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North Carolina’s men’s basketball team will reportedly be headed to the Maui Invitational in 2024, marking their ninth time in the event but first Hawaii visit since 2017. The Tar Heels have won the tournament four times, winning the national championship in three of those seasons.
CHAPEL HILL — In a season of transition for Carolina’s volleyball team, with the Tar Heels replacing veterans with young players, it’s never going to be easy, particularly against a challenging early schedule. Coach Joe Sagula saw those growing pains play out this weekend at Carmichael Arena during the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. The Tar Heels rolled to a 3–0 Friday victory over Michigan State before battling well but losing by the same score Saturday against Michigan as four freshmen adjust to the college game.
Imagine a Carolina offense with both Koby Paysour and Josh Downs as potential passing targets for Drake Maye and a defense that plays consistently well. The Tar Heels may get the former in two weeks against No. 8 Notre Dame, and while the latter didn’t happen in their 35–28 Saturday victory over Georgia State at Petit Field in Atlanta, the defense had its moments and showed some improvement by forcing seven three-and-outs.
DURHAM — After a blip in Carolina’s domination of Duke in women’s soccer, Tori Hansen gave the Blue Devils a heads-up that the Tar Heels still own the rivalry. No. 2 UNC (6–1–0) seized control with the senior defender’s first-half header, and goalkeeper Emmie Allen earned her first career shutout in a dominant 3–0 victory Thursday night over No. 3 Duke in a non-conference game.
USA Basketball has named Carolina junior Alyssa Ustby to the team that will compete in the 2022 FIBA 3×3 U23 Nations League Final, which is scheduled next week on Sept. 14–16 in Constanta, Romania. Ustby was part of the American team that qualified for the Final of the three-on-three competition by winning the Nations League Americas conference last month in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Ustby scored 76 points in 15 games during that competition as the United States went 18–0.
Like in Gene Chizik’s first stint as defensive coordinator at North Carolina, his goal is to have his defenders stay in front of the opposing players and give up short gains as long as the number of big plays is limited. The cliché is “bend but not break.” But there was a lot of breakage in the Tar Heels’ 63–61 win Saturday at Appalachian State, particularly in the Mountaineers’ 40-point fourth quarter.
CHAPEL HILL — Soccer can be an unforgiving, frustrating game some days, and that was the case Sunday for top-ranked North Carolina, which had nothing to show from a dominant effort. The Tar Heels got the better of the physical, high-level women’s soccer match, but No. 3 UCLA scored on two counters, one after the goal scorer appeared to knock over a UNC defender, to earn a 2–1 victory at Dorrance Field in what might have been a College Cup preview.
BOONE — In a small two-game sample size, Drake Maye has already shown the potential to become the best quarterback in North Carolina program history. And his defense still has work to do. Maye led UNC to a thrilling 63–61 win Saturday over Appalachian State at Kidd Brewer Stadium, ending a skid of seven consecutive losses away from Chapel Hill, in an instant classic.
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina’s season of redemption is off to an impressive start in the fifth and final season for all-everything forward Erin Matson — field hockey’s answer to Charlie Justice, Michael Jordan, Phil Ford or Mia Hamm. Losing is alien to the program, and the Tar Heels dealt with an uncommon share of that last season. No. 2 UNC continued to put that behind it Friday, moving to 3–0 with its third win over a ranked team, this one a 4–3 ACC-Ivy Challenge win over No. 13 Princeton in their home opener at Karen Shelton Stadium.
The preseason AP men’s basketball poll is more than a month away from release, but one respected yearbook has already declared North Carolina the No. 1 men’s basketball team.
UNC remained the unanimous No. 1 team in the United Soccer Coaches women’s poll Tuesday and face challenging upcoming matches, while Carolina jumped 11 spots to No. 13 in the men’s poll. Coach Anson Dorrance’s women (4–0–0) got all eight first-place votes for the second consecutive season. The Tar Heels have outscored their opponents 13–0 in four games after outscoring its two exhibition opponents 7–0.
The ESPN career of former UNC center Jeff Saturday has lasted nearly a decade and he has signed a contract extension.
Jackie Manuel’s role will change for the fourth consecutive season, this time adding UNC junior varsity basketball coach to his duties.
What did UNC’s coaches say in a Monday press conference before the Tar Heels visit Appalachian State?
CHAPEL HILL — Jordan Reid has been living a dream since November when ESPN put him on the air as an NFL draft analyst. An N.C. Central quarterback from 2010–13 and a three-year starter, he spent his first five years after graduation as an assistant coach at his alma mater when the Eagles won three MEAC titles. But Reid realized something he “always wanted to do” was evaluating players and decided to “take a chance on myself.”
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