 6–2 size to go with that experience.
“She’s incredibly steady,” Banghart said. “She just knows the game, and you can tell when they know the game because they don’t get sped up. She can see it. She can play it. She can read it and, of course, make shots to stretch the defense. Her overall basketball IQ and experience make her really special. I think she can be a pro as well.”
Burrows has set her sights higher than just a successful individual season. She said that the Tar Heels have the ingredients to make a deep run in March.
“I think we can go all the way,” Burrows said. “We definitely see ourselves going far in the NCAA tournament and in the ACC tournament. I think we definitely have the talent, we have the buy-in, and I’m really excited to see what happens.”
A deep run in March would also strengthen her case as she advances her goal of playing for the Opals in the 2028 Olympics.
| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | 11 | Kate Harpring | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | 52 | Noelle Bofia | F | 6–4 | |
| Sophomore | 3 | Gabby White — W | G | 5–10 | |
| Sophomore | 7 | Nyla Brooks | W | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 26 | Taissa Queiroz | G | 6–1 | |
| Junior | 34 | Blanca Thomas | C | 6–5 | |
| Junior | 1 | Jordan Zubich | G | 5–11 | |
| Senior | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| Senior | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Senior | 5 | Sophie Burrows — X | G | 6–2 | |
| Senior | 8 | Achol Akot — Y | F | 6–1 | |
| Senior | 10 | Reniya Kelly | G | 5–7 | |
| Senior | 15 | Sydney Barker | G | 5–6 | |
| Senior | 13 | Chloe Clardy — Z | G | 5–9 |
W — Virginia transfer; X — Syracuse transfer; Y — Oklahoma State transfer; Z — Stanford transfer
Former players who entered transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elina Aarnisalo | Junior | G | 5–10 | UCLA |
| Lanie Grant | Junior | G | 5–9 | TCU |
| Taliyah Henderson | Sophomore | W | 6–1 | Clemson |
| Liza Astakhova | Sophomore | G | 6–2 | BYU |
UNC schedule
| Date | Day/ month | Time, TV | Opponent/event (rank in final poll) |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | ||
| 18 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Davidson |
| 24 | Saturday | 1 p.m., Big Ten Network+ | at No. 20 Maryland |
| November | Regular season | ||
| 2 | Monday | 2:30 ET | Oui-Play in Paris vs. No. 12 Oklahoma |
| 8 | Sunday | 5:30, ESPN | Ally Tipoff in Charlotte vs. No. 2 South Carolina |
| 11 | Wednesday | TBA | vs. N.C. Central |
| 14 | Saturday | 4 p.m., ESPN+ | 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 | 7:15, ESPN2 | 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 |
Top photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications; Australia team photo courtesy of FIBA
