University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
NC Central
No. 11 WBB Tips Off Season Monday, Hosting NC Central
November 2, 2025 | Women's Basketball
NO. 11/11 NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS (0-0, 0-0 ACC)
Head Coach: Courtney Banghart (Dartmouth, 2000)
Record at North Carolina: 125-64 (7th season)
Career Record: 379-167 (19th season)Â
NC CENTRAL EAGLES (0-0, 0-0 MEAC)
Head Coach: Terrence Baxter (Pfeiffer, 2001)
Record at North Central: 25-36 (3rd season)
Career Record: 61-57 (5th season)
TIPPING OFF
• Carolina enters year seven of the Banghart era, coming off of its fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and second Sweet 16 in the last four seasons.
• The Tar Heels enter Monday's game following a tight exhibition against No. 2 South Carolina on Thursday. Despite testing the Gamecocks, Carolina game up short 91-82. Many Tar Heels showed flashes of promise, with four scoring in double-figures.
• Eight return from last season's squad, while six newcomers enter the fold. Banghart and Co. picked up strong talent in the transfer portal with Elina Aarnisalo from UCLA and Nyla Harris from Louisville. Youth is abundant, with four freshmen, including three ranked in the top-80 among ESPN's Class of 2025 rankings.
• The Tar Heels face multiple challenges in non-conference play, taking on seven NCAA Tournament teams including two Final Four squads.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
The Eagles enter year three under Terrence Baxter after posting a record of 9-21 during the 2024-25 campaign.Â
In MEAC action, NC Central picked up six conference wins and bowed out of the MEAC Tournament in the quarterfinals.
Despite losing their leading scorer, the Eagles bring back Morgan Callahan who averaged 12.5 points per game as a senior and was honored as the Preseason MEAC Player of the Year.
A total of four Eagles picked up preseason honors with Callahan named to the Preseason All-MEAC First Team, Shakiria Foster on the Second Team and Aniya Finger and Aysia Hinton on the Third Team.
Overall, the Eagles were voted to finish fourth overall in the MEAC Preseason Poll.
SERIES HISTORY VS. NC CENTRAL
Dating back to 2007, Carolina owns all eight previous meetings against NC Central. In all wins against the Eagles, Carolina has won by an average of 48.6 points.
Last season against the Eagles, the Tar Heels rattled off 119 points in the 76 point victory. The mark set the record for the most points scored at Carolina in a game under Banghart. Overall, six Tar Heels scored in double-figures.
CAROLINA IN SEASON OPENERS
Dating back to 2018, Carolina has won its last seven season openers. Under Banghart, the Tar Heels have rattled off wins in all six of their opening games.
Overall, Carolina is 44-7 in its opener.
NO PLACE LIKE CARMICHAEL
In the only home in the history of Carolina women's basketball, the Tar Heels have traditionally opened the season on their home court on a high note.
In home opening games, Carolina boasts an overall record of 47-4 and is undefeated in its first home game of the season under Banghart.
NEW LOOK, SAME MISSION
Back for year seven with Courtney Banghart at the helm, the Tar Heels bring back eight returners from last season's Sweet 16 squad.
Despite losing mainstays in Lexi Donarski, Maria Gakdeng and Alyssa Ustby to graduation, Carolina reloaded with the addition of two transfers and four freshmen.
LOOKING BETTER IN CAROLINA BLUE
Elina Aarnisalo spent one season at UCLA and made a run to the Final Four with the Bruins, before making her way to Chapel Hill. An elite distributor, Aarnisalo averaged 3.4 assists per game to rank 15th among all Division I freshman last season.
No stranger to the ACC, Nyla Harris chose to spend her final season in Carolina Blue after three seasons at Louisville.Â
As one of the most efficient shooters in the league the past two years, Harris led the Cardinals from the field as a sophomore and junior. Overall, Harris boasts a 54.2% career field goal percentage.
Regarded as one of the nation's top forwards, Harris also found herself on the Cheryl Miller Award Preseason Top-20 watchlist.
THE FIERCE FRESHMEN
Youth is abundant for the Tar Heels, as Carolina brought in a highly rated freshman class with one international star and three ranked in ESPN's top 100 for the Class of 2025.
Following two years on the professional circuit in Russia, Moscow native, Liza Astakhova is ready to take her European game to the United States. Joining the Tar Heels in August, Astakhova looks to provide depth after appearing in 39 games last year with the Russia-PBL.
