Carmichael Comments: Just Enough

You only need to win by one.

So when the scoreboard on Thursday night displayed "Carolina 66, Louisville 65" and had triple zeroes on the clock, it was proof that the Tar Heels had done just enough to defeat the nation's No. 3-ranked team.

The win was historic. Louisville was the highest ranked team Carolina has beaten in the three-year head coaching tenure of Courtney Banghart, and the highest-ranked win for the program since a 2019 triumph over Notre Dame.

The win was significant. Carolina now needs just one other piece of help – NC State beating Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Sunday – in order to receive an ACC Tournament double bye if the Tar Heels can put together a 2-0 week with wins over Virginia and Duke. Additionally, with a 21-5 overall record, No. 5 NET ranking, and a second NET quad 1 win in-hand after Louisville, Carolina will be back in the conversation for a potential top four seed in the NCAA Tournament. Do that, and the first two rounds of the Big Dance are at Carmichael.

But what the Louisville win wasn't was perfect.

"We really didn't shoot very well," Banghart remarked. "It wasn't one of those games where everything was going right for us."

She's right. Carolina's .377 field goal percentage was the third-lowest in any ACC win this season. The Heels connected on just five of their 19 three-point attempts, a 26-percent success rate that checks in as the worst in any of Carolina's last five ACC wins.

We've seen "one of those games" where things are going right, and it was on Feb. 6 against Miami, when Carolina won 85-38 at Carmichael. The Louisville game wasn't that. But just as much as the offense was working through some kinks, the Tar Heel calling card all season stepped up.

"Defensively, we were excellent," Banghart said. "We were everywhere. We were on cue to our scout. With the energy they played with, they gave themselves a chance to win."

The key phrase there is giving the Tar Heels a "chance to win." Louisville was held to only 28 points after halftime, and what was once a 10-point Cardinal lead dwindled away as Carolina strung stops together in the second half. So it's only fitting that on the final play of the game, it was Carolina's defense that was tasked with stopping Louisville's potential game-winning attempt. First, the Tar Heels forced Louisville into a tough three, then a desperation heave back to the rim. Still, as the ball rolled from Chelsie Hall's fingertips onto the iron, two bounces and a moment of hesitation on the back rim left the outcome in doubt until after the final horn.

Then, it fell out.

"We made just enough plays to find a way," Banghart said.

Just enough stops to trade the lead seven times in the waning minutes and emerge on top. Just enough trips to the free throw line to shoot 15-for-20, a 75-percent effort and eight more free points than Louisville. Just enough rebounds to outrebound the Cardinals by 10, the best margin against a ranked team under Banghart.

And oh yeah, just enough points to have more than the opponent when the final horn sounded. You only need to win by one, and Carolina did on a night that sent the program revival into overdrive.

Because on Thursday, even without playing their best game, the Tar Heels did just enough to announce to the nation that they can beat anyone.
Here's what else caught my eye this week ...

Student Support
As the comeback against the Cardinals was underway, the Tar Heels fed off a raucous student crowd that jammed the bleachers on the west side of Carmichael Arena. Nearly every inch of the section was filled with Carolina students, some of whom were as young as sixth grade the last time Carolina was ranked this late in a season.

"I can't give enough credit to the crowd," Banghart said. "That was such a great environment, I feel so honored to be a part of that."

After the game, she walked up and down the front of the bleachers, waving and clapping as adoring students cheered for their team. While the moment was special, it did come with a small inconvenience for Banghart and her team, as she revealed that she had to utilize nonverbal visual cues to relay play calls to her team on the floor. Typically, those calls are audible. But if that's the price to pay for a "sixth player" in Carmichael, then so be it.

Kelly Carries Tar Heels to Tallahassee Win
Carolina followed up the Louisville victory with a 64-49 win at Florida State on Sunday, a game in which Deja Kelly scored 26 of the Tar Heels' 64 points, 41 percent of the offense. The game marked her fifth straight game scoring 17 points or more, extending a personal best streak, and caught the eye of voters on the ACC's Blue Ribbon Panel, who voted the Texas native ACC Player of the Week. Kelly was extremely efficient in the effort, shooting 9-for-15 from the field, the fewest number of misses with at least 15 attempts for her this season. She was also 6-for-6 from the free throw line, where she's made 27 of her last 29 shots and leads the ACC with an 86.3 success rate.

"She's what we needed, when we needed it, in terms of getting the ball in the basket," Banghart said after the game. "She also didn't force anything. She distributed it well. Great effort, we needed it, and I'm super happy for her."

Slow Start, Fast Finish
Twenty-eight minutes into Sunday's game in Tallahassee, Carolina had just 33 points and trailed 35-33. As we mentioned a moment ago, the Tar Heels finished the game with 64 points. Math tells you that the final 12 minutes yielded 31 points of offense for Carolina. So what happened? And what changed?

"I thought we were missing some easy ones, and Florida State was really converging on our penetration, and we were having a tough time reading out of that," Banghart explained.

But with some adjustments and wearing down the Florida State defense, Carolina came to life to put the Seminoles away.
"My guys have so much fight, and you saw that today," Banghart said.

Completing the ACC Rounds
With the wins over Louisville and Florida State, the first for Carolina since 2008 and 2015, respectively, Banghart has now guided the Tar Heels to wins over every other ACC team at least once in her tenure in Chapel Hill, and has achieved the feat in just 51 ACC games. Carolina's new longest drought by number of games comes against NC State, which has won three straight, all as a top-five team. By the calendar, it's Notre Dame, which the Tar Heels last beat on Jan. 24, 2021. Of course, either of those droughts could end very soon with the ACC Tournament coming up in just over a week.

Up Next
Now the Tar Heels need to keep the foot to the floorboard. Here's what's on the line this week: two Tar Heel wins plus a win by NC State over Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Sunday, and Carolina has a double bye in the ACC Tournament. If Carolina and Virginia Tech both end up 13-5 and VT has lost to NC State, since Carolina and VT split the season series, the Tar Heels' win over Louisville would mean Carolina has the "best win" by league standings, and Virginia Tech lost to Louisville (both teams would be 0-2 against NC State in that spot). There are a few other scenarios that could yield a double bye, but all would include a sizable road upset by either Miami (at Virginia Tech) or Clemson (at Notre Dame) on Thursday. And of course, it's essentially a moot point unless the Tar Heels earn two wins.

Up first in the quest is a road trip to Charlottesville to take on Virginia. The Cavaliers finally broke through for an ACC win last Thursday over Duke, and backed it up with a Sunday win over Pittsburgh. While Carolina has won four straight over Virginia, the 'Hoos made it tough at Carmichael on Jan. 20, when UNC gutted out a 61-52 win. Thursday's game is at 7 p.m. from John Paul Jones Arena, and broadcast coverage begins at 6:30 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.

Then on Sunday, it's the second meeting of the year between Carolina and Duke. The Tar Heels won 78-62 in a domination at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Jan. 28, and now will play for their first regular season sweep of Duke since 2014. Plus, it will be Senior Day for Carlie Littlefield and Jaelynn Murray. Tip for the rivalry is set for 4 pm., with broadcast coverage commencing with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show at 3:30 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, a new edition of Holding Court with Courtney Banghart will air on Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. on WCHL. Tune in to hear from Coach Banghart on all things Carolina Women's Basketball, including a preview of this week's games. 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