University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels To Open Play in Hawaii
November 28, 2002 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 28, 2002
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Tipoff: No. 11 UNC takes on DePaul in Hawaii
The University of North Carolina women's basketball team (2-0) opens play Friday in the Rainbow Wahine Classic at Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. UNC will face DePaul (1-0) in the tournament's opening game at 12:30 local time (5:30 ET).
Carolina heads into the matchup ranked 11th in the Associated Press poll and 12th in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll. DePaul is not ranked but received votes in this week's AP poll.
The Tar Heels will meet either Fordham or Oklahoma on Saturday. Other teams in the field are Connecticut, Denver, Gonzaga and Hawaii.
On the air
The game between UNC and DePaul will be broadcast live on radio by the Tar Heel Radio Network. The flagship station is 1360-AM WCHL. Stephen Gates is Carolina's play-by-play announcer. Game action also is available via the internet at www.TarHeelBlue.com.
Quick facts on UNC
2002-03 Record: 2-0
2001-02 Record: 26-9 (11-5 ACC)
Current Rankings: 11th AP, 12th USAToday/ ESPN
Head Coach: Sylvia Hatchell (Carson-Newman, 1974)
Career Record: 604-249 (in her 28th season)
Record at UNC: 332-169 (in her 17th season)
Assistant Head Coach: Andrew Calder
Assistant Coaches: Tracey Williams, Charlotte Smith-Taylor
Team captains: Coretta Brown, Courtney Chambers, Jennifer Thomas
Sports information contact: Dana Gelin
Phone/email: (919) 962-0083/dgelin@uncaa.unc.edu
UNC athletics website: www.TarHeelBlue.com
UNC ticket office: (919) 962-2126, (800) 722-4335
News of note
* Friday's game will be the first women's basketball meeting between North Carolina and DePaul.
* With two blocks in UNC's last outing, junior center Candace Sutton moved into a tie for fourth place on the school's career blocks list.
* Senior guard Coretta Brown needs four three-pointers to take over fourth place on UNC's career three-pointers list.
* Friday's game will be the 100th in a Carolina uniform for Coretta Brown, who has played in every game since arriving at UNC and has made 66 consecutive starts, dating back to the start of her sophomore year.
* This appearance in the Rainbow Wahine Classic will be Carolina's fourth. The Tar Heels won the title in 1994, when current assistant coach Charlotte Smith-Taylor was named the tournament MVP.
* UNC's next home game is on Dec. 5, when the Tar Heels host Appalachian State at 7 p.m.
Tar Heels at the Rainbow Wahine Classic
The Rainbow Wahine Classic, hosted by the University of Hawaii, has become a habit for the UNC women's basketball program. The Tar Heels are playing in the tournament for the fourth time, following appearances in 1998, '94 and '98.
Fresh off an NCAA Championship, the Tar Heels won the 1994 tournament and are 6-3 overall in the event.
1988: Lost to Washington 72-60; Beat Illinois 94-72; Lost to Hawaii 76-61
1994: Beat Tennessee Tech 79-52; Beat Hawaii 83-51; Beat Florida 79-72
1998: Beat St. John's 77-67; Lost to UCLA 86-68; Beat Hawaii 75-72
* UNC assistant coach Charlotte Smith-Taylor was the MVP of the 1994 Rainbow Wahine Classic, when the Tar Heels claimed the title. She went on to earn All-America and National Player of the Year honors that season.
Carolina blue Hawaii
After departing Chapel Hill in the predawn hours on Monday morning, the Tar Heels arrived in Hawaii at 2 p.m. local time. The traveling party of 75, including players, staff, families and fans, is staying on the beach in Waikiki.
The Tar Heels started Tuesday, their first full day in the islands, with a practice at Stan Sheriff Center, where the tournament will begin on Friday. The group then toured the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Carolina practiced on Wednesday morning and attended a luau in the evening. The team will enjoy Thanksgiving dinner Thursday at the tournament banquet before beginning play on Friday.
Scouting the DePaul Blue Demons
DePaul comes into the Rainbow Wahine Classic 1-0 on the season following a 69-60 win at Southern Illinois last Saturday. Sophomore guard Jenni Dant scored 18 points, including 8-for-8 free throw shooting, and freshman forward Khara Smith had a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
The Blue Devils finished 15-14 last season and reached the first round of the WNIT. This year's team includes just six letterwinners from last year. They're joined by nine new players: six true freshmen, one redshirt freshman and two transfers. The team's top returning scorer is Dant, who averaged 10.1 points last season will starting six games and playing in all 29.
DePaul is coached by Doug Bruno, who is in his 17th season with the program.
* In the preseason Conference USA poll, DePaul was picked to finish seventh in the 14-team league.
North Carolina vs. DePaul
Friday's meeting between UNC and DePaul will be the first game between the two programs.
Carolina is 21-10 all-time against schools that are now members of Conference USA.
A peek ahead to Saturday
Carolina will face either Oklahoma or Fordham on Saturday, depending on the outcome of Friday's games.
* The Tar Heels are tied at 1-1 in their series with Oklahoma, last year's NCAA runner-up. The Sooners won the most recent meeting, 94-77 on Jan. 21, 2001. Played in Chapel Hill, the game was part of the ACC/Big 12 Challenge.
* UNC leads the series against Fordham 3-0. The teams last met in 1998, when Carolina won 82-50 at Carmichael Auditorium on Nov. 21, just before the Tar Heels departed to play in that year's Rainbow Wahine Classic.
