Carmichael Comments: Searching For 2-0

Carmichael Comments: Inside Carolina Women's Basketball
Vol. 2, Edition 13: Searching for 2-0
By: Matt Krause
@MattKrausePxP

Perhaps you have – or had growing up – some sort of a weekly tradition on Sunday.

After all, most people have the day off on the first day of the week. Whether it's a certain food, spending time with family, going to church, or some combination therein, Sunday traditions are a way of life in North Carolina.

The Carolina women's basketball team has a Sunday tradition.

And they don't like it. They want to change it. This week.

It's the "we played hard, we fought, we never gave up" talk in the locker room after a narrowly contested loss against one of the ACC's best.

With the conference portion of the Tar Heels' schedule halfway over, Carolina has achieved an odd feat. After starting 1-0 in a one-off Monday victory over Pitt in the ACC opener, Carolina has won four straight Thursday games in the league's Thursday/Sunday scheduling rhythm. They've then gone out and lost four straight Sunday games.

Now, there's a major asterisk on this stat. The four Sunday games have been on the road at Virginia Tech, who's 4-3 in the ACC now, on the road again at No. 11 Florida State, a home date with No. 5 Louisville, and yet another road test – this one at No. 8 NC State. Yeah, a gauntlet for sure. But Carolina isn't happy with just showing up and playing hard, regardless of who the opponent is.

"We've had these wonderful 1-1 weeks, but what we need is 2-0," Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart said on her weekly radio show Courtney Banghart Live on Monday.

The Sunday games for Carolina have certainly been competitive, with the Tar Heels falling by single digits in three of the four setbacks. Banghart knows that UNC may not be as deep as other teams in the ACC this season, which is a factor, but she attributes the lack of success on Sundays more to the opponents.

"Obviously, we're a thin roster, so part of it might be fatigue, but I joke with the league office that our schedule has been very top-heavy in the first half," she said.

That first half is now over, and Carolina has weathered the storm to sit 5-4 in ACC play. And at least on paper, things do get a bit easier from here. Four of the next five games are at Carmichael Arena, and the fifth is the shortest road trip of the year, just eight miles up U.S. 15/501 to Duke. The lengthy stretch of home cooking (and sleeping) begins with a visit from Virginia on Thursday for a second meeting of the season. The Tar Heels won the first, 65-47, on Jan. 2 in Charlottesville. On Sunday, Clemson comes to town with a record that currently sits at 7-13 and 3-6 in the ACC.

Banghart and her team are confident that this can finally be the week that 2-0 happens, so much so that she "called her shot" at the radio show.

"We're looking forward to winning two," she said. "I don't care who we're playing. We're going to win Thursday and we're going to win Sunday. You heard it here."

A major reason why two wins this week would be extra special is that it's two chances to reward the loyal Carmichael Arena fans with home court wins. The impact of Carolina faithful is not lost on Banghart and her group of seven seniors, whose time playing at home is waning.

"This experience matters for our seniors," she said. "They have gone through a lot. To think we don't see you, hear you, and feel you ... you're mistaken."

So perhaps this is the week that the tradition changes. This can be the week that Carolina goes 2-0 in a Thursday/Sunday setup.

Here's what else caught my eye this week…

Bennett Shines vs. State
Shayla Bennett led the Tar Heels in scoring against NC State on Sunday with 24 points, marking her third 20-point game in ACC play. Two of those three games have come against the Wolfpack (20 in Carmichael on Jan. 9).
Banghart points to the presence of one of Bennett's key teammates, Janelle Bailey, as a reason for Bennett's success against NC State. By exploiting a Wolfpack weakness, Bailey opened up opportunities for Bennett.
"We did a lot of ball screens with Janelle, who was guarded by (Elissa) Cunane," Banghart said. "Cunane's not so great at ball screen defense. It's a matchup thing and it forces the five to deal with Shayla, and that bodes well for us."

Going Overtime
Thursday's game at Georgia Tech was the first overtime game of Banghart's tenure at Carolina and first overtime win for the Tar Heels since a January 21, 2018 win over Duke at home. Once Georgia Tech tied the game at 54 to force the extra session, the Tar Heels seized the lead early in OT and never relinquished it en route to the 67-60 win.
"When we went on the little run, I thought 'okay, we're good,'" Banghart recalled. "It's tough to score in overtime. When we get to overtime, it's a possession game, and that's where we make our money as coaches."

Bailey's Big Free Throw Night
Carolina is shooting 85% from the line in its last four games (63-for-74), thanks in part to a 15-for-16 night against the Yellow Jackets. 10 of those 15 came from Janelle Bailey, who did not miss in the overtime affair.
"They were going to foul because we had an advantage late, and I'm drawing up plays to get it to our center," Banghart said. "That's rare, because usually the center is the worst at free throws. She was money from the free throw line. We needed all those points."

Up Next
As discussed above, Carolina will be home for two games this week. First, the Virginia Cavaliers arrive for the back end of the in-season home-and-home on Thursday at 6 p.m. The Tar Heels won 65-47 in Charlottesville on Jan. 2, Carolina's second straight win over the Cavaliers following a 70-53 win in Carmichael last Feb. 17. In case you missed it earlier in the season, with the expansion of the ACC schedule to 18 games, Virginia and Virginia Tech join Duke and NC State as teams that the Tar Heels will play twice each regular season – thus a second trip to Chapel Hill in as many seasons for the Cavaliers. Virginia now sits 8-12 on the season and 3-6 in the ACC. Our coverage on Thursday begins with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 5:30 p.m. 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").
Then on Sunday, Clemson arrives for the lone meeting of the regular season. It's a 2 p.m. tipoff in a nice appetizer for that big football game to follow on Sunday evening. Carolina won at Littlejohn Coliseum last year, 70-64 on Feb. 10, so the Tar Heels are in search of their second win in as many seasons over the Tigers. Our coverage on Sunday begins with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 1:30 p.m. 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").
To get you ready, tune in to this week's edition of Courtney Banghart Live at the link here, or search "Tar Heel Voices" wherever you get your podcasts. Additionally, you can catch the show at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday on WCHL 97.9 FM.

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