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

The 2023–24 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Tar Heels were led by head coach Courtney Banghart, in her fifth season in Chapel Hill. She was assisted by Joanne Aluka-White, Adrian Walters, and Itoro Coleman. The Tar Heels played their home games at Carmichael Arena, as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Tar Heels started the season ranked sixteenth in the nation and won their first five straight games. However, they then lost four of their next five games, including two at their early season tournament, the Gulf Coast Showcase, and their ACC–SEC Challenge matchup. Three of these four losses were to ranked teams, including number 16 Kansas State, number 1 South Carolina and number 17 Connecticut. They finished the non-conference season with two straight wins and a 8–4 record. The Tar Heels won their first three ACC regular season games, including wins over number 25 Syracuse and at number 16 Notre Dame. They dropped a game to number 21 Florida State before winning their next four straight games. Their four game winning streak included a win over number 13 Louisville. The Tar Heels lost their next four straight games and fell out of the national rankings. They lost two of their final six games of the season, including to number 8 Virginia Tech. A highlight of the wins was a rivalry win over number 6 NC State.
The Tar Heels finished the season 20–13 overall and 11–7 in ACC play to finish in a tie for seventh place. As the eighth seed in the ACC tournament,lost to ninth seed Miami in the Second Round. They received an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament, marking the fourth straight time the Tar Heels qualified for the tournament. As the eighth seed in the Albany 1 region, they defeated ninth seed Michigan State in the First Round before losing at first seed South Carolina in the Second Round to end their season.

## 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. 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.
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.

## 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. Adams later committed to Rutgers, returning to her home state of New Jersey.
A day after Adams, multi-year starter Kennedy Todd-Williams also entered the transfer portal, to the surprise of many in Chapel Hill. She committed to Ole Miss shortly thereafter.
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, 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.
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.
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. She had spent her first year of college basketball at Stanford.

### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for Departure |
| Destiny Adams | 20 | G/F | 6'3" | Sophomore | Manchester, NJ | Transferred to Rutgers |
| Eva Hodgson | 10 | G | 5'10" | RS Senior | Rindge, NH | Exhausted Eligibility |
| Kennedy Todd-Williams | 3 | G | 6'0" | Junior | Jacksonville, NC | Transferred to Ole Miss |
| Malu Tshitenge | 21 | F | 6'3" | Senior | Germantown, MD | Graduated |
| Ariel Young | 11 | G | 6'1" | RS Senior | Tallahassee, FL | Medical Retirement |

### Additions
#### Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Lexi Donarski | 20 | G | 6'0" | Senior | La Crosse, WI | Iowa State |
| Maria Gakdeng | 5 | F/C | 6'3" | Junior | Lanham, MD | Boston College |
| Indya Nivar | 24 | G | 5'10" | Sophomore | Apex, NC | Stanford |

#### Recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| 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 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 97 ||||||
| Reniya Kelly PG | Hoover, AL | Hoover | 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) | N/A | Nov 20, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 95 ||||||
| Rylee Grays P | Houston, TX | Pearland | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | N/A | Jun 20, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 92 ||||||
| Laila Hull F | Zionsville, IN | Zionsville Community | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | N/A | Oct 25, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 91 ||||||
| Sydney Barker† G | Durham, NC | Jordan | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | N/A | |
| Star ratings: 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:
† Denotes Walk-On

