University of North Carolina Athletics
Postcards From Down Under
May 22, 2000 | Women's Basketball
The University of North Carolina women's basketball team departed the U.S. on May 18 for a 13-day trip through Australia and New Zealand. The Tar Heels will play three exhibition games, in addition to seeing the sights at each stop on their tour. Below are players' thoughts on the trip, as well as recaps of the games they've played. Check back for updates as the Tar Heels travel ...
May 30, 2000
Cairns, Australia
Game 3: UNC Tar Heels 114, Cairns Dolphins 63
After suffering two losses to teams in Sydney, the Tar Heels won big in the final game of their Australian tour, 114-63 against the Cairns Dolphins on Tuesday evening. Carolina led 52-33 at halftime after shooting 61.3 percent (19 for 31) from the field. For the game, the Tar Heels shot 58.1 percent from the field and 47.8 percent (11-23) from three-point range.
Juana Brown, a rising senior guard, led UNC with 23 points--including four three-pointers--and six assists. For the game, she was 9-for-13 from the field. Forward LaQuanda Barksdale, also a rising senior, scored 18 points and led the team with 13 rebounds. Rising sophomore guard Coretta Brown scored 19 points to go with five assists and five rebounds. Other UNC players scoring in double figures were forward Jennifer Thomas (17 points) and guard Leah Sharp (12 points on four three-pointers).
Debbie Jose led Cairns with 21 points. She was the only Dolphin to score in double figures.
After visiting the Great Barrier Reef on Wednesday, the UNC travel party--which includes players, staff and boosters--will return to Chapel Hill on Thursday.
May 26, 2000
Cairns, Australia
By Leah Sharp
Today was mainly a travel day. We were up at 6 a.m. loading buses for the airport to fly from Sydney north to Cairns (pronounced 'Cans').
It is absolutly beautiful here--much warmer than Auckland and Sydney. It was 28 C (mid 80's) at noon when we arrived at the airport. We got to the hotel and the girls headed straight for the BEACH! New Zealand and Australia have the highest rates of skin cancer in the world, but my dad prepared me with a gallon of SPF 50.
On the beach, there were wave runner, parasail, and waterski rentals. However, the prices were very high, and Jennifer Thomas, Coretta Brown, LaShonda Allen and I were unable to convince the owner to let us share time for one price. So, as much as I wanted to be a part of the girls' first watersports adventure, we were stopped by a shortage of funds (because we've all been buying gifts for our family members, of course). Don't you think our coaches ought to provide financial support for our aquatic adventures?! Feel free to mention that to any member of the coaching staff!
After our rejection on the beach, we headed into the hotel pool to play a huge game of volleyball. LaQuanda Barksdale was in the pool for about four hours and came out looking like a prune! Tonight, we all headed out in several directions for dinner. Then we were all in the bed early anticipating our full day of adventure tomorrow, with trips to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park and the Kuranda Rainforest.
May 24, 2000
Sydney Sharks 70, UNC 52
When the UNC women's basketball players watch the Summer Olympics this September, they'll see plenty of familiar faces on the Australian team. For the second night in a row, the Tar Heels faced off against some of the country's top players and came out on the losing end.
Playing against the Sydney Toyota Sharks in Sutherland, 45 minutes from the team hotel in downtown Sydney, UNC again fell behind at the start and rallied late. The Tar Heels trailed 40-24 at halftime, but managed to close within seven points (55-47) on a break-away lay-up by Juana Brown with seven minutes to play. UNC didn't get any closer, however, and the Sharks went on to earn the win.
Coretta Brown led UNC with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Jennifer Thomas scored 13 points and added five rebounds. LaQuanda Barksdale, who got in early foul trouble and picked up her fifth with 2:29 to play, had seven points and nine rebounds.
The Sharks were led by forward Trish Fallon, who scored 16 points. She and guard Annie LaFleur, who had five points against UNC, are members of the Australian national team--the Opals--and candidate's for the nation's Olympic squad.
"I think the fact that they had several Olympians come in and play on this team tonight shows what they expected from our program," UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. "It has been a great experience for our players to go against players of this caliber.
"We got off to a slow start again, and I think some of that was fatigue from last night's game. It's always tough to play on back-to-back nights, but it's especially hard when we aren't in in-season shape. We've got a couple of days now to rest and enjoy ourselves before we play again."
The final exhibition game of the trip is on May 30, when UNC will take on the Cairns Dolphins. The team will leave Sydney on the morning of May 26 to travel north to Cairns.
May 23, 2000
Sydney, Australia
y Courtney Chambers
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Greetings from "Down Under"! Since arriving in Sydney, each member of the team has begun to create her own individual experience of the city and its surroundings. Some of the girls have taken full advantage of the great shopping a big city provides, while others have taken more of a "site-seeing" approach.
Personally, my first free day in Sydney (after our morning shootaround, which went well) was filled with exploring ... and with a slight mishap. I decided to go with a group of fellow travellers across the harbor to visit an area called Manly, which was said to consist of several beautiful beaches. We crossed the harbor by ferry and I was lucky enough to find a spot on the railing of the boat beside two very informative locals. The water of the harbor is beautiful deep blue and green colors and the sailboats, which appear in abundance, look just like postcards. Plus, the land surrounding the water is just as picturesque and full of interesting factoids, which were readily shared by my two local seatmates, Reggie and Billy.
