Carmichael Comments: Don't Leave Early

Carmichael Comments: Inside Carolina Women's Basketball
Vol. 2, Edition 12: Don't Leave Early
By: Matt Krause
@MattKrausePxP

Maybe it's early nerves. Maybe it's better physical endurance. Or maybe just needing some time to "get warmed up."

Whatever the cause of the Carolina women's basketball team's second-half surges, the ACC gauntlet for the Tar Heels has been defined by success after halftime. A brutal stretch of conference games against some of the top squads in the ACC – Virginia Tech, NC State, Florida State, Miami, and Louisville – has tested and pushed Carolina, though the opponent has held the halftime lead in each game.

This past week, the Tar Heels turned a one-point halftime deficit into a dominating 20-point home win against Miami, 78-58, and *nearly* dug out of a 16-point hole before falling to No. 5 Louisville, 74-67.

Put the two home games together, and you get a 79-49 edge for Carolina in the last two second halves. The two fourth quarters? A 50-22 edge. 50-22! Against two teams who hosted NCAA Tournament games last season, at that.

Ultimately, though, the only score that matters is the one calculated between opening tap and final buzzer. The Miami second half was good enough to gut out a big win. Against Louisville, Carolina ran out of time.

As head coach Courtney Banghart is prone to say, "bummer."

Banghart attributes much of the post-halftime success to her team's ability to implement coaching directives and willingness to improve as the game progresses.

"Halftime adjustments are helpful," she said. "The kids are staying coachable and they're able to gut some games out in that way."

In addition to the Miami win last Thursday, the Tar Heels faced a deficit as large as 14 points before toppling previously-unbeaten NC State on Jan. 9. Neither game will win the award for most visually pleasing in the history of the sport, especially the affair with the Hurricanes, but a win is a win in the ever-tough ACC.

"We challenged them at half to play with more energy," Banghart said after beating Miami for the first time since 2015 and first time at Carmichael Arena since 2012. "We were a bit lethargic at times."

That energy was especially evident on defense, where the Tar Heels clamped down on Miami and held the Hurricanes to a mere five field goals after halftime while forcing 14 turnovers in the process. When the dust settled, Carolina had earned their largest margin of victory in an ACC game in nearly a calendar year (dating back to a 23-point win over Wake Forest on Jan. 17, 2019).

"It was a really gritty win," she said. "Our kids were mentally and physically tired from the tip it looked like, but they found a way."

Banghart attributes the bounce-back to the Tar Heels' veteran makeup, which has only strengthened over halfway through the regular season.
"The experience of the top group, at this point in the season, they understand how to play with one another better, so our adjustments are able to take control sooner," she explained.

The win gave Carolina the chance at the program's best start in ACC play since 2014 if the Tar Heels could take care of the ever-challenging Cardinals on Sunday, a task much easier said than done. Louisville, to borrow an analogy familiar to their city, burst out of the starting gate and set the pace for the first several furlongs. The Cardinals led by 20 late in the second quarter before a 9-0 Carolina run that bridged the two halves awakened the Carmichael crowd.

"We didn't play very well in the first half, but you guys did all you could to help us out in the second," Banghart said when addressing the season-high 4,027 spectators postgame.

Noise levels reached peak volume when Taylor Koenen drained a three with 90 seconds to play that pulled Carolina within four at 71-67. Soon after, a potential three from Madinah Muhammad that would have made the score 71-70 bounced out and the Cardinals withstood the charge.

At halftime of the Louisville game, the Tar Heels were shooting 52.4 percent, yet trailed by 16. The reason why was easy to find – the Cardinals had taken 11 more shots thanks in part to 12 Carolina turnovers. In the second 20 minutes on Sunday, the Heels coughed it up just twice.

"We took better care of the basketball. We had two turnovers in the second half to like, a thousand, in the first half," Banghart said postgame, her personality still showing through after a gut-wrenching defeat. "And we were less flat on defense. I thought we played with better angles and more accountability."

The stats back that up – Louisville shot just 35 percent and had eight turnovers after halftime, compared to 59 percent shooting and seven turnovers in the first half.

Ultimately, time ran out for Carolina, leaving Banghart excited for another chance down the road.

"That locker room's not going to be super happy because we're a better team than we played and we're looking forward to having a second chance," she said.

Don't turn off your radio or TV early. Chances are, the best is yet to come from the Tar Heels.

