March Madness 2025: UNC women's basketball vs. Duke Blue Devils Sweet 16 Preview
March Madness 2025: UNC women's basketball vs. Duke Blue Devils Sweet 16 Preview Here's everything you need to know for the UNC-Duke women's basketball Sweet 16 NCAA Tournament matchup Friday.
The North Carolina Tar Heels and Duke Blue Devils just can't seem to avoid each other in the postseason, no matter which sport both archrivals are playing.
On Friday, March 28 at 2:30 p.m. ET, the UNC and Duke women's basketball teams will face off in the Sweet 16 from Birmingham, Alabama's Legacy Arena.
If the Tar Heels (29-7, 13-5 ACC) and Blue Devils' (28-7, 14-4 ACC) two regular-season matchups are any indication of how Friday's decisive NCAA Tournament rematch will play out, we're in for a tremendous battle.
North Carolina needed overtime to down Duke, 53-46, on January 9 from Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill. UNC kept February's rematch close, leading by a point at halftime, then the Blue Devils charged ahead in the second half for a 68-53 victory.
The Tar Heels were fully healthy during Round 1, led by a 10-point, 12-rebound performance from star forward Alyssa Ustby. Round Two was a different story, with Ustby and guard Reniya Kelly both injured. Duke took full advantage of this: Reigan Richardson scored 23 points, Toby Fournier added a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double off the bench and Ashlon Jackson recored 11 points.
Both teams are fully healthy, which should create for plenty of exciting action. There's plenty on the line in Friday's rivalry matchup besides bragging rights: North Carolina is hunting for its first Elite Eight appearance since 2014, while the Blue Devils are looking for their first Elite Eight appearance since 2013.
If you're going to Birmingham or already there, enjoy your time and cheer the Tar Heels to victory. If you're watching on TV, your favorite streaming device or listening on the radio, keep reading below for broadcast information.
Key to victory for UNC
During its Round of 32 matchup, UNC pulled away from West Virginia thanks to a big third quarter from Ustby, who finished the win with 21 points. Kelly and Lexi Donarski each added 11 points, giving North Carolina a well-rounded scoring attack.
The Tar Heels didn't shoot the ball well from deep, though, making just three of their 15 attempts. Donarksi was an ice-cold 1-of-7 from deep, Kelly drained just one of her three attempts, while Lanie Grant nailed one 3-pointer off the bench.
I have no doubt Duke will try and double-team Ustby and Maria Gakdeng, UNC's 6'3" center. When this happens, North Carolina will need to make shots from the perimeter.
If the Tar Heels can shoot a serviceable percentage from deep, they'll be advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in over a decade.
Something to Watch
North Carolina was the ACC's worst free throw-shooting team during the regular season, recording a paltry 67 percent mark from the line. UNC wasn't much better against West Virginia, making just 15-of-22 attempts (68.2%).
If the Tar Heels are aggressive and keep feeding the ball to their Ustby-Gakdeng duo, they'll go to the charity stripe a bunch. I'd keep my eye on how efficient North Carolina is from the free throw line on Friday, which could very well be a deciding factor between a win and loss.
What you need to know
What: North Carolina Tar Heels (29-7, 13-5 ACC) vs. Duke Blue Devils (28-7, 14-4 ACC)
When: Friday, March 28 at 2:30 p.m. ET
Where: Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Ala.
