University of North Carolina Athletics
Taylor Koenen led the way as UNC tied the program record for threes in a game.
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Carmichael Comments: Dialing Long Distance
November 17, 2019 | Women's Basketball
Carmichael Comments: Inside Carolina Women's Basketball
Vol. 2, Edition 3: Dialing Long Distance
By: Matt Krause
@MattKrausePxP
CHARLESTON SOUTHERN RADIO HIGHLIGHTS
On Monday night against Navy, the game plan was obvious for the Carolina women's basketball team. The Tar Heels utilized a size advantage to control points in the paint 38-12, and Carolina needed just nine three-point attempts and four makes to ease past the Midshipmen.
Four nights later, the game plan was completely different. Charleston Southern, Carolina's Friday night opponent, played a primary zone defense to attempt to neutralize the Tar Heels' stout inside combo of Janelle Bailey and Malu Tshitenge. If the goal was to limit their impact, well, mission accomplished, Buccaneers. Carolina's points in the paint dipped to 24. Bailey didn't register a made field goal until 1:21 left in the first half.
One problem: when you fill the lane with bodies, the wings are open for business, and the Tar Heels took full advantage on Friday night. Seven different Tar Heels unleashed a combined 44 threes, 14 of which fell through the Carmichael Arena nets. That second figure tied a school record reached on seven previous occasions.
"What Charleston Southern tried to do was take away our inside game, and they really clogged up the paint," Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart explained. "Good teams can beat people in a variety of ways, and we needed the three-point arc tonight, and thank God we had it."
The barrage started early, as Shayla Bennett and Madinah Muhammad canned a pair of triples in the opening two minutes of the game, prompting a rapid Charleston Southern timeout. By the time the first quarter was through, Taylor Koenen had connected on two long-range attempts and freshman Kennady Tucker added another. Five more threes splashed down in the second quarter, and Carolina was in cruise control up 51-25 at the half.
The records began to fall after halftime. Koenen matched her career with a fourth made three with 7:08 to go in the third quarter, and Leah Church equaled the Carolina record with the 14th three with 7:26 remaining in the game. To make the occasion even more memorable, Church was fouled in the act and sunk an and-one for a four-point play.
Being able to utilize vastly different approaches to victory is something that Banghart believes will help the Tar Heels as the season progresses.
"We hope it shows that we've got the versatility to beat a variety of teams because we're going to see a variety of teams on this journey," she said. "Our goal is to take what the defense gives us and to be aggressive, and tonight that meant 44 three-point attempts."
Here's what else caught my eye against the Buccaneers…
Bennett's Dazzling Display
Shayla Bennett matched her career high in assists on Friday, dishing out 10 helpers in Carolina's win over Charleston Southern. She also snared 10 rebounds, leading to a rare double-double in which points is not one of the categories.
Two of the senior's assists were particularly eye-catching — a no-look dish to Taylor Koenen in the first quarter and a bounce-feed needle threading to Madinah Muhammad in the fourth. In the first quarter play, Bennett's eyes were toward the near corner as she zigged inside of the three-point arc, drawing the Buccaneer defense that direction. Sensing that Koenen was open on the left block, Bennett dropped it off and Koenen converted the easy bucket. Then in the fourth quarter, Bennett hauled in a rebound, sprinted toward midcourt, and lifted her right arm back in a baseball-style motion to fire a hard bounce pass to a streaking Muhammad. Muhammad zipped ahead, stunning the Buccaneer defense again, and finished the layup while being fouled.
While the eye-popping display thrilled fans in Carmichael, Banghart was impressed by Bennett's on-court leadership through the night.
"She had 10 rebounds and 10 assists and only turned the ball over three times, but she really celebrated her teammates," Banghart said. "We're trying to become a really good team, and people celebrating each other is part of it. A big shout-out to her for that."
