Tag: ACC Tipoff

Love, Davis flourish with multiple-season backcourt continuity that’s rare today in college basketball

CHARLOTTE — Continuity in the Carolina backcourt has been rare since Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington started three consecutive seasons, culminating with the 2009 national championship. There have been productive combinations, such as the duo of Marcus Paige and Joel Berry II that led Carolina to the 2016 Final Four or the pairing of Berry and Theo Pinson during the Tar Heels’ 2017 national championship season. But personnel changed from year to year.

Davis demands intensity, which Tar Heels were loudly reminded of in practice Tuesday

CHARLOTTE — Coach Hubert Davis will demand intensity and attention to detail in every game and practice to get Carolina back to the Final Four. When the effort doesn’t meet his standards, the Tar Heels will hear about it. UNC is a team with that championship mentality because its stars welcome that accountability, knowing it will make them better.

Instead of going rafting, Banghart told players to go home last summer, prepare to play in April

CHARLOTTE — Coach Courtney Banghart is so confident that her fourth Carolina women’s basketball team will make a deep NCAA tournament run that she wanted her team to get some time at home this summer to prepare for a long season. She took her Tar Heels on a whitewater rafting trip to West Virginia in the summer of 2021 for a team-bonding trip. Instead of doing that last summer, she told her players to spend some time at home.

Kelly upgrades her ride by combining basketball talent with style to get many NIL deals

CHARLOTTE — Driving around in a 2014 Ford Fusion while she was a star high school player in Texas, Deja Kelly could never have imagined the ride she’d have while playing at Carolina. After college athletes were allowed to use their name, image and likeness (NIL) to earn money in the summer of 2021, the world of college sports has changed. Kelly’s world has followed along at a pace that’s as impressive as for any women’s basketball player in the country.

Banghart creates winning culture by attracting talented, high-character people

CHARLOTTE — Of the many crucial elements to building a successful program, recruiting — and doing it the right way — is at the top of the list. A Carolina women’s basketball program expected to be a national contender in Coach Courtney Banghart’s fourth season in Chapel Hill didn’t get to this level by just stacking talent without regard to what kind of people she brings in.