The fifth McDonald's All-American recruited by Banghart, Nyla Brooks is poised to make some noise in her debut campaign.Â
Coming out of Bishop Ireton High School, Brooks earned a multitude of honors throughout her prep career. The guard came in as the No. 13 overall prospect in the Class of 2025 by ESPN and picked up honors as the Gatorade Virginia Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
Most recently, Brooks was touted as one of ESPN's Most Impactful Freshman and was named the first Tar Heel to the ACC Preseason All-Freshman team since 2021.
After missing her senior season of high school due to injury, Taliyah Henderson is ready to make her return to the court. A multi-sport athlete, Henderson proved to be a star on the hardwood and the track at Salpointe Catholic High School in Vail, Arizona.
The guard also boasts international experience, representing Canada at the FIBA U18 Women's Americup in 2024. She averaged 9.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, as Canada went on to earn a silver medal at the event.
Graduating early from high school to spend this past spring with Carolina, Taissa Queiroz is prepped to make her debut in Carolina Blue. Spending her high school years at Cardinal Newman in The Bay Area, Queiroz has generated plenty of buzz through representing her home country of Brazil.
This past offseason, Queiroz played with Brazil in two exhibitions against WNBA squads in the Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever. She also joined Brazil at the 2025 GloblJam this past summer in Canada, earning a bronze medal.
A TRUE POINT DAWG
The acclaim for Reniya Kelly continues to grow, just like her game as the guard was named Preseason All-ACC by the league's media and coaches.
All-ACC Second Team as a sophomore, Kelly preps for her junior season after lighting it up in her second year of collegiate action. Posting eye popping numbers in ACC play, Kelly averaged 11.4 points per game to rank second for the Tar Heels.
Proving her prowess from beyond the arc, Kelly knocked down 40 triples at a rate of 41.2%. Her field goal percentage from deep ranks No. 4 in a single-season at Carolina.
With 44 career starts under her belt, Kelly also picked up honors as one of the nation's top point guards, earning a spot on the Nancy Lieberman Award Preseason Top-20 Watch list and to the Naismith Player of the Year Preseason Watch List.
INDY LOCKING IT DOWN
Joining Kelly as Carolina's only returning starters, Indya Nivar is primed to end her collegiate career on a high note.
A defensive force, Nivar paced the Tar Heels last season with 68 steals. Her swipes accounted for the most by a player in a single-season under Courtney Banghart at UNC.Â
Snagging seven steals in Carolina's win at Pitt tied for the most by any ACC player in a single-game during the 2024-25 campaign.
Nivar's productivity distributing the ball also increased, dishing out a personal-season best 68 dimes and dropped a career-best five assists in three games as a junior.
BLANCA'S GOT NEXT
Displaying spurts of preeminence during her freshman season, Blanca Thomas returns for her second season in Chapel Hill.
Appearing in 33 games and making five starts, Thomas posted five or more rebounds in 10 games. Collecting a total of 115 rebounds, it was the most by a freshman in their debut campaign since Alyssa Ustby during the 2020-21 season.
LANIE GRANT ON THE RISE
Playing in all 37 games during her freshman campaign last season, Lanie Grant is poised for a sophomore jump after earning ACC All-Freshman Team accolades.
Scoring double-figures in 11 games, grant posted a career-best 19 points twice. She also led Carolina in scoring in four games, including twice in ACC action.
Grant still remains one of the youngest Tar Heels, skipping her senior season of high school to reclassify and join UNC a year early.
ACC ACCLAIM
In the league's preseason polls, Carolina was selected to finish third by the ACC's coaches and media.
The Tar Heels highest finish in the Banghart era came in 2022, where UNC boasted an 13-5 record to tie for third in the conference.
Last season, Carolina outperformed its expectations from the preseason poll. After being projected to finish 6th, Carolina went 13-5 in league play to tie for 4th.
PRESEASON POLLS
With winning an expectation in Chapel Hill, the sentiment is reiterated nationally with the Tar Heels ranked No. 11 overall in both the AP and the USA Today/Coaches Preseason Polls.
The mark in the AP Poll is the highest start to a season for Carolina since 2009, where UNC began the season ranked No. 4.Â
In the USA Today/Coaches Poll, it matched Carolina's best start in the poll since the 2012-13 season.
MOVIN' ON UPÂ
Following two seasons on staff as a graduate assistant, head coach Courtney Banghart promoted Lexi Weger to assistant coach this summer.
The four-year letterwinner at Princeton continues her coaching career as a member of the Tar Heel staff.
Weger also holds the honor as the youngest assistant coach in the Atlantic Coast Conference in women's basketball.
