# 2024–25 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team

The 2024–25 North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the 2024–25 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Tar Heels are led by sixth-year head coach Courtney Banghart. The Tar Heels play their home games at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, North Carolina as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

## Previous season

The Tar Heels finished the 2023–24 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, they 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.

## Offseason
### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Alexandra Zelaya | 0 | F | 6' 4" | Senior | Goodyear, AZ | Transferred to UNC Wilmington |
| Paulina Paris | 2 | G | 5' 9" | Sophomore | Congers, NY | Transferred to Arizona |
| Teonni Key | 13 | G/F | 6' 4" | Sophomore | Cary, NC | Transferred to Kentucky |
| RyLee Grays | 22 | F | 6' 3" | Freshman | Pearland, TX | Transferred to Virginia |
| Deja Kelly | 25 | G | 5' 8" | Senior | San Antonio, TX | Transferred to Oregon |
| Anya Poole | 31 | F | 6' 2" | Senior | Raleigh, NC | Transferred to Clemson |

### Additions
#### Incoming transfers

Incoming transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Grace Townsend | 2 | G | 5' 5" | Graduate Student | Midlothian, VA | Richmond |
| Trayanna Crisp | 14 | G | 5' 8" | Junior | Goodyear, AZ | Arizona State |

#### Recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Lanie Grant PG | Midlothian, VA | James River | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | N/A | Mar 31, 2024 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 94 ||||||
| Blanca Thomas P | Charlotte, NC | Charlotte Catholic | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | N/A | May 20, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 95 ||||||
| Jordan Zubich G | Mountain Iron, MN | Mountain Iron-Buhl | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | N/A | Feb 12, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 93 ||||||
| 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:

