Carmichael Comments: Connectedness

It's a cliché seemingly as old as sports themselves: defense wins championships.

While the Carolina women's basketball team still has a long way to go in its 2021-22 season, the pursuit of championships has been buoyed by the program's seventh-ever 13-0 start and first 3-0 ACC record in nine seasons. For die-hards and casual fans alike, watching the Tar Heels reach those heights has meant watching one of the nation's best defenses on display. Following Sunday's 81-62 win over Clemson, Carolina ranks in the top three in the ACC in no fewer than six major defensive stats, including critical metrics such as field-goal percentage defense (second ACC and fourth nationally), and scoring defense (third ACC, 11^th nationally).

That defense was on full display this weekend, as the Tar Heels forced 48 turnovers in two conference wins over Syracuse and Clemson, all while holding their foes to 30.5 percent shooting (36-for-118). Ask Carolina head Coach Courtney Banghart about just how those numbers come about, and she'll be quick to bring up the word "connected" to describe her team. Sure, it's nice to have players who can be elite on-ball defenders. After all, Banghart has called Kennedy Todd-Williams "perhaps the best defender I've ever coached." The defensive motor of Alyssa Ustby is an asset for this team, too. But putting those pieces together has helped take the Tar Heels from good to great on the defensive end.

"This team defends together," Banghart said. "We've got a lot of individually strong defenders, and they're continuing to stay connected, and it's leading to wins."

Some of the numbers are downright eye-popping. After holding Syracuse to just 43 points on Thursday – the lowest opponent point total in an ACC game since Virginia Tech scored 37 in a January 2012 affair – the Tar Heels had held nine of their first 12 opponents under 50 points. That's already the most for an entire season since the 2006-07 team, which went to the Final Four, limited 13 foes from achieving the half-century mark. Over the past four games, Carolina has forced 101 turnovers, the most in a four-game stretch under Banghart, and has forced 20 or more turnovers in seven games already this season. Not surprisingly, the Tar Heels are tops in the ACC and 25^th nationally in turnovers forced per game at 21.5.

How does a team become so good at forcing turnovers? For one, there's positioning. Knowing opponents' tendencies is key – which means religiously studying the scouting reports put together by assistant coaches Joanne Aluka-White, Itoro Coleman, and Adrian Walters. But once a player is in the right position on the defensive end, she still has to be engaged and active.

"We've got to make sure that we're not just active with our hands and our feet are stationary, or our feet are moving and our hands are dead," Banghart explained. "So if you play with active feet and active hands, you give yourself a lot of chances to make plays on the basketball."

Even with a victory that included 23 turnovers forced to a mere 12 field goals allowed against Syracuse, Banghart and her team understood there were areas of improvement still on the table. Specifically, the third-year Carolina bench boss felt her team's defensive energy was lacking at points in the win over the Orange. The cause? A slow start offensively, perhaps triggered by the lengthy layoff of the holiday break that preceded that ACC home opener.

"In that first half, because we were out of rhythm a bit and the ball wasn't moving as much, we started to slow down defensively," she said.

Still, that connectedness was present in the win.

"Individual defense has to be solid and accountable, but we also have to make sure that we're always a collective whole behind and on the sides of where the ball is," Banghart reflected. "That's a good takeaway from Syracuse, because I thought we were good collectively and not so good on our own."

Three nights later, the connected defense forced 18 steals in the Clemson triumph, a program-best under Banghart. Alyssa Ustby's six swipes were the most for a Tar Heel since Paris Kea had a six-steal game on Nov. 29, 2018 at Ohio State. You can't score if you don't get a shot off, and opponents have had trouble doing just that against Carolina recently. That's what happens when you play connected.

Here's what else caught my eye this week…

Kelly's Career Night
On the offensive side against Clemson on Sunday, Deja Kelly stole the show. She scored 31 points, a career-best, becoming just the second player to score 30 in an ACC game this season. The effort was the highest scoring output for a Tar Heel since Paris Kea (two mentions in one column for No. 22!) scored 32 on her Senior Day against NC State in February of 2019. Not surprisingly, Kelly notched career highs with 10 made field goals and five made three-pointers along the way, too.

Dive deeper into Kelly's scoring line, and you'll see that 18 of the 31 points came in the second half, a part of the game in which the Tigers played the Tar Heels much closer, and each point was critical. She also was the team leader in assists with three at the half, and would add another in the second half. Banghart credits Kelly for distributing early – taking what the defense gave her – for getting the Tar Heel offense in gear.

"I really liked how when she started the game, they were playing really high on her and she got others involved, so that allowed her to find more openings," Banghart said. "Hats off, she was an efficient contributor tonight and we needed it."

Scoring Anomaly
Sunday was Kelly's 13^th game scoring in double figures on the season, the lone Tar Heel to do so in each game of the campaign. Thursday's win against Syracuse, though, was one of her closer calls in prolonging that streak. Kelly scored "only" 12 points in the win…yet tied for the team lead in scoring. Alyssa Ustby also scored 12 points, while three other Tar Heels- Anya Poole (11), Eva Hodgson (11), and Kennedy Todd-Williams (10) also reached double figures. That's right: a full five players scoring 10+, yet no one player over 12. How does Banghart interpret such a unique box score? She hearkens back to the program's core values.

"We move the ball and we've got a lot of individual threats," she said. "Our theme in our program is 'strong on own and best together,' and that means that no one is along for the ride. Everyone has to contribute as needed."

Crashing the Glass
In Carolina's ACC opener at Boston College on Dec. 19, the Tar Heels earned a road win despite being -18 in the rebounding department. By the time league action resumed on Thursday, any thoughts of losing the rebound margin again were gone. With 63 rebounds against Syracuse, Carolina posted its best rebound total since a 65-board game in February 2011 at NC State. Sunday against Clemson, a 42-37 edge on the glass included 18 offensive rebounds to limit Clemson possessions. Combine that figure with the 18 steals, and Sunday's box score was a glimpse at the character of the team.

"If you're going to have 18 steals and 18 offensive rebounds, you're winning the 50-50 battles, so it was a gritty win," Banghart reflected.

Up Next
Buckle up.

The No. 19 Tar Heels will take on their first ranked opponent of the season, No. 5 NC State, on Thursday night in Raleigh. We probably don't need to remind you, but Carolina and State have split their season series each of the last three years, with Carolina beating a top 10-ranked Wolfpack team in the first meeting each season. This year's fourth chapter of the epic begins with an 8:00 p.m. tip on Thursday, preceded by a 7:30 p.m. Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show on the Tar Heel Sports Network. 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.

Then on Sunday, Virginia Tech, receiving votes in this week's AP poll, will visit Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels won the most recent meeting between these two teams, erasing a 14-point halftime deficit on the final day of the 2020-21 regular season to win in Blacksburg. Now, Carolina will try and earn a home court win over the Hokies, who are also 3-0 in the ACC entering this week. That tip is another 6:00 p.m. Sunday game, with Tar Heel Sports Network coverage commencing with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 5:30 p.m. 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.

In the meantime, the first 2022 edition of Holding Court with Courtney Banghart will air on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. on WCHL. Tune in to hear from Coach Banghart on all things Carolina Women's Basketball, including a preview of the huge week ahead! Plus, we answer your listener questions. As always, the show will be available on the Tar Heel Voices Podcast Channel. It's set to roll out Wednesday morning wherever you get your podcasts.

That's all for now! Go Heels!

-Matt