Carmichael Comments: Season Of Sharing

We all know that if Santa Claus played basketball, he'd be a point guard. After all, he's quite the talented distributor.

The Carolina women's basketball team has fully embraced the idea of December being a time of sharing and giving. How? Well, check this out. The Tar Heels have handed out 47 assists on 80 made field goals in their last two games, both convincing wins at Carmichael Arena over James Madison and UNC Asheville, respectively. Carolina has scored 200 combined points in the wins, including 107 against Asheville in the highest-scoring game for the Tar Heels since 2013 and highest-scoring at home since 2011.

Coming off a stretch that saw Carolina earn wins over three Power Five teams in TCU, Washington, and Minnesota – all away from Carmichael – third-year Tar Heel Head Coach Courtney Banghart understood the potential mental pitfalls that could lie ahead with mid-major opponents on the schedule at home. While JMU and UNC Asheville have combined for seven NCAA Tournament trips since 2010, the matchups against Carolina on paper were still tipped in the Tar Heels' favor. For that reason, Banghart knew it was imperative for her team to focus on playing up to the same standard that Carolina held in those challenging road games against Power Five foes.

"We wanted to honor and respect the game," she said. "And honor and respect our standard with action."

Though her team was 4-0 in the quartet of games away from home, Banghart saw the Tar Heels register an assist in just 38.6% of scoring possessions (39 assists on 101 made field goals) from Nov. 21-Dec. 1. With ball movement and offensive fluidity already a point of emphasis, the idea of a game that might not naturally lend itself to upholding that "standard" caused a bit of uneasiness for Banghart. We'll let her explain here.

"If you're not as worried about each individual possession, you can get messy," she said. "You can take some liberties on offense you wouldn't normally take. In a way, it can deteriorate your standard."

The standard was immediately on display last Sunday against James Madison, when the Tar Heels handed out a then-season high 23 assists and committed just 12 turnovers, an assist-to-turnover ratio slightly less than 2:1. Carolina scored 93 points in the win, and hit 10 threes on 15 attempts. After the game, Banghart said her team was "locked in" to the standard and the idea of trying to value each possession.

Seven days later, the standard was upheld again in the 107-46 win over Asheville, a team that came in ranked in the top 30 nationally in field goal percentage defense en route to a 5-3 start. The Tar Heels reached 107 points thanks to 43 made field goals, both figures that were Carolina's best offensive output in their respective categories since a 124-point, 45-bucket game against New Orleans in 2013 in Myrtle Beach. Even more impressively, 24 of the made field goals featured an assist, while Carolina committed just eight turnovers. The 3:1 assist-to-turnover ratio not only exceeded the JMU game for the best of the season, but it was the best under Banghart.

Another season-best from the JMU game that was exceeded against Asheville was made threes. The Tar Heels may have "only" shot 55% from distance, but hit 11 of their 20 shots. Carlie Littlefield (four) and Kennedy Todd-Williams (three) registered career highs in made triples. As Banghart and her staff work to instill the pass-first, ball movement-centered offense, the onus to take advantage of the scheme falls on the players. Open looks only work if you make the shot, and Tar Heel players have been doing a lot of that recently. For Banghart, it speaks to their efforts behind the scenes.

"They put the time in," she said. "We take a lot of shots in practice, and they take a lot of extra shots on their own. If we move the ball to create great looks, they're sort of expected to knock down open shots, and they're doing that."

Two games, two wins. And a lot of progress.

"We can run sets," Banghart said. "We've proven that. But fluid play – good teams do that as well. We've really grown in that area."

Here's what else caught my eye this week…

Recognition, But Just The Beginning
The 9-0 start, the 12^th in Carolina history, has energized the Tar Heel fan base. It's finally making some waves nationally, as the Tar Heels have entered the AP Top 25 this week with the No. 25 ranking, and debuted in the coaches' poll at No. 24 the week prior. The AP ranking is Carolina's first since the 2015 preseason poll, well before Banghart's arrival on campus for the 2019-20 season. The recognition has left her feeling appreciative of all that Carolina has achieved in her short tenure.

"It takes a lot to make me speechless, but the growth this program has made in the time that I've been here (has)," she reflected.

The poll rankings come on the heels of the first release of the NCAA NET rankings, a formula to measure the overall strength of a team's résumé. Carolina ranked No. 2 in the initial NET rankings, a clear reflection of the team's success in road games and with strong margins of victory.

"The NET ranking is a really accurate representation of the quality of your team," Banghart explained. "It takes into consideration your schedule – who you played, where you played them, and how convincingly you beat them."

The accolades and recognition speaks to the hard work of the players, Banghart says.

"This is a group that is relatively new as a unit, and they've just invested and are getting rewarded for it," she remarked.

Rebounding Dominance
The Tar Heels dominated the rebound margin against UNC Asheville, controlling the glass 50-18. The 32-board advantage marked Carolina's best rebound margin since a 34-rebound edge, 58-24, against South Carolina State on Dec. 3, 2020. The effort Sunday didn't surprise Banghart. After all, it was a goal of her team as written on the whiteboard in the locker room.

"One of our notes on the board was that we wanted 50 rebounds," she said. "They went out and they got their 50 rebounds."

Up Next
Carolina will play three more games prior to the Holiday Break, a stretch that begins with a Wednesday night home date against the Jacksonville Dolphins of the Atlantic Sun Conference. JU is 7-3 on the season after a Monday night road loss at USC Upstate, but four of those seven wins have come against non-Division I competition. On the flip side, the Dolphins do have a road win at Minnesota in the season opener, 69-66. It's the second meeting all-time between these two teams, as Carolina won 87-57 in Myrtle Beach in 2016. Tip is set for 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday night in Carmichael Arena. Tar Heel Sports Network airtime is at 5:30 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. Additionally, our flagship station, 97.9 FM/1360 AM WCHL, will begin carrying our coverage right at 6:00.

Then on Sunday, conference play is here. Carolina ventures to Boston College for the first meeting between these two teams since February 2020, as last year's game was canceled due to COVID protocols. The Eagles, who boast All-ACC forward Taylor Soule, sit 7-2 with road losses to Boston University and common opponent VCU on their schedule. That game with BC is a 2:00 p.m. tip from Conte Forum. Tar Heel Sports Network airtime is at 1:30 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. Additionally, our flagship station, 97.9 FM/1360 AM WCHL, will carry the broadcast in its entirety.

The final contest before Christmas is a matinee with Alabama State on Tuesday, Dec. 21. It's the final non-conference game of the season against a Hornets team that has already played the likes of Mississippi State, Auburn, and Georgia, and will play Ohio State on Wednesday. That's a 1:00 p.m. tip at Carmichael Arena, with THSN airtime at 12:30 p.m. for 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.

In the meantime, we'll have a pair of Courtney Banghart Show releases on the Tar Heel Voices Podcast Channel. Keep an eye out for those on Tuesday, Dec. 14, and Monday, Dec. 20.

That's all for now! Go Heels!

-Matt

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