By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — It didn’t matter that the level of competition dropped significantly for a Carolina team that needed a boost after two frustrating losses to ranked teams.
The No. 23 Tar Heels took out their frustrations on severely overmatched N.C. Central.
Perimeter shots that rarely fell against No. 1 South Carolina repeatedly rippled the Carmichael Arena nets, and the Tar Heels dominated inside in a 109–40 blowout Wednesday in their home opener.
Carolina set a program record with 18 3-pointers, bettering the previous mark of 16 at Virginia last season and the Tar Heels’ combined total from the first two games (17). Eight players scored threes, including five from sophomore Nyla Brooks, who netted a game-high 17 points.
Sydney Barker, in her second year as team captain, sank the corner 3-pointer that broke the record with 3:33 left, drawing loud cheers.
I just knew that we were just hitting all night, but I did not know that that was the record,” Barker said in the senior guard’s first career postgame press conference.
Coach Courtney Banghart made sure Barker’s moment was the first thing she addressed afterward.
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“This kid loves Carolina,” Banghart said. “It’s pretty special when that kid sets the record for the most threes in program history by just doing things the right way.”
Banghart said Barker’s influence reaches well beyond the record book, and that it helps when the team’s most beloved player also holds teammates accountable.
“If I yell at Sid, everybody’s like, ‘Oh no, now you’re not going to yell at Sid,’ ” Banghart said. “It’s been really valuable for me to have a leader that’s really adored and then comes every day.”
The Tar Heels got far more open perimeter shots than they had against South Carolina and capitalized, shooting 46.2% from beyond the arc and 55.6% overall.
All but one player scored, and five were in double figures, including freshman Kate Harpring (16 points, 2 3-pointers), Achol Akot (15, 1 3-pointer), Laila Hull (13, 3 3-pointers) and Blanca Thomas (career-high 12, 1 3-pointer).
Akot, a 6–1 senior Oklahoma State transfer, showed she has triple-double potential with six rebounds and a team-high seven assists. Banghart said she had been direct with Akot after the first two games.
“I think Achol hasn’t played as well as she could have the first two games,” Banghart said. “She’s a special talent. She’s very, very, very driven to win. She’s very competitive. I think a loss makes her really listen, and she’s locked in.”
Harpring, whom the Gamecocks smothered defensively Sunday, scored 16 points and added five rebounds, five assists and three steals with only one turnover. Banghart said the freshman, who seemed to find a better rhythm, responded to the rough Sunday by going straight to work.
“She’s so dialed in,” Banghart said. “Luckily, she doesn’t live on social media. All she does is live in the gym.”
UNC assisted on 30 of its 40 field goals and committed only five turnovers after totaling 39 in its first two games, thanks to moving the ball better.
Banghart credited a renewed emphasis on where players needed to be on the floor.
“It makes reads really hard when everybody just does their own thing,” said Banghart, whose team had advantages of 38–18 in paint points, 25–2 in second-chance points and 45–21 in rebounds. “We were much more accountable to those things, which gave you more pressure on the rim, more gravity on the rim, gave you more east-west, gave you clearer reads.”
She also pointed to the speed at which the Tar Heels executed, which netted a 22–0 advantage in fast-break points.
“Our pace had to be better, our pace from cuts, our pace in screening, our pace in separating, and again, regardless of the opponent, those two things were a massive change,” Banghart said.
UNC (1–2), which fell 11 spots in the Top 25, showed it still deserved to be ranked after one-sided losses in Paris on Nov. 2 to No. 14 Oklahoma (91–70) and in Charlotte on Sunday to the Gamecocks (84–39).
Banghart was still glad her team got such tough competition to start the season.
“I stand behind our schedule,” Banghart said. “I think it’s been really helpful to us because you get to figure out the standard early.”
Barker said the message after Sunday’s loss was to keep perspective.
“The message was not to panic,” Barker said. “It’s a great thing that we’re learning this right now because we didn’t learn it till later last year.”
By halftime, the Tar Heels had scored 15 more points than they managed in Sunday’s entire game, and were never challenged.
