2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team

The 2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team will represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Tar Heels are led by head coach Courtney Banghart, who will enter her fifth season in Chapel Hill. She will be assisted by Joanne Aluka-White, Adrian Walters, and Itoro Coleman. The Tar Heels will play their home games at Carmichael Arena, and are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball
ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 17
APNo. 16
Record0–0 (0–0 ACC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaCarmichael Arena
2023–24 ACC women's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Boston College0–0 –0–0  –
Clemson0–0 –0–0  –
Duke0–0 –0–0  –
No. 18 Florida State0–0 –0–0  –
Georgia Tech0–0 –0–0  –
No. 17 Louisville0–0 –0–0  –
Miami (FL)0–0 –0–0  –
NC State0–0 –0–0  –
No. 16 North Carolina0–0 –0–0  –
No. 10 Notre Dame0–0 –0–0  –
Pittsburgh0–0 –0–0  –
Syracuse0–0 –0–0  –
Virginia0–0 –0–0  –
No. 8 Virginia Tech0–0 –0–0  –
Wake Forest0–0 –0–0  –
† 2024 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Previous Season

Ranked No. 12 in the preseason AP Poll, Banghart's Tar Heels got off to another hot start. They won six straight to start the season, culminating in a come-from-behind victory to defeat No. 5 Iowa State in the championship game of the women's PKI, climbing as high as No. 6 in the nation during their win streak.[1] ACC play proved more challenging for the Tar Heels, as the team would lose its first three conference games in a row before upsetting then-No. 4 Notre Dame at home in Carmichael to earn their first ACC win of the season.[2]

The Tar Heels would finish ACC play with an 11–7 conference record, tying Miami for sixth in the regular season standings, but lost the tiebreaker to the Hurricanes and were awarded the 7 seed in the ACC Tournament. They would face and defeat 10th seed Clemson in the second round, giving Coach Banghart her first victory in the ACC tournament as Tar Heel coach.

After being in contention most of the season for a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament, which would have given them the privilege of hosting first and second round games, the Tar Heels ultimately earned the 6 seed in the Seattle 3 Regional. They would defeat 11 seed St. John's in the first round before losing to 3 seed Ohio State in the second round, ending their season just shy of a second-straight sweet sixteen appearance and with a 22–11 overall record.[3]

Offseason

Shortly following the conclusion of the 2022–23 season, guard/forward Destiny Adams announced her intentions to enter the transfer portal via social media.[4] Adams later committed to Rutgers, returning to her home state of New Jersey.[5]

A day after Adams, multi-year starter Kennedy Todd-Williams also entered the transfer portal, to the surprise of many in Chapel Hill.[6] She committed to Ole Miss shortly thereafter.[7]

Guards Eva Hodgson and Ariel Young also departed the team at the end of the season. Young was forced to medically retire due to a knee injury sustained in 2021,[8] and Hodgson completed her fifth and final year of college eligibility.

In addition to a highly touted incoming recruiting class, Banghart and the Tar Heels have been active in the transfer portal to mitigate the departures, as on April 3, former Boston College F/C Maria Gakdeng committed to the Tar Heels for the 2023–24 season.[9]

The Tar Heels added another player from the transfer portal on April 24, when former Iowa State guard and 2022 Big XII Defensive Player of the Year Lexi Donarski committed to the team. She has two years of eligibility remaining.[10]

The roster received another boost when 2022 NC Gatorade POY and McDonald's All-American Indya Nivar committed to the team on April 30, in a post on social media.[11] She had spent her first year of college basketball at Stanford.