COACH KMAC
Battling with injuries throughout her playing career since coming to Carolina in 2021, Kayla McPherson made the choice this summer to ultimately retire from basketball.
"Wearing the UNC jersey has been one of the greatest honors of my life. Being part of such an amazing program has truly been a blessing, and I will forever cherish the memories made here. To the fans in Carmichael, thank you for your endless love and energy," said McPherson. "This journey has been filled with challenges, growth, and joy, and I'm grateful for every moment spent playing the sport I love. Though my playing days are coming to a close, I will always be a Tar Heel, and I'm excited to step into a new role for this team and continue giving back to the program that has given me so much."
The McDonald's All-American out of Hull, Ga., will now spend this next season as a student assistant.Â
"Countless surgeries and thousands of hours of rehab and recovery later, it has been a true inspiration to get a front row seat to Kayla's grit, sacrifice, and hope, with her love for the game and her teammates pushing her forward. That said, the time has come where the mortality of Kayla's athletic career will officially be surpassed by the immortality of its spirit," said head coach Courtney Banghart.Â
"It is time to officially shift roles. We have already benefited from Kayla's dedication to the team, as she has always been a valued and vocal teammate and coach on the sidelines during practice, and a leader and cheerleader to her teammates in the game."
CHALLENGES AWAIT
A loaded non-conference schedule awaits, as UNC is set to face off against seven NCAA Tournament squads, including two coming off of Final Four runs.
Heading West to Sin City in mid-November, Carolina takes on two NCAA Tournament squads in preseason No. 3 UCLA and Fairfield in the WBCA Challenge on Nov. 13 and 15th.
The Bruins reached their first Final Four in program history last season, while Fairfield is coming off of its second straight MAAC Championship.
Breaking out the passports, Carolina travels in search of warmth and to the 2025 Cancun Challenge for three games from Nov. 27-29. Taking on three NCAA Tournament teams in three days, the Tar Heels go up against Kansas State, South Dakota State and Columbia from the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya.
Kansas State reached the Sweet 16 in last season's NCAA Tournament, while South Dakota State and Columbia each won a game in the big dance.
The Tar Heels are on the hunt for their third multi-team event title in in the last four seasons.
In the third year of the ACC/SEC Challenge, the Tar Heels hit the road for the first time. Carolina travels to Austin to square off against the Longhorns in the first meeting since the 1981 season in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels are 1-1 overall in the non-conference event.Â
TAR HEELS AND NCAA TOURNAMENT FOES
Prepping for March all throughout November and December, Carolina is set to take on eight NCAA Tournament squads between its exhibition and the regular season during its non-conference slate.
- South Carolina - 2025 Final Four
- UCLA - 2025 Final Four
- Fairfield - 2025 First Round
- UNCG - 2025 First Round
- South Dakota State - 2025 Second Round
- Kansas State - 2025 Sweet 16
- Columbia - 2025 First Round
- Texas - 2025 Final Four
HOME SWEET HOME
The confines of Carmichael Arena have been friendly to the Tar Heels throughout non-conference action, as Carolina has won 28 straight games at home against unranked non-conference teams.
This streak dates back to the 2019 season.
MILESTONE WATCH
• 1,094 program winsÂ
  - Six away from 1,100.
  - Would be 17th program nationally to reach the mark, third in the ACC.
• Reniya Kelly - 95 career assistsÂ
  - Five away from 100.
• Nyla Harris - 797 career points
  - 203 away from 1,000.
• Indya Nivar - 149 career assistsÂ
  - One away from 150.
CARMICHAEL'S FOR THE KIDS
The Tar Heels are prepped to open the regular season with a splash, welcoming over 4,600 local students and teachers to Carmichael Arena for its annual Field Trip Day Game.
Carolina hosts NC Central at 11 a.m. ET on Nov. 3.
UNC Has hosted Field Trip Day for the last three years and this season looks to double this game's attendance from last year.
"One of the initiatives of the university is to continue and engage with the many counties in our state. In terms of service, in terms of educational programming and in all different ways to connect to the counties," said head coach Courtney Banghart. "We've got 75 busses we've got to figure out where to park. That's really good for our state."
WHAT'S NEXT
The Tar Heels remain in Carmichael, welcoming Elon on Thursday, Nov. 6. Carolina hosts the Phoenix led by head coach Charlotte Smith at 7 p.m. ET.
Carolina looks to pick up its 12th straight win against the Phoenix, in the game streaming on ACC Extra.