Manly was really beautiful. There were tons of little shops and cafes along a walkway that bordered the coastline. The actual beach area was made up of white sand and clear, beautiful water. Several of us walked to a point where rocks jutted out into the water. By the time we had finished taking pictures and climbing on the rocks--OK, so I was the only one climbing on the rocks--it was time to head back to the ferry.
Now, I have been fairly strong when it has come to buying cheesy souvenirs here, but when I saw a "Crocodile Dundee" hat (you know, the cowboy hat with the croc teeth in the band), I had to have it. I knew the ferry was leaving, but I really wanted that hat. And it would have been fine if my credit card had worked the first time, but ... yes, I'm sure you all can see where this story is heading.
Despite the fact that I actually sprinted (without a coach blowing a whistle!), I arrived at the dock just in time to see the ferry begin to pull away with the rest of my group on board. Since I had to be back at the hotel within the next 45 minutes for our pregame meal and the next ferry wouldn't get me there in time, I experienced a few moments of, shall we say, panic. That is until the old, deeply-instilled "never-say-die" Carolina attitude kicked in and I grabbed the first taxi I saw. I begged the driver to take me on the 30-minute drive into downtown Sydney, where I arrived at the hotel five minutes ahead of the ferry!
And so, the adventure continues. I'm having a wonderful time! As they say down here, No worries, mate!
May 23, 2000
Game 1, New South Wales Institute of Sport 75, UNC 73
On Tuesday evening against the New South Wales Institute of Sport, the Tar Heels never managed to recover completely from a slow start and fell 75-73 in the first of three exhibition games against Australian teams. NSW, which included two players who are likely to be members of Australia's 2000 Olympic squad, jumped out to a 10-0 lead and led 16-5 with 14:47 remaining in the first half. UNC rallied, however, and by halftime had cut the deficit to 42-36 behind 13 first-half points from Juana Brown and nine from Coretta Brown. The Tar Heels closed within a point several times in the second half, but never were able to grab the lead. Juana Brown finished with a team-leading 26 points and Coretta Brown followed with 14. LaQuanda Barksdale added 12 points and 11 rebounds. The game was played at Bankstown Basketball Stadium, about an hour outside of Sydney.
NSW was led by 6-5 center Lauren Jackson, considered by many to be one of the best young players in the world and a lock for the 2000 Australian Olympic team. She scored 27 while 6-5 Suzy Batkovic, also an Olympic candidate, added 24. The team was coached by Tom Maher, the Australian National Team coach.
"It certainly was an honor to coach against someone like Tom Maher, who is very well-known and respected in the basketball world," UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. "Our team did some good things tonight and had the opportunity to gain some experience that will help us. We still need to get used to some of the international rules and we'll try to get off to a faster start tomorrow night."
On Wednesday evening, after a day of touring Sydney, the Tar Heels will take on the Sydney Sharks.
May 22, 2000
Sydney, Australia
y Jennifer Thomas
Today has been a rather slow, laid-back day, at least compared with yesterday, when we were very busy touring what seemed like all of New Zealand. We went to a sheep farm, where I had the opportunity to milk a cow. We also went to the Waitomo Caves, which were cool, yet creepy at the same time. The coolest thing was getting to see the glow worms that hang from the ceiling inside the caves. At the end of the day, we went to see members of the Maori tribe perform some of their rituals. Even though I was exhausted when we got to the Maori lands, it was really interesting to see a different culture.
Enough about yesterday... This morning, some of us got up and went to a marked and toured the city of Auckland before our plan left for the three-hour flight to Sydney. When we got in, we went to the hotel and freshened up to get ready for dinner at Planet Hollywood. I was really excited about it, especially because it was in Australia, but when we got there I realized that Planet Hollywood is just the same in Honolulu and where ever else the restaurants exist.
Well, time for me to cut this short so I can get some sleep for the game tomorrow. :)
May 21, 2000
y Jackie Myers
Auckland, New Zealand
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"Watch your heads!" That was the welcome given by our guide when we stepped off the bus and into the Waitomo Glow Worm Caves. (Of course, several of us, myself included, did have to duck to avoid hitting our heads on the roof of the cave!) The tour took us many meters under the ground. The limestone formations were breathtaking, but it was even more awesome when we boarded a boat on the river that runs through the caves. The river trip allowed us to see the bright, little larvae hanging from the ceilings. The glow worms were like little stars shining in the limestone sky.
Next, we stopped at a working sheep farm, where we watched a show that included a sheep dog herding sheep, sheep being shorn and, of course, audience participation. One of our guides, Amy Shinners, rode a cow while Courtney Chambers led the huge animal. Jennifer Thomas and I milked another cow. At the end of the show, LaShonda Allen was among several people who fed bottles to baby lambs.
Finally, we were guests on sacred Maori land. They greeted us, sang to us and fed us in their traditional ways. We are very lucky to have witnessed their culture. The long day ended with a three hour bus ride back to Auckland, where we have been staying since our arrival from the U.S. on Saturday. Tomorrow we're moving on. Bring on Australia!
