Previewing Syracuse’s road battle with North Carolina
Syracuse takes on North Carolina Sunday in the Carmichael Arena as Laila Phelia returns to the lineup after an injury. Tara Deluca | Asst. Photo Editor
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Syracuse perhaps faced its harshest challenge Sunday against Stanford and may have earned its best win of the season. Leading scorer Laila Phelia was listed as a game-time decision after sustaining a lower-back injury against Cal but didn’t appear versus the Cardinal, leaving the onus on less prominent players.
Shy Hawkins’ return to the starting lineup featured a career-high 39 minutes, 10 points and four steals, while Journey Thompson dropped six points and added seven rebounds off the bench. Still, it was Dominique Darius, Sophie Burrows and Uche Izoje who spearheaded the Orange’s onslaught, combining for over 70% of SU’s scoring.
The win helped Syracuse receive votes in the AP Poll for the first time this season, and the future only looks brighter with Phelia returning for Sunday’s matchup against North Carolina.
Here’s everything to know about the Tar Heels (16-5, 5-3 Atlantic Coast) before they host the Orange (16-3, 6-2 ACC) Sunday in Carmichael Arena:
All-time series
Syracuse leads 9-8.
Last time they played
In a season that featured so much incompetence, a matchup with No. 9 North Carolina on Feb. 20, 2025, wasn’t supposed to be this close. But it was. Despite losing 68-58, SU held its own against one of the country’s top teams for likely its most encouraging defeat.
As done in 15 of 30 games, Georgia Woolley led Syracuse in scoring. It was her fourth straight game steering the Orange, but it was also their third consecutive loss. Alongside Woolley, Burrows chipped in 12 points. Outside of the two guards, there were few positives.
SU shot sub-40% for the 13th time and 56.3% from the charity stripe. It was outscored in the paint 40-20. If the Tar Heels finished better than their putrid 36.8% from the free-throw line, this loss would’ve been much worse.
The Tar Heels report
Syracuse can’t catch a break from teams accustomed to winning. First, it was Stanford. Now it’s North Carolina. UNC is coming off a 29-8 season, which earned it a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Despite falling to Duke in the Sweet Sixteen, the Tar Heels have fully reloaded.
In head coach Courtney Banghart’s seventh year, North Carolina jumped out to an 8-1 start. Even with the loss of its three leading scorers, UNC sports a deep roster, with four players scoring over 10 points per game and six averaging over 20 minutes a contest.
Leading the pack is sophomore Ciera Toomey. In her second season, the 6-foot-4 forward paces the Tar Heels in points (10.8), rebounds (6.9) and blocks (1.5) and ranks second in field-goal percentage (58%). While her paint presence has been felt, UNC continues to emphasize perimeter scoring.
North Carolina ranks 22nd in the country in 3-pointers made (170) and 33rd in attempts (497) — 31.7% of its scoring has come from beyond the arc, while it’s converting at an uber-efficient 34.2%, the 60th-best mark in Division I, per HerHoopStats.
How Syracuse beats North Carolina
Felisha Legette-Jack said it after the Orange downed Stanford: “It doesn’t matter until it gets somewhere.” Syracuse needs to be nationally noticed. A win over a North Carolina squad that’s been ranked in the AP Poll nine times would do that. However, it’ll only happen if SU pressures UNC on defense. Obvious? Yes. Easy? Not even close.
The Tar Heels’ opponents average just 5.7 steals per game, bottom 15 in the nation. Meanwhile, the Orange snag 11.8 steals a game, the 26th-best mark. Something has to give.
Either Syracuse’s pressure will disrupt UNC’s offense enough, or the Tar Heels again prove why they’re one of the hardest teams in the country to rattle. SU has forced over 12 steals in its last three games but sat below 10 in its four prior.
The Orange should know the formula. If they clamp North Carolina, they’ll walk away with a win.
Stat to know: 6.0
Darius’ recent dominance has slightly shadowed Izoje’s production. This is the game she’ll return to the spotlight. Not from scoring. Or rebounding. Likely from swatting Toomey and Co.’s shots into another dimension.
The Orange average 6.0 blocks per game, putting them in the top 10 in D-I. Nearly half of those (2.9) are Izoje’s. At 6-foot-4, Toomey has the size advantage over the Nigerian center, but not by much. And with Izoje’s athleticism, it won’t be surprising if she wins the frontcourt battle.
Syracuse must capitalize on every extra opportunity it gets — with UNC’s high-flying offense, blocks might just be the way. Though North Carolina’s blocks mark places in the top third in the country, it’s SU’s most substantial upper hand.
Player to know: Ciera Toomey, forward, No. 21
The Tar Heels’ balanced attack features no player averaging over 11 points per game, but Toomey, at 10.8, is by far SU’s biggest threat. The Dunmore, Pennsylvania, native stands taller than any Orange player aside from Oyindamola Okinbolawa (6-foot-5), who’s appeared in just 11 games.
Toomey is coming off a career game in UNC’s 54-46 win over Georgia Tech. She corralled a career-high 15 rebounds and paired it with nine points. After playing just 10 minutes per game last season, Toomey now ranks fourth on UNC with over 24 per contest. She’s broken out this season, and with her size advantage, she could again pose problems for Syracuse.
