Tar Heels to face Duke, NC State on national TV

Peter Koutroumpis, Triangle Sports Network
Peter Koutroumpis, Triangle Sports Network

North Carolina women’s hoops schedule announced

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The North Carolina Tar Heels women’s basketball team will open its 2013-14 season at home on Fri., Nov. 8 against Air Force Falcons.

The Tar Heels will play 16 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) contests, including two games each against long-standing Triangle-area rivals Duke and NC State, with both games against the Blue Devils slated for national broadcasts.

The first matchup against the Blue Devils takes place in Durham as part of ESPN2’s BIG MONDAY telecast on Feb. 10, while the Tar Heels will close the regular season at home against their Tobacco Road rival on Mar. 2 on ESPN.

The Wolfpack will travel to Chapel Hill on Jan. 9 with UNC making its trip to Raleigh on Feb. 16 for an ESPN2 broadcast as part of the Play 4 Kay week.

The non-conference portion of the Tar Heels schedule features home dates against the Tennessee Volunteers (Nov. 11) and Nebraska Cornhuskers (Dec. 5), a road game against the UCLA Bruins and neutral site games with the South Carolina Gamecocks in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and the Arizona State Wildcats and Illinois Fighting Illini in Cancun, Mexico.

Naismith Hall of Fame head coach Sylvia Hatchell has put together a competitive schedule that features 10 teams that competed in the 2013 NCAA Tournament, five of which advanced to the Sweet 16, and includes new ACC member, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who made it to the Final Four in New Orleans.

The Tar Heels will face the Fighting Irish on Feb. 27 in South Bend, Ind., and host the ACC’s other new league members – the Pittsburgh Panthers and Syracuse Orange – at Carmichael Arena on Jan. 30 and Feb. 13 respectively.

North Carolina’s other non-league home games will include hosting Coast Carolina, Coppin State, Charleston Southern and High Point before opening ACC league play on Sun., Jan. 5 at home against Maryland on ESPNU.

In conference play, the Tar Heels will host ACC opponents Clemson, Syracuse, Miami, Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech, while visiting league members Florida State, Boston College, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Virginia and Notre Dame.

Carson Newman and Wingate will come to Chapel Hill for exhibition games on Oct. 30 and Nov. 5, respectively.