Departures
Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Reason for Departure
Destiny Adams20G/F6'3"SophomoreManchester, NJTransferred to Rutgers
Eva Hodgson10G5'10"RS SeniorRindge, NHExhausted Eligibility
Kennedy Todd-Williams3G6'0"JuniorJacksonville, NCTransferred to Ole Miss
Malu Tshitenge21F6'3"SeniorGermantown, MDGraduated
Ariel Young11G6'1"RS SeniorTallahassee, FLMedical Retirement

Incoming Transfers
Incoming Transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Previous School
Lexi Donarski20G6'0"SeniorLa Crosse, WIIowa State
Maria Gakdeng5F/C6'3"JuniorLanham, MDBoston College
Indya Nivar24G5'10"SophomoreApex, NCStanford

Recruiting Class
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Ciera Toomey
P		 Dunmore, PA Dunmore 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) N/A Apr 11, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 97
Reniya Kelly
PG		 Hoover, AL Hoover 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) N/A Nov 20, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 95
Rylee Grays
P		 Houston, TX Pearland 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) N/A Jun 20, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 92
Laila Hull
F		 Zionsville, IN Zionsville Community 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) N/A Oct 25, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 91
Sydney Barker†
G		 Durham, NC Jordan 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Sources:[12][13]

† Denotes Walk-On

Roster
2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
F 0 Alexandria Zelaya 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) SrMillennium Goodyear, AZ
G 1 Alyssa Ustby 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) SrLourdes Rochester, MN
G 2 Paulina Paris 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) SoSaddle River Day School Congers, NY
F 4 Laila Hull 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) FrZionsville Community Zionsville, IN
F/C 5 Maria Gakdeng 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) JrBoston College Lanham, MD
G 10 Reniya Kelly 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) FrHoover Hoover, AL
G 11 Kayla McPherson 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) RS SoMadison County Hull, GA
G/F 13 Teonni Key 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) RS SoCary Cary, NC
G 15 Sydney Barker (W) 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) FrJordan Durham, NC
G 20 Lexi Donarski 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) SrIowa State La Crosse, WI
F/C 21 Ciera Toomey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) FrDunmore Dunmore, PA
F/C 22 Rylee Grays 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) FrPearland Houston, TX
G 24 Indya Nivar 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) SoStanford Apex, NC
G 25 Deja Kelly 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) SrDuncanville San Antonio, TX
F 31 Anya Poole 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) SrSoutheast Raleigh Raleigh, NC
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Schedule & Results

The full schedule will be posted at a later date. The Tar Heels are expected to play an 18-game ACC schedule and multiple non-conference opponents.

Rankings
See also: 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
AP16Not released
Coaches17

See also
See also: 2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

References
  1. Satterfield Brown, Nia (November 29, 2022). "UNC WBB Notebook: Heels Win PKI, Keep Climbing". InsideCarolina.com. 247 Sports. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  2. Swanson, Shelby (January 8, 2023). "Paris' career-high 16 points lift No. 22 UNC women's basketball to upset win over No. 4 Notre Dame". The Daily Tar Heel. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  3. "No. 3 Ohio St beats No. 6 UNC 71-69, advances to Sweet 16". ESPN.com. March 21, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  4. Delahanty, Nick (March 22, 2023). "UNC Women's Basketball: Destiny Adams enters transfer portal". keepingitheel.com. Fansided. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  5. Schnyderite, Richard (April 15, 2023). "Rutgers Women's Hoops lands UNC transfer wing Destiny Adams". The Knight Report. Rivals. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  6. Koh, Michael (March 23, 2023). "UNC's Kennedy Todd-Williams Enters Transfer Portal; 2nd Tar Heel to Enter in 24 Hours". chapelboro.com. WCHL Chapelboro. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  7. Eckert, David (March 29, 2023). "All-ACC guard Kennedy Todd-Williams of UNC transfers to Ole Miss women's basketball, Coach Yo". clarionledger.com. Mississippi Clarion Ledger. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  8. "Young Will Not Return To The Court For UNC". goheels.com. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics. February 20, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  9. "WBB Adds Gakdeng To Roster". goheels.com. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Athletics. April 3, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  10. Holloway, Jeremiah (April 24, 2023). "UNC WBB Adds Iowa State Guard Lexi Donarski in the Transfer Portal". InsideCarolina.com. 247 Sports. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  11. Nivar, Indya [@indyyy__12] (April 30, 2023). ""Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer."-Romans 12:12" – via Instagram.
  12. "2023 UNC Women's Basketball Recruiting Board". tarheeltimes.com. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  13. "2023 High School Girls' Basketball Recruits - North Carolina". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
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