Carmichael Comments: Lots To Celebrate

Inside Carolina Women's Basketball
Vol. 4, Edition 2

Sunday presented the Carolina Women's Basketball team with an opportunity. The Tar Heels had reeled off three straight wins by 45 points or more to open the 2021-22 season, but knew the challenge would be much tougher when a fellow Power Five team occupied the opposing bench for the first time on the season. Win, and Carolina would validate the first three triumphs.

Even though the Tar Heels never trailed in the game, a first half that at points was marred by shooting droughts and sloppiness leading to turnovers at others left TCU within striking distance. And when the Horned Frogs went on a run to awaken their home crowd and make the game a bit more precarious, Tar Heel Head Coach Courtney Banghart had a clear message for her team.

"There was a point in the game when I looked at them after (TCU) had went on a little bit of a run, and I said to them, 'this is going to come down to collective toughness,'" she said. "And we hadn't had to show that all year. I kind of looked them all in the eye and said 'do we have it? We're going to find out.'"

Spoiler: the Tar Heels found out. A fourth quarter in which Carolina outscored TCU 27-6 to close out a 79-46 win tells you all you need to know. Banghart points to hard work put in during the offseason as a catalyst for such an effort.

"It says a lot about our conditioning, and it says a lot about all parts of this year's team," she remarked.

Sunday's win, Carolina's first in a true road game over a Power Five team since December 2016 at Wisconsin, saw four Tar Heels score in double figures for the fourth time in as many games, including a second straight game of 10+ points from a bench player, in this case Eva Hodgson's 11 points. It also marked the fourth straight game with three or more players collecting five rebounds for the Tar Heels, just a microcosm of Carolina's 54-28 rebound margin over a TCU team that came in to the game no. 1 nationally in rebounding through a week and a half of play.

If one thinks of assembling a team as a jigsaw puzzle, Banghart and her staff have those edge pieces all connected. Now, it's just about putting those little internal pieces together to create the final image. A few of those pieces are in place already.

"We've got a lot of pieces," Banghart said. "We've got the motor. We've got the commitment to what we're asking them to do."

Perhaps no one underscores that point more than Malu Tshitenge, who logged a season-high 20 minutes and pulled in five rebounds, but was praised by the staff for her buy-in and near-flawless execution of her role. It's pieces like her who leave the Tar Heels feeling better about assembling the rest of the puzzle moving forward.

"Until you're in these situations, you don't really know what you're going to be, so it was a good first road outing against a Power Five team," Banghart said.

Here's what else caught my eye this week…

Kelly's Homecoming Thrill
Sunday marked the second time Deja Kelly has played as a Tar Heel in her native state of Texas. The first, Carolina's NCAA Tournament loss to Alabama in March, was a muted event thanks to the "bubble" aspect of the Tournament in San Antonio. So with more fans permitted on Sunday at TCU, a game played 31 miles from Kelly's high school in Duncanville, Tex., the sophomore took full advantage of her second homecoming. Kelly's 25 points in the Carolina win were a new career high, and the third time in her last eight games either matching or setting a new career scoring mark.

"I'm just so happy for Deja," Banghart beamed. "It's obviously her being able to come home, it's a big move for her to come to Carolina when I hadn't even coached a game yet in Carolina Blue. She believed in me and believed in the mission, and this is such a gift to be able to bring her home."

Kelly also set a career best in field goals made (nine), three-pointers made (three), and rebounds (seven). The six threes she has hit in the last two games is the most in a two-game span in her career.

True Freshmen Arrive
In this column last week, we talked about the impressive debuts of Carolina's two graduate transfers, Carlie Littlefield and Eva Hodgson, with double-figure scoring games in their first Tar Heel game against North Carolina A&T. By that logic, it's only fitting that we talk about the opposite end of the age spectrum, and Carolina's pair of true freshmen that have played so far this season – Destiny Adams and Morasha Wiggins. The duo both established career scoring highs on Wednesday against Appalachian State, and each reached the 10-point threshold for the first time as Tar Heels.

"You guys got to see what we see every day," Banghart told a lively Carmichael Arena crowd after the game. "And that's two players that are getting better and better as they go. They came here for a reason – they wanted to make a difference. And they showed tonight what they're capable of."

Their productivity provided an encouraging sign for Carolina's depth, as the effort came on a night when three starters were held to single-digit scoring outputs.

"Giving people minutes early when they can taste college basketball and stack possessions together inside the lines is invaluable for young people," Banghart said.

A Memorable Half
Carolina re-wrote record books in the first half of Wednesday night's win against Appalachian State, taking a 40-7 lead into the halftime locker room en route to an 89-44 triumph over the Mountaineers. The seven points conceded marked the fewest points allowed in a half by the Tar Heels under Banghart, and first time an opponent was held to single digits at halftime since Air Force scored nine in the opening 20 minutes on Nov. 8, 2013. To find a lower opponent halftime score, you have to venture back to Dec. 12, 2012, when North Carolina Central scored a mere six points in the first stanza.

Appalachian State went 2-for-28 from the floor in the half, a figure that included an 0-for-18 effort from three-point range. The two field goals was the smallest number conceded in a half since the aforementioned contest against Air Force in 2013.

"Defensively, this is a team that is committed defensively, and they're connected on that end," Banghart reflected. "They played really well in the first half."

Up Next
Carolina will enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday in the bright sunshine and warm temperatures of Bimini, Bahamas with a trip to the Goombay Splash tournament. The two-game event will see the Tar Heels clash with reigning Atlantic 10 champion VCU Rams on Friday at 1:00 p.m., only to turn around less than 24 hours later to meet the Pac-12's Washington Huskies on Saturday at noon.

We'll have full coverage of each game live and on location in Bimini. Airtime on Friday is at 12:30 p.m. with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show. Catch the call on all our streaming options – The Varsity Network App from Learfield, GoHeels.com, and the GoHeels app – all for free. Saturday's broadcast coverage commences at 11:30 a.m. with a brunch edition of the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show. The same streaming options are available for that game, and we'll be joined by our friends at WCHL 97.9 FM/1360 AM in the Triangle as well. Hope you'll make plans to join us!

That's all for now. Happy Thanksgiving and Go Heels!

-Matt

Malu Tshitenge (21) did a great job of executing her role on Sunday at TCU.

Photo by: Ellman Photography

November 23, 2021 | Women's Basketball