Carmichael Comments: Going Dancing

Over 100 practices. Thirty-one games – 29 in the regular season, and two more in the ACC Tournament. All leading up to one moment and an immense sense of accomplishment: seeing and hearing your name called on Selection Sunday. As soon as North Carolina saw its name selected as the No. 6 seed in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament's Seattle Region 3, that pride and satisfaction was evident for Tar Heel head coach Courtney Banghart.

It's her 11th trip to March Madness in her 16 seasons as a college head coach, but her thoughts were immediately on her players and this unique group of 2022-23 Tar Heels. After all, for this particular team, this NCAA Tournament trip is their first.

"You want to make sure this unique group gets their unique experience," Banghart reflected. "It might be my 11th, but this group, it's our first and only. We want to meet the challenge head-on."

Many around the program thought there was a possibility that Carolina would earn a top-four seed in one of the tournament's four regions, so seeing a No. 6 seed did create a sense of surprise. But the idea of going on the road and winning at a host site in the second round is far from foreign for the Carolina program, who just a season ago took down Arizona on the Wildcats' home floor in Tucson. That experience will pay dividends this week, Banghart says.

"Hosting is a big deal because it gives you the ability to play in front of your fanbase," she remarked. "If you don't earn that, you want to make sure your matchup is good. I know these (players) are quick to regroup and will be ready to go."

A simultaneous cause for excitement and challenge in March is the fact that the opponents are relative unknowns. For the last two-plus months, teams across the nation have been immersed in conference play. Ask any Tar Heel player or coach about Virginia Tech's actions, and they'll probably know them as well as Carolina's own schemes. Same with Duke, who the Tar Heels played three times between January 19th and March 3rd.

"We've played a lot of people that we know really well," Banghart said. "What we do know is that there are really good teams out there – that's all that's left. They'll be different, but we'll get to share our brand of basketball with them."

While we won't dive into x's and o's in full here, we will get to know a bit more about each potential Carolina foe this week. The Tar Heels open the NCAA Tournament on Saturday against the winner of a First Four clash between Purdue and St. John's, while the other Saturday game in Columbus pits host Ohio State against James Madison.

Potential Opponent Capsules

No. 11 Purdue Boilermakers
2022-23: 19-10, 9-8 Big Ten
Conference Tournament: Lost in Big Ten Quarterfinals to Iowa, 69-58, defeated Wisconsin in Big Ten Second Round
Series Record: UNC leads 4-2
Last Meeting: 3/23/09 – Purdue wins, 85-70, in Chattanooga, Tenn. (NCAA Tournament Second Round)
Coach Banghart Record: First Meeting

Purdue makes its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017 with a First Four assignment against St. John's. Second-year head coach Katie Gearlds, a Purdue alumna herself, built a tournament team based on five Big Ten road wins. The biggest of those five was, coincidentally enough, in Columbus against Ohio State when the Buckeyes were ranked No. 2. That was Purdue's first-ever win over an AP top-5 foe in a true road environment. Individually, Jeanae Terry grabs the headlines with a Second-Team All-Big Ten nod. She's a 6.7-point per game scorer, but stuffs the stat sheet with 7.8 rebounds, 6.4 assists, and 2.4 steals per game. Lasha Petree is the team's leading scorer at 14.5 points per game.

No. 11 St. John's Red Storm
2022-23: 22-8, 13-7 Big East
Conference Tournament: Lost in Big East Quarterfinals to Marquette, 57-47
Series Record: UNC leads 6-0
Last Meeting: 12/6/09 – UNC wins, 83-73, in Chapel Hill
Coach Banghart Record: Coach Banghart trails 0-1
Last Meeting: 3/20/10 – St. John's beats Princeton, 65-47, in Tallahassee, Fla. (NCAA Tournament First Round)

Much like Purdue, St. John's makes a return to the NCAA Tournament and a first trip in the 2020s, having last danced in 2016. Joe Tartamella was named Big East Coach of the Year after leading the Red Storm to a 13-0 start overall, and 13 Big East wins, the most for the program since 2009-10. Again, much like Purdue, one of those league wins was a signature triumph – a 69-64 road win at UConn on Feb. 21. Jayla Everett, a familiar name for Carolina fans thanks to her two-year stint at Pittsburgh, was named to the All-Big East first team thanks to her team-best 15.8 points per game.

