By R.L. Bynum
CHARLOTTE — Elite programs always deliver tough lessons if you aren’t on your game, and No. 12 North Carolina got a few of those on Sunday.
The Tar Heels are 0–2 for the second time in program history, after only hanging with No. 1 South Carolina for the first 11 minutes. The Gamecocks, deep with talent, kept pouring it on in an 84–39 victory in the Spectrum Center at the Ally Tipoff.
It was the fifth straight loss to the Gamecocks, all with them as the top-ranked team, and the 45-point margin was the second-largest in series history.
“Let’s be clear. There’s a separation between South Carolina and everybody else right now,” UNC coach Courtney Banghart said.
Offense never came easy for UNC against the Gamecocks’ defensive pressure. The Tar Heels matched that defense at times, but South Carolina’s board domination (48–33 with a 25–7 second-chance-points advantage) made it impossible for UNC to stay in the game.
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“We had live-ball turnovers from some spots that really put us in a tough spot,” said Banghart after South Carolina got nearly as many points off turnovers (38) as the Tar Heels scored in total (39).
Banghart set up a challenging schedule because she expected a top-tier roster and wanted to test her players early. After a 91–79 loss to No. 21 Oklahoma at the Oui-Play event in Paris and the loss to the Gamecocks, the team clearly has work to do to meet that standard.
Banghart said the approach is deliberate.
“People are choosing to schedule for the NET differently than we are. We’re choosing to schedule so that we can get better, and we’re excited about that,” she said.
With Texas Tech and Alabama on a neutral site still ahead, Banghart said the Tar Heels will keep leaning into the challenge.
“Growth is where things are uncomfortable,” she said. “That’s how we’re going to figure out who we are before we play a really tough ACC schedule.”
A big part of UNC’s offense is perimeter shooting, and Nyla Brooks led the way with 13 points and 4-of-6 shooting from outside the arc. The rest of the team, though, made only two of 22 3-point attempts.
Kate Harpring is finding out what it’s like to be at the top of scouting reports, making only three of 16 shots (1-for-6 from outside the arc). She led the team with seven rebounds and had three steals and two assists but six turnovers.
South Carolina face-guarded guarded her constantly, threw double teams and made it hard for her to find a groove.
“We made a concerted effort to cut down Kate’s vision,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said, “to make it very difficult for her to catch the ball in spots where she could be effective, and always showed her a crowd no matter where she touched the basketball.”
Reniya Kelly, who had three assists in 27½ scoreless minutes, pushed back on the idea that Harpring doesn’t fit.
“She does fit, and she needs to be here, and we want her here,” Kelly said. “She’s getting better every single game.”
Banghart said she has liked what she has seen from Harpring through two games.
“I see a kid that goes and plays the number one team in the country and is their focus. I think that says a lot,” Banghart said. “She’s two games into her college basketball career, and I’m certainly glad she’s ours.”
Staley said she sees plenty to like in the Tar Heels despite the margin.
“They’ve got bigs, they’ve got athleticism, they’ve got pretty good guard play, and they’re just really still very young,” Staley said. “Everybody at this point is a work in progress, and everybody’s going to improve.”
Blanca Thomas got her sixth career start for UNC after playing only five minutes in the Oklahoma game after Taissa Queiroz started the opener. Thomas played 30½ minutes, second only to Harpring’s 31:57, scoring four of her six points in the opening minutes.
Banghart said the decision was about timing and how the post players are developing.
“Everyone’s on their own journey, so we are continually using our practice time to work through readiness,” she said of starting Thomas, with Ciera Toomey still dealing with a lower-body concern. “These are big physical bodies that aren’t always ready at the same time. She and Noelle [Bofia] will continue to develop, and [Thomas] had been feeling really good the last week, so we were able to go to her more frequently.”
UNC struggled to find an offensive rhythm early but only trailed by three late in the first quarter before a Chloe Kitts jumper gave South Carolina a 15–10 lead entering the second quarter. Gabby White, who pulled down five rebounds, did her part to keep the Heels in the game with all of her six points in the first half.
After a Harpring jumper in the first 1:15 seconds of the second quarter, they went on a 15–1 run to take a 32–14 lead on a Joyce Edwards jumper with 2:42 left, and led 34–17 at halftime.
South Carolina scored the first six points of the second half to push the lead to 23. Two Chloe Kitts layups, the second with 2½ minutes left in the third quarter, capped a 19–3 Gamecocks run that ballooned their advantage to 35.