Tshitenge's Sizzling Start
Any player who arrives in the Atlantic Coast Conference and starts immediately clearly has a rare mix of talent and natural ability. Carolina's Malu Tshitenge certainly fits the bill. The Germantown, Md., native has scored in double figures in every game as a Tar Heel (19, 11, and 15 points, respectively), and posted her first career double-double on Friday night against the Buccaneers with 16 rebounds.
What's perhaps most remarkable about Tshitenge's feat is that 12 of her 16 rebounds were offensive. As a team, the Tar Heels snagged 26 offensive boards and controlled second chance points 28-10 in the blowout win. Carolina's leader attributed the performance in part to Charleston Southern's constant zone defense.
"Zones give you an opportunity to rebound," Banghart explained. "One of your zone offenses is to go to the glass. We did that and it equated to second chance points, which was great."
Thanking Those Who Make It Possible
Friday night's game at Carmichael marked faculty and staff appreciation night. Carolina players were able to nominate a professor or staff member who has impacted their time at Carolina off the court, and those individuals were recognized at a halftime ceremony.
"I want to give a big shout-out to the faculty who were here tonight," Banghart said on our Continental Tire Coaches' Corner visit postgame. "We appreciate what you do for our students off the court!"
Up Next
Carolina will take a full week before its next game action, set for Friday, Nov. 22 against Elon at 6:00 p.m. in Carmichael Arena. The Phoenix will be meeting the Tar Heels for the fourth time in the head coaching tenure of Carolina legend Charlotte Smith, who is in her ninth season on the Elon bench. Most recently, Carolina helped to open the new Schar Center on Elon's campus last season with a 100-69 Tar Heel win.
Our Tar Heel Sports Network coverage begins with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 5:30 p.m. As always, you can catch the game on TuneIn (search "North Carolina Tar Heels"), GoHeels.com, or the GoHeels app.
In the meantime, the second edition of Courtney Banghart Live takes place on Monday, Nov. 18 at noon at the Carolina Club. If you can't join us, the show will be available on the Tar Heel Voices podcast feed on Tuesday morning, or will air on WCHL 97.9 FM at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday night.
That's all for now! Go Heels!
-Matt
Vol. 2, Edition 3: Dialing Long Distance
By: Matt Krause
@MattKrausePxP
CHARLESTON SOUTHERN RADIO HIGHLIGHTS
On Monday night against Navy, the game plan was obvious for the Carolina women's basketball team. The Tar Heels utilized a size advantage to control points in the paint 38-12, and Carolina needed just nine three-point attempts and four makes to ease past the Midshipmen.
Four nights later, the game plan was completely different. Charleston Southern, Carolina's Friday night opponent, played a primary zone defense to attempt to neutralize the Tar Heels' stout inside combo of Janelle Bailey and Malu Tshitenge. If the goal was to limit their impact, well, mission accomplished, Buccaneers. Carolina's points in the paint dipped to 24. Bailey didn't register a made field goal until 1:21 left in the first half.
One problem: when you fill the lane with bodies, the wings are open for business, and the Tar Heels took full advantage on Friday night. Seven different Tar Heels unleashed a combined 44 threes, 14 of which fell through the Carmichael Arena nets. That second figure tied a school record reached on seven previous occasions.
"What Charleston Southern tried to do was take away our inside game, and they really clogged up the paint," Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart explained. "Good teams can beat people in a variety of ways, and we needed the three-point arc tonight, and thank God we had it."
The barrage started early, as Shayla Bennett and Madinah Muhammad canned a pair of triples in the opening two minutes of the game, prompting a rapid Charleston Southern timeout. By the time the first quarter was through, Taylor Koenen had connected on two long-range attempts and freshman Kennady Tucker added another. Five more threes splashed down in the second quarter, and Carolina was in cruise control up 51-25 at the half.
The records began to fall after halftime. Koenen matched her career with a fourth made three with 7:08 to go in the third quarter, and Leah Church equaled the Carolina record with the 14th three with 7:26 remaining in the game. To make the occasion even more memorable, Church was fouled in the act and sunk an and-one for a four-point play.