The Eagles (2–3) consistently failed to close out on shooters, and UNC feasted on those opportunities while holding NCCU to single-digit points in the second and fourth quarters.
“I think open shots come from rhythm, and I don’t mean rhythm from the shooter. I mean rhythm from the offense,” Banghart said. “The shooter knew where they needed to be, and the passer knew where they were going to be.”
UNC seized control early with a 22–4 run that included six 3-pointers, with Harpring’s second 3-pointer of the run giving the Tar Heels an 18-point lead on a Sophie Burrows 3 with 3:18 left in the opening quarter.
Carolina led 30–11 after the opening quarter. A Burrows 3 with 15 seconds remaining started a 15–0 run that pushed the lead to 29 on a Brooks 3 with 6:56 left in the first half.
After NCCU ended a five-minute scoring drought, the Heels scored the next nine points, including Harpring’s steal and layup. UNC led 54–15 at halftime after holding the Eagles to one second-quarter field goal.
Banghart said the defensive effort stood out from the opening tip.
“Defensively, the whole game we just had way more bounce, we had way more accountability, we just had way more connected energy, the whole game,” Banghart said.
Reniya Kelly began the second half with a four-point play on a corner 3-pointer. UNC scored 31 points in the third quarter, matching NCCU’s total through three periods, and led 85–31.
Before the game, assistant coach Lexi Weger had given the team a simple message, according to Barker.
“She said three things: to focus, to play hard and to have fun,” Barker said. “If we did those three things, the outcome would take care of itself. And I can say that we did all those three things tonight, and it was really fun basketball.”
The fourth quarter was more of the same, with a Hull layup in the final minute expanding the margin to 69.
Notes
— After UNC’s home opener, the Tar Heels don’t return home for nearly two weeks, playing three unbeaten teams: Penn (3–0) at The Palestra on Saturday, then meeting Texas Tech (2–0) on Nov. 19 and Alabama (4–0) on Nov. 21 in Orlando at the WBCA Showdown. The Quakers have wins over Swarthmore (110–27) at home on Nov. 3 and road victories on Nov. 6 against Drexel (71–70) and on Sunday against Norfolk State (72–56).
— It was the fewest turnovers for Carolina since four on March 22, 2025, in a 70–49 victory over Oregon State in the NCAA tournament.
— The 109 points were the most since UNC beat NCCU 119–43 on Nov. 29, 2024.
— UNC’s 46.2% shooting from outside the arc was the best since shooting 66.7% in an 82–70 victory last season on Feb. 26 at Virginia, when the Tar Heels set the previous single-game 3-pointers record of 16. UNC’s 55.6% shooting overall was is best since 58.0% in that win over the Cavaliers.
— NCCU’s previous road losses were 85–39 at Virginia Tech on Nov. 2 and 82–48 at UNCW on Saturday.
— It was the 42nd game under Banghart with at least 10 3-pointers and the fourth time one of her teams has scored at least 100 points.
— Ciera Toomey again didn’t play (lower-body concern). Banghart said Toomey is getting closer and that the target for her season debut is the LSU game on Dec. 2.
— UNC also won its other appearance at Carmichael this season, beating Davidson 76–66 in an Oct. 18 exhibition
— Carolina has won all 10 meetings with NCCU, with every game in Carmichael Arena.
— NCCU’s first-year coach Olivia Gaines played two seasons at South Carolina.
No. 23 UNC 109, NCCU 40
| 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. 19 Maryland | — |
| November | Regular season | |||
| 2 | Monday | L, 91–79 | Oui-Play in Paris vs. No. 14 Oklahoma | 0–1 |
| 8 | Sunday | L, 84–39 | Ally Tipoff in Charlotte vs. No. 1 South Carolina | 0–2 |
| 11 | Wednesday | W, 109–40 | vs. N.C. Central | 1–2 |
| 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. 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. 5 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. 5 Duke | ESPN |
| March | ||||
| 3–7 | Wed.-Sun. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