## Schedule

Source
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-Conference Regular Season ||||||
| November 8, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 16 | Gardner–Webb | W 102–49 | 1–0 | Carmichael Arena (2,212) Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 12, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 16 | Davidson | W 74–70 | 2–0 | Carmichael Arena (2,336) Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 15, 2023* 11:00 a.m., ACCNX | No. 17 | Hampton | W 62–32 | 3–0 | Carmichael Arena (3,144) Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 18, 2023* 3:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 17 | Elon | W 68–39 | 4–0 | Carmichael Arena (2,566) Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 24, 2023* 1:30 p.m., FloHoops | No. 18 | vs. Vermont Gulf Coast Showcase first round | W 54–51 | 5–0 | Hertz Arena (327) Estero, FL |
| November 25, 2023* 5:00 p.m., FloHoops | No. 18 | vs. No. 16 Kansas State Gulf Coast Showcase semifinals | L 56–63 | 5–1 | Hertz Arena (2,207) Estero, FL |
| November 26, 2023* 5:00 p.m., FloHoops | No. 18 | vs. Florida Gulf Coast Gulf Coast Showcase 3rd place game | L 64–65 | 5–2 | Hertz Arena (2,120) Estero, FL |
| November 30, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 24 | No. 1 South Carolina ACC–SEC Challenge | L 58–65 | 5–3 | Carmichael Arena (6,319) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 24 | UNC Greensboro | W 81–66 | 6–3 | Carmichael Arena (2,066) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 10, 2023* 5:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 24 | vs. No. 17 Connecticut Hall of Fame Women's Showcase | L 64–76 | 6–4 | Mohegan Sun Arena (8,428) Uncasville, CT |
| December 15, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 25 | Western Carolina | W 96–36 | 7–4 | Carmichael Arena (2,643) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 19, 2023* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 24 | vs. Oklahoma Jumpman Invitational | W 61–52 | 8–4 | Spectrum Center (7,027) Charlotte, NC |
| ACC Regular Season ||||||
| December 31, 2023 12:00 p.m., The CW | No. 24 | Clemson | W 82–76 | 9–4 (1–0) | Carmichael Arena (3,820) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 4, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCNX | | No. 25 Syracuse | W 75–51 | 10–4 (2–0) | Carmichael Arena (2,006) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 7, 2024 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 16 Notre Dame | W 61–57 | 11–4 (3–0) | Purcell Pavilion (6,418) Notre Dame, IN |
| January 11, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 20 | at No. 21 Florida State | L 62–70 | 11–5 (3–1) | Donald L. Tucker Center (1,946) Tallahassee, FL |
| January 14, 2024 4:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 20 | Virginia | W 81–68 | 12–5 (4–1) | Carmichael Arena (4,579) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 18, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 23 | at Georgia Tech | W 73–68 | 13–5 (5–1) | McCamish Pavilion (1,605) Atlanta, GA |
| January 21, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 23 | No. 13 Louisville | W 79–68 | 14–5 (6–1) | Carmichael Arena (6,073) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 25, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 20 | Miami (FL) | W 66–61 | 15–5 (7–1) | Carmichael Arena (2,530) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 28, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW | No. 20 | at Virginia | L 66–81 | 15–6 (7–2) | John Paul Jones Arena (5,690) Charlottesville, VA |
| February 1, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 24 | at No. 5 NC State Rivalry | L 59–63 | 15–7 (7–3) | Reynolds Coliseum (5,500) Raleigh, NC |
| February 4, 2024 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 24 | No. 17 Virginia Tech | L 61–70 $^{OT}$ | 15–8 (7–4) | Carmichael Arena (5,618) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 11, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Duke | L 60–68 $^{OT}$ | 15–9 (7–5) | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| February 15, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCNX | | Pittsburgh | W 75–62 | 16–9 (8–5) | Carmichael Arena (2,508) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 18, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCN | | at Wake Forest | W 58–50 | 17–9 (9–5) | LJVM Coliseum (1,943) Winston-Salem, NC |
| February 22, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN | | No. 6 NC State Rivalry | W 80–70 | 18–9 (10–5) | Carmichael Arena (4,131) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 25, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | | at No. 8 Virginia Tech | L 62–74 | 18–10 (10–6) | Cassell Coliseum (8,925) Blacksburg, VA |
| February 29, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | | at Boston College | L 74–78 | 18–11 (10–7) | Conte Forum (1,621) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| March 3, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN | | Duke | W 63–59 | 19–11 (11–7) | Carmichael Arena (6,319) Chapel Hill, NC |
| ACC Tournament ||||||
| March 7, 2024 1:30 p.m., ACCN | (8) | vs. (9) Miami Second Round | L 59–60 | 19–12 | Greensboro Coliseum (10,823) Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| March 22, 2024* 11:30 a.m., ESPN2 | (8 A1) | vs. (9 A1) Michigan State First round | W 59–56 | 20–12 | Colonial Life Arena (11,536) Columbia, SC |
| March 24, 2024* 1:00 p.m., ABC | (8 A1) | at (1 A1) No. 1 South Carolina Second round | L 41–88 | 20–13 | Colonial Life Arena (14,266) Columbia, SC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. A1=Albany 1. All times are in Eastern. ||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | 16 | 17 | 18 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 24 | RV | 20 | 23 | 20 | 24 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | — | — | RV |
| Coaches | 17 | 16 | 17 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 25 | RV | RV | 22 | 24 | 21 | 24 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | RV |