Being able to utilize vastly different approaches to victory is something that Banghart believes will help the Tar Heels as the season progresses.
"We hope it shows that we've got the versatility to beat a variety of teams because we're going to see a variety of teams on this journey," she said. "Our goal is to take what the defense gives us and to be aggressive, and tonight that meant 44 three-point attempts."
Here's what else caught my eye against the Buccaneers…
Bennett's Dazzling Display
Shayla Bennett matched her career high in assists on Friday, dishing out 10 helpers in Carolina's win over Charleston Southern. She also snared 10 rebounds, leading to a rare double-double in which points is not one of the categories.
Two of the senior's assists were particularly eye-catching — a no-look dish to Taylor Koenen in the first quarter and a bounce-feed needle threading to Madinah Muhammad in the fourth. In the first quarter play, Bennett's eyes were toward the near corner as she zigged inside of the three-point arc, drawing the Buccaneer defense that direction. Sensing that Koenen was open on the left block, Bennett dropped it off and Koenen converted the easy bucket. Then in the fourth quarter, Bennett hauled in a rebound, sprinted toward midcourt, and lifted her right arm back in a baseball-style motion to fire a hard bounce pass to a streaking Muhammad. Muhammad zipped ahead, stunning the Buccaneer defense again, and finished the layup while being fouled.
While the eye-popping display thrilled fans in Carmichael, Banghart was impressed by Bennett's on-court leadership through the night.
"She had 10 rebounds and 10 assists and only turned the ball over three times, but she really celebrated her teammates," Banghart said. "We're trying to become a really good team, and people celebrating each other is part of it. A big shout-out to her for that."
Tshitenge's Sizzling Start
Any player who arrives in the Atlantic Coast Conference and starts immediately clearly has a rare mix of talent and natural ability. Carolina's Malu Tshitenge certainly fits the bill. The Germantown, Md., native has scored in double figures in every game as a Tar Heel (19, 11, and 15 points, respectively), and posted her first career double-double on Friday night against the Buccaneers with 16 rebounds.
What's perhaps most remarkable about Tshitenge's feat is that 12 of her 16 rebounds were offensive. As a team, the Tar Heels snagged 26 offensive boards and controlled second chance points 28-10 in the blowout win. Carolina's leader attributed the performance in part to Charleston Southern's constant zone defense.
"Zones give you an opportunity to rebound," Banghart explained. "One of your zone offenses is to go to the glass. We did that and it equated to second chance points, which was great."
Thanking Those Who Make It Possible
Friday night's game at Carmichael marked faculty and staff appreciation night. Carolina players were able to nominate a professor or staff member who has impacted their time at Carolina off the court, and those individuals were recognized at a halftime ceremony.
"I want to give a big shout-out to the faculty who were here tonight," Banghart said on our Continental Tire Coaches' Corner visit postgame. "We appreciate what you do for our students off the court!"
Up Next
Carolina will take a full week before its next game action, set for Friday, Nov. 22 against Elon at 6:00 p.m. in Carmichael Arena. The Phoenix will be meeting the Tar Heels for the fourth time in the head coaching tenure of Carolina legend Charlotte Smith, who is in her ninth season on the Elon bench. Most recently, Carolina helped to open the new Schar Center on Elon's campus last season with a 100-69 Tar Heel win.
Our Tar Heel Sports Network coverage begins with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 5:30 p.m. As always, you can catch the game on TuneIn (search "North Carolina Tar Heels"), GoHeels.com, or the GoHeels app.
In the meantime, the second edition of Courtney Banghart Live takes place on Monday, Nov. 18 at noon at the Carolina Club. If you can't join us, the show will be available on the Tar Heel Voices podcast feed on Tuesday morning, or will air on WCHL 97.9 FM at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday night.
That's all for now! Go Heels!
-Matt
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