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 4, 2024* 11:00 a.m., ACCNX | No. 15 | Charleston Southern | W 83–53 | 1–0 | 18 – Ustby | 8 – Ustby | 5 – Ustby | Carmichael Arena Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 7, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 15 | UNC Wilmington | W 77–50 | 2–0 | 21 – Donarski | 10 – Thomas | 8 – Townsend | Carmichael Arena (2,445) Chapel Hill, NC |
| November 12, 2024* 7:00 p.m., FloHoops | No. 14 | at North Carolina A&T | W 66–47 | 3–0 | 14 – Hull | 9 – Ustby | 6 – Townsend | Corbett Sports Center (3,593) Greensboro, NC |
| November 15, 2024* 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 14 | vs. No. 2 Connecticut | L 58–69 | 3–1 | 15 – Nivar | 9 – Nivar | 3 – Crisp | Greensboro Coliseum (10,467) Greensboro, NC |
| November 23, 2024* 6:30 p.m., FloHoops | No. 16 | vs. Ball State Battle 4 Atlantis quarterfinals | W 63–52 | 4–1 | 15 – Grant | 11 – Ustby | 3 – tied | Imperial Arena (572) Paradise Island, Bahamas |
| November 24, 2024* 4:00 p.m., FloHoops | No. 16 | vs. Villanova Battle 4 Atlantis semifinals | W 53–36 | 5–1 | 14 – tied | 11 – Ustby | 3 – Nivar | Imperial Arena (385) Paradise Island, Bahamas |
| November 25, 2024* 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 16 | vs. Indiana Battle 4 Atlantis championship | W 69–39 | 6–1 | 15 – tied | 13 – Ustby | 5 – Ustby | Imperial Arena (437) Paradise Island, Bahamas |
| November 29, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 16 | North Carolina Central | W 119–43 | 7–1 | 24 – Ustby | 11 – Gakdeng | 6 – Kelly | Carmichael Arena (2,499) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 5, 2024* 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 16 | No. 14 Kentucky ACC–SEC Challenge | W 72–53 | 8–1 | 18 – Kelly | 9 – Gakdeng | 6 – Kelly | Carmichael Arena (2,816) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 8, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 16 | Coppin State | W 72–46 | 9–1 | 10 – Gakdeng | 6 – tied | 3 – tied | Carmichael Arena (2,415) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 11, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 14 | UNC Greensboro | W 80–56 | 10–1 | 15 – Ustby | 8 – Ustby | 4 – Ustby | Carmichael Arena (2,249) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 15, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 14 | No. 25 Georgia Tech | L 76–82 | 10–2 (0–1) | 21 – Gakdeng | 8 – Ustby | 10 – Ustby | Carmichael Arena (2,381) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 18, 2024* 6:30 p.m., ESPNU | No. 19 | vs. Florida Jumpman Invitational | W 77–57 | 11–2 | 14 – Gakdeng | 8 – Gakdeng | 3 – tied | Spectrum Center Charlotte, NC |
| December 21, 2024* 12:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 19 | Norfolk State | W 90–47 | 12–2 | 15 – Grant | 11 – Ustby | 5 – Townsend | Carmichael Arena (2,211) Chapel Hill, NC |
| December 29, 2024 4:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 17 | at Miami (FL) | W 69–60 | 13–2 (1–1) | 21 – Gakdeng | 13 – Ustby | 5 – Nivar | Watsco Center (3,397) Coral Gables, FL |
| January 5, 2025 1:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 17 | No. 3 Notre Dame | L 66–76 | 13–3 (1–2) | 16 – Gakdeng | 11 – Ustby | 4 – Donarski | Carmichael Arena (4,785) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 9, 2025 7:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 19 | No. 14 Duke Rivalry | W 53–46 $^{OT}$ | 14–3 (2–2) | 10 – Ustby | 12 – Ustby | 4 – Nivar | Carmichael Arena (4,296) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 12, 2025 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 19 | Boston College | W 80–67 | 15–3 (3–2) | 17 – Ustby | 6 – Gakdeng | 4 – Tied | Carmichael Arena (3,478) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 16, 2025 8:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 14 | at SMU | W 64–33 | 16–3 (4–2) | 15 – Donarski | 18 – Ustby | 4 – Ustby | Moody Coliseum (1,195) Dallas, TX |
| January 19, 2025 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 14 | at Pittsburgh | W 75–58 | 17–3 (5–2) | 15 – Donarski | 14 – Gakdeng | 5 – Nivar | Petersen Events Center (800) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 23, 2025 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 13 | Wake Forest | W 76–51 | 18–3 (6–2) | 17 – Donarski | 9 – Ustby | 4 – Kelly | Carmichael Arena (2,463) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 26, 2025 12:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 13 | Florida State | L 84–86 | 18–4 (6–3) | 21 – Gakdeng | 10 – Ustby | 6 – Townsend | Carmichael Arena (4,313) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 30, 2025 10:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 15 | at No. 19 California | W 65–52 | 19–4 (7–3) | 16 – Kelly | 13 – Gakdeng | 2 – Grant | Haas Pavilion (2,866) Berkeley, CA |
| February 2, 2025 3:00 p.m., The CW | No. 15 | at Stanford | W 69–67 | 20–4 (8–3) | 16 – Ustby | 9 – Thomas | 4 – Townsend | Maples Pavilion (4,181) Stanford, CA |
| February 9, 2025 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 13 | at Clemson | W 53–51 | 21–4 (9–3) | 17 – Kelly | 13 – Ustby | 3 – Kelly | Littlejohn Coliseum (2,090) Clemson, SC |
| February 13, 2025 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 12 | Virginia Tech | W 67–62 | 22–4 (10–3) | 20 – Kelly | 16 – Ustby | 3 – Ustby | Carmichael Arena (2,502) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 16, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 12 | No. 10 NC State Rivalry | W 66–65 | 23–4 (11–3) | 23 – Kelly | 8 – Gakdeng | 2 – Townsend | Carmichael Arena (6,319) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 20, 2025 6:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 9 | at Syracuse | W 68–58 | 24–4 (12–3) | 21 – Gakdeng | 14 – Gakdeng | 6 – Kelly | JMA Wireless Dome (3,271) Syracuse, NY |
| February 23, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 9 | at Louisville | W 79–75 | 25–4 (13–3) | 19 – Tied | 11 – Gakdeng | 4 – Kelly | KFC Yum! Center (11,280) Louisville, KY |
| February 27, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 8 | at No. 16 Duke Rivalry | L 53–68 | 25–5 (13–4) | 17 – Grant | 7 – Gakdeng | 4 – Townsend | Cameron Indoor Stadium (7,010) Durham, NC |
| March 2, 2025 2:00 p.m., The CW | No. 8 | Virginia | L 75–78 | 25–6 (13–5) | 25 – Gakdeng | 9 – Tied | 5 – Gakdeng | Carmichael Arena (4,414) Chapel Hill, NC |
| ACC tournament |||||||||
| March 6, 2025* 11:00 a.m., ACCN | (5) No. 14 | vs. (12) Boston College Second Round | W 78–71 | 26–6 | 20 – Donarski | 8 – Gakdeng | 5 – Nivar | Greensboro Coliseum (11,203) Greensboro, NC |
| March 7, 2025* 11:00 a.m., ESPN2 | (5) No. 14 | vs. (4) No. 22 Florida State Quarterfinals | W 60–56 | 27–6 | 12 – Tied | 18 – Ustby | 5 – Ustby | Greensboro Coliseum (16,416) Greensboro, NC |
| March 8, 2025* 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (5) No. 14 | vs. (1) No. 7 NC State Semifinals | L 55–66 | 27–7 | 13 – Nivar | 10 – Gakdeng | 4 – Townsend | Greensboro Coliseum (10,894) Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 22, 2025* 4:30 p.m., ESPNU | (3 B2) No. 12 | (14 B2) Oregon State Round of 64 | | | | | | Carmichael Arena Chapel Hill, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. B2 Source=Birmingham 2. All times are in Eastern. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | 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 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 14 | 12 | 12 | |
| Coaches | 16 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 14 | 14 | 14 | |