No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes
2022-23: 25-7, 12-6 Big Ten
Conference Tournament: Lost Big Ten Championship Game to Iowa, 105-72, defeated Michigan and Indiana in Big Ten Quarterfinals and Semifinals, respectively
Series Record: UNC leads 5-4
Last Meeting: 11/29/19 – OSU wins, 76-69, in Columbus, Ohio
Coach Banghart Record: Coach Banghart trails 0-1
Last Meeting: 12/18/15 – OSU beats Princeton, 90-70, in Columbus, Ohio

The host of the weekend's games is Ohio State, hosting for the first time since 2018. Coming off its 12th Sweet 16 trip last season, OSU started this year 19-0 with wins over Tennessee, Louisville, South Florida, and Oregon headlining the non-conference triumphs. While the Buckeyes cooled off in late January, losing three straight to Iowa, Indiana, and Purdue, they made a run to the Championship Game of the Big Ten Tournament, knocking off both Michigan and Indiana along the way. The Buckeyes do have the luxury of having 2022 All-American Jacy Sheldon back in the lineup after injury, joining five teammates named to 2023 All-Big Ten teams. Taylor Mikesell, who leads the team in scoring at 17.3 points per game, was named to the All-Big Ten first team, while Cotie McMahon and her 14.0 points per game earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors.

No. 14 James Madison Dukes
2022-23: 26-7, 13-5 Sun Belt
Conference Tournament: Won Sun Belt Tournament, defeating Texas State 81-51 in Championship Game
Series Record: UNC leads 4-1
Last Meeting: 11/20/22 – UNC wins, 76-65, in Harrisonburg, Va.
Coach Banghart Record: Coach Banghart leads 2-0
Last Meeting: 11/20/22 – UNC wins, 76-65, in Harrisonburg, Va.

The only foe that would be a repeat opponent this weekend, James Madison has enjoyed a banner debut season in the Sun Belt – literally. Carolina's 11-point win in Harrisonburg in November was a hard-fought road win in a game the Tar Heels trailed at halftime but prevailed despite 30 points from Kiki Jefferson. That game was a microcosm of the season for Jefferson, who was named Sun Belt Player of the Year, leading the league in scoring at 18.3 points per game and pulling in 8.1 rebounds per game (fifth in Sun Belt). JMU enters the NCAA Tournament winners of eight of their last nine, including a beatdown of Texas State, the Sun Belt No. 2 seed, in the conference title game.

Follow the Games
While we don't know the opponent for Saturday's game, we do know that the game will tip at 4:00 p.m. at Value City Arena. A win on Saturday sends the Tar Heels onward to Monday, with the second-round game time TBD. Should the Tar Heels advance to the NCAA Tournament's second week, the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games would be played Saturday, Mar. 25 and Monday, Mar. 27 in Seattle, also with times TBD. The Tar Heel Sports Network will be there for full coverage of each Carolina NCAA Tournament game, beginning 30 minutes prior to tipoff with the Reeds Jewelers Pregame Show. Catch each call in full locally on 97.9 FM/1360 AM in the Triangle, or worldwide for free via our THSN streaming platforms: GoHeels.com, the GoHeels app, and the Varsity Network app from Learfield.

In the meantime, check out the latest edition of Holding Court with Courtney Banghart, which is available on the Tar Heel Voices Podcast Channel. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. The show also airs on WCHL 97.9 FM/1360 AM on Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. for fans in the Chapel Hill area. This week's show features interviews with Coach Banghart and Alyssa Ustby, recorded just moments after the conclusion of Sunday's selection show, plus some historical notes and nuggets and a preview of Seattle Region 3.

That's all for now. Go Heels!