Here's what else caught my eye this week…

Bailey Stuffs The Stat Sheet
En route to the win over Miami, Janelle Bailey posted one of the best performances of the season – if not her career. The junior from Charlotte scored 28 points and hauled in 15 rebounds, her ninth double-double of the season. Plus, the 28 points were an individual high for a Tar Heel this season. Miami was without the services of Beatrice Mompremier, a preseason All-American post threat, leaving the Hurricanes susceptible inside.

"She's just super competitive," Banghart said of Bailey. "So over the course of a 40-minute game, she's tough to deal with. She really rebounded the ball well."

Bailey was 10-for-11 at the foul stripe in the game, a welcomed performance after the Tar Heels took just four foul shots as a team in the prior game at Florida State.

"You're going to have to take the free ones," Banghart remarked. "These are close games in the ACC. The free throw statistic shows aggressiveness. We were much more aggressive against Miami than against Florida State."

Bench Contributions
For much of the fourth quarter against the Hurricanes, Carolina's lineup featured reserve guards Leah Church and Kennady Tucker. Church sparked the Tar Heel offense with a pair of threes and free throws to finish with eight points, while Tucker was a factor on the defensive side with two steals.

Church and Tucker then had to carry a bigger load on Sunday against Louisville because of foul trouble for starting point guard Shayla Bennett. Tucker's 17 minutes were the most for the freshman since the Virginia Tech game on Jan. 5, while Church played a season-high 24 minutes in the Louisville game.

"We tell the guys to just stay ready," Banghart said. "You never know when we'll need them. Leah and Kennady gave us great minutes. They answered the call and it was really great to see."

Having Fun Coaching
Sunday's game gave Banghart the first opportunity to coach against a friend and international basketball colleague in Louisville head coach Jeff Walz. The duo has worked together for USA Basketball National Team events, but had never been on opposing benches for a collegiate game.

Both coaches, aside from winning a high percentage of their games, bring a mentality of enjoying the profession and their journeys to being successful.

"I coached with Jeff for the U23s in Japan," Banghart said. "I think Jeff and I are really similar in that this is fun. What you see on TV – intense, or however you see me, but we both have a lot of fun being in this business and being with our teams."

Up Next
The road beckons once again for the Tar Heels. Carolina will be away from Carmichael Arena for a pair of games this week, both against teams currently higher in the ACC standings. The first of the two is Thursday night in Midtown Atlanta against Georgia Tech, a 6:00 p.m. tip from McCamish Pavilion. This matchup is one few outside of the two programs would have circled as a critical ACC game – both schools are in their first years under new head coaches (Banghart and GT's Nell Fortner), but given the duo's past successes, it's not a shock now that both teams are playing well. Tech is 14-4 overall and 5-2 in the ACC, though the Yellow Jackets did stub their toe at home on Sunday against Boston College in a 55-48 setback. Georgia Tech's calling card this season has been its defense, so the chess match between the ACC's two coaching newcomers should be intriguing. Coverage on the Tar Heel Sports Network begins at 5:30 p.m. with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show. Catch the call worldwide via GoHeels.com, the GoHeels app, or the TuneIn app (search "North Carolina Tar Heels").

Then on Sunday, it's a slightly shorter trip to Raleigh to tangle with NC State for the second time in 17 days. The Pack has reeled off three straight wins since the initial defeat of the season at the hands of Carolina, a stretch that included a dominating 90-56 win at Notre Dame and an impressive 68-51 home triumph over then-No. 13 Florida State. Reynolds Coliseum should be rocking (again), and Carolina will have to play one of its best games of the season (again) to complete the sweep of NC State for the season. By the way, NC State is up to No. 8 in the AP Poll this week. Despite the Sunday game, it will be a 6:00 p.m. tipoff from the City of Oaks. Coverage on the Tar Heel Sports Network begins at 5:30 p.m. with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show. Catch the call in the Triangle on our flagship station, WCHL 97.9 FM, or worldwide via GoHeels.com, the GoHeels app, or the TuneIn app (search "North Carolina Tar Heels").

In the meantime, we'll have a new edition of Courtney Banghart Live coming out this week. It's a special show time this week – Wednesday, Jan. 22 at noon, due to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday and team travel to Atlanta on Wednesday night. The show is open to the public, so come on out and join us for lunch at the Carolina Club! If you can't make it, catch the show on the Tar Heel Voices podcast feed on Thursday morning.

That's all for now! Go Heels!
-Matt