After the Gamecocks scored the last 12 third-quarter points to lead by 40, 66–26, two Nyla Brooks 3-pointers started a 9–3 UNC run.
Banghart said Brooks has become the shooter the Tar Heels need.
“Nyla Brooks is a hooper,” Banghart said. “She’s a shot maker. We need those. Every team needs those.”
Kitts led four Gamecocks to score in double figures with 17 points, with Edwards adding 15, Tessa Johnson 12 and Jerzy Robinson 10.
Notes
— North Carolina finally plays its home opener at 7 p.m. Wednesday when it welcomes N.C. Central to Carmichael Arena (ACC Network Extra). The Eagles (1–2), who host Fayetteville State at 6 p.m. Monday, lost 85–39 in their Monday opener at Virginia Tech, beat Johnson C. Smith in their home opener 99–73 on Wednesday and lost Saturday at UNCW 82–48. NCCU is picked to finish sixth in the eight-team MEAC.
— No. 14 Kentucky beat No. 25 N.C. State 93–78 in the first game of the doubleheader.
— UNC’s lowest point total last season was in the 63–42 loss to UConn in the Sweet 16. The 39 points were the fewest since UNC’s 47–38 Sweet 16 loss to Duke in 2025.
— The only other 0–2 start came in the 2015–16 season with a 66–65 loss to Gardner-Webb on Nov. 13 and a 79–77 setback against Oregon on Nov. 15.
— The only Gamecocks victory margin that was greater came on March 24, 2024, in an 88–41 victory.
— South Carolina tied the all-time series with UNC at seven.
—With North Carolina’s sixth consecutive loss against a No. 1 team, the Tar Heels fell to 3–32 in such games. The last win was 78–73 over Notre Dame on Jan. 27, 2019.
No. 1 South Carolina 84, No. 12 UNC 39
| Date | Day/ month | Times/ scores | Opponent/event (current rank) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | Exhibitions | |||
| 18 | Sunday | W, 76–66 | vs. Davidson | — |
| 24 | Saturday | L, 72–68 | at No. 20 Maryland | — |
| November | Regular season | |||
| 2 | Monday | L, 91–79 | Oui-Play in Paris vs. No. 21 Oklahoma | 0–1 |
| 8 | Sunday | 5:30 | Ally Tipoff in Charlotte vs. No. 1 South Carolina | ESPN |
| 11 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. N.C. Central | ACCNE |
| 14 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | at Penn in Palestra | ESPN+ |
| WBCA Showcase | Orlando | |||
| 19 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | vs. Texas Tech | ESPN2 |
| 21 | Saturday | 5 p.m. | vs. Alabama | ESPN+ |
| ——— | ||||
| 24 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Gardner-Webb | ACCNE |
| 27 | Friday | 7 p.m. | vs. Army | ACCNE |
| 29 | Sunday | 4 p.m. | vs. Brown | ACCN |
| December | ||||
| 2 | Wednesday | 7:15 | ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge vs. No. 9 LSU | ESPN2 |
| 6 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | vs. Elon | ACCN |
| 9 | Wednesday | 11 a.m. | vs. Winthrop | ACCNE |
| 13 | Sunday | 6 p.m. | vs. No. 25 N.C. State | ESPN |
| 17 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | vs. Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| 21 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Norfolk State | ACCN |
| 28 | Monday | 8 p.m. | vs. UNCW | ACCN |
| 31 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | at Syracuse | ACCN |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at Clemson | The CW |
| 7 | Thursday | 8 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 10 | Sunday | 3 p.m. | at No. 7 Louisville | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 17 | Sunday | 4 p.m. | vs. Boston College | ACCN |
| 21 | Thursday | 8 p.m. ET | at California | ACCN |
| 24 | Sunday | 2 p.m. ET | at Stanford | ESPN, 2 or U |
| 28 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | vs. No. 13 Notre Dame | ESPN |
| 31 | Sunday | 5 p.m. | vs. No. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| February | ||||
| 4 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | ACCNE |
| 7 | Sunday | 6 p.m. | vs. Virginia Tech | ACCN |
| 14 | Sunday | 2 p.m. | at SMU | ACCNE |
| 18 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | at Pittsburgh | ACCN |
| 21 | Sunday | Noon | vs. Florida State | The CW |
| 25 | Thursday | 8 p.m. | vs. Virginia | ACCN |
| 28 | Sunday | 4 p.m. | at No. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 3–7 | Wed.-Sun. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
