At the risk of alienating the greatest player to wear a Tar Heel uniform, I think this team may be a product of addition by subtraction. Ivory Latta was a great player, but she dominated the offense. Everything had to go through her. That was great when it was working, and against an opponent that couldn't stop her. But the Tar Heels lost to Tennesee last year when Latta went 4-13. When teams took a lead and stopped the Tar Heels from running, Carolina fell into shooting 3s to try to get back in games. They stopped running their offense. Erlana Larkins had but four(!) field goal attempts in last year's national semifinal. They quit going to the well, and they lost. This year's team has much more chemistry than 2006-07, and I think they'll be better for it.
MVP to this point: Has to be Rashanda McCants. Rashanda has finally found her place in the Tar Heel offense. Maybe she was hesitant in her first two years. Maybe she didn't have to take the shots she's taking now. But she's shooting 48 percent from the field, scoring 16.5 ppg, and playing less than 25 minutes a game. Rashanda is not afraid to take the game in her hands.
Disappointment: Losing Alex Miller hurt. A lot. Granted, she wasn't the most efficient offensive player, but Alex was supposed to be the stop-gap between Latta and this year's crop of freshmen. Her season-ending knee injury made the learning curve that much sharper for CeTera DeGraffenreid, Italee Lucas and Rebecca Gray. And that leads into . . .
Pleasant Surprise: The play of those very same freshmen. Though Lucas was touted as Latta's heir apparent, she struggled with those expectations early. Her adjustment to the college game took a few games, but she's getting it, controlling herself and starting to play solidly. Lucas got her first start on Sunday, and rewarded Sylvia Hatchell with 10 points, 4 assists and 4 rebounds.
DeGraffenreid emerged and started six games after Miller went down. She is incredibly aggressive and knows how to take the ball to the basket. She wasn't finishing as much as she should in her first few games, but she's maintaining her focus and getting lots of plus-one opportunities. CeTera is second behind McCants with 12.5 ppg.
Gray is Carolina's deadliest threat from the outside, and when she's open, she's hitting her shots. She too can handle the ball when needed.
One of my favorite lineups has been the three freshmen on the perimeter, with Jess Breland inside with McCants or Larkins. Just a sophomore herself, Breland is a lot of fun to watch. She can handle the ball, and she's loooong.
Outlook: The Tar Heels have to be considered a top-two team in conference (with Maryland), and should challenge for a deep NCAA tournament run. The loss to Tennessee was disappointing, sure, but it was encouraging with what we saw. The Heels won the game in every category except at the free throw line. A tweak here or there and the Tar Heels are sitting at #1. Carolina and Tennessee might just meet again this spring.
Check back later for a look at the men's team.
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