TV: ESPN
Radio: SiriusXM (Channel 203)
All-Time Series: UNC leads, 56-54
Last meeting: Duke 68, UNC 53 on February 27 in Cameron Indoor Stadium
Statistical Leaders
North Carolina Points: Maria Gakdeng, C, 11.1 points per game
North Carolina Rebounds: Alyssa Ustby, F, 9.4 rebounds per game
North Carolina Assists: Alyssa Ustby, F, 2.9 assists per game
Duke Points: Toby Fournier, F, 13.4 points per game
Duke Rebounds: Jadyn Donovan, G, 6.5 rebounds per game
Duke Assists: Taina Mair, G, 3.8 assists per game
2024-2025 UNC basketball schedule
Nov. 4: vs. Charleston Southern (W, 83-53) (1-0)
Nov. 7: vs. UNC-Wilmington (W, 77-50) (2-0)
Nov. 12: at North Carolina A&T (W, 66-47) (3-0)
Nov. 15: vs. UConn in Greensboro, NC (L, 69-58) (3-1)
Nov. 23: vs. Ball State in Battle 4 Atlantis (W, 63-52) (4-1)
Nov. 24: vs. Villanova in Battle 4 Atlantis (W, 53-36) (5-1)
Nov. 25: vs. Indiana in Battle 4 Atlantis Championship Game (W, 69-39) (6-1)
Nov. 29: vs North Carolina Central (W, 119-42) (7-1)
Dec. 5: vs. Kentucky in ACC-SEC Challenge (W, 72-53) (8-1)
Dec. 8: vs. Coppin State (W, 72-46) (9-1)
Dec. 11: vs. UNC-Greensboro (W, 80-56) (10-1)
Dec. 15: vs. Georgia Tech (L, 82-76) (10-2, 0-1 ACC)
Dec. 18: vs. Florida in Jumpman Invitational (W, 77-57) (11-2, 0-1)
Dec. 21: vs. Norfolk State (W, 90-47) (12-2, 0-1)
Dec. 29: at Miami (FL) (W, 69-60) (13-2, 1-1)
Jan. 5: vs. Notre Dame (L, 76-66) (13-3, 1-2)
Jan. 9: vs. Duke (W, 53-46) (14-3, 2-2)
Jan. 12: vs. Boston College (W, 80-67) (15-3, 3-2)
Jan. 16: at SMU (W, 64-33) (16-3, 4-2)
Jan. 19: at Pitt (W, 75-58) (17-3, 5-2)
Jan. 23: vs. Wake Forest (W, 76-51) (18-3, 6-2)
Jan. 26: vs. Florida State (L, 86-84) (18-4, 6-3)
Jan. 30: at California (W, 65-52) (19-4, 7-3)
Feb. 2: at Stanford (W, 69-67) (20-4, 8-3)
Feb. 9: at Clemson (W, 53-51) (21-4, 9-3)
Feb. 13: vs. Virginia Tech (W, 67-62) (22-4, 10-3)
Feb. 16: vs. NC State (W, 66-65) (23-4, 11-3)
Feb. 20: at Syracuse (W, 68-58) (24-4, 12-3)
Feb. 23: at Louisville (W, 79-75) (25-4, 13-3)
Feb. 27: at Duke (L, 68-53) (25-5, 13-4)
March 2: vs. Virginia (L, 78-75) (25-6, 13-5)
March 6: vs. Boston College in ACC Tournament (W, 78-71) (26-6, 13-5)
March 7: vs. Florida State in ACC Tournament (W, 60-56) (27-6, 13-5)
March 8: vs. NC State in ACC Tournament Semifinals (L, 66-55) (27-7, 13-5)
March 22: vs. Oregon State in NCAA Tournament Round of 64 (W, 70-49) (28-7, 13-5)
March 24: vs. West Virginia in NCAA Tournament Round of 32 (W, 58-47) (29-7, 13-5)
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Short hops: Wildcats are back in Omaha for first time since going 0-2 in the 2021 CWS under current LSU coach Jay Johnson. Dawson Netz, who made relief appearances in both games, is a graduate manager. ... Hale played on Arizona's 1986 championship team. ... White's 48 career homers rank second in program history. The Tucson native has hit 35 of them at road or neutral sites. ... Wildcats' 36 triples lead nation. ... Pluta's 14 saves are a school record. Quotable: 'We're going to go there, put our best foot forward and try to win our fifth national championship.' — Hale. ___ Louisville (40-22) Coach: Dan McDonnell (791-357-1 in 19 years at Louisville and overall). Road to Omaha: Won Nashville Regional: beat East Tennessee State 8-3, beat Vanderbilt 3-2, beat Wright State 6-0. Won Louisville Super Regional: beat Miami 8-1, lost 9-6 to Miami, beat Miami 3-2. 2025 record vs. CWS teams: 1-0. Last CWS appearance: 2019. All-time record in CWS: 4-10 in 5 appearances. 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Their .372 batting average in the NCAA Tournament ranks first. ... UCLA more than doubled its win total from 2024, when it went 19-33. ... Cholowsky is Big Ten player of the year and defensive player of the year. ... Cholowsky's 23 home runs are the most by a Bruins player since Forrest Johnson in 2000. ... Bruins lead the nation with 63 double plays. Quotable: 'We're the only team that has gotten to play there. We have played in front of a big crowd there, too, which is useful. Just using that is going to help us.' — Cholowsky, on playing in the Big Ten Tournament at Charles Schwab Field last month. LSU (48-15) Coach: Jay Johnson (185-77 in 4 seasons at LSU; 502-249 in 13 seasons overall). Road to Omaha: Won Baton Rouge Regional: beat Little Rock 7-0, beat Dallas Baptist 12-0, lost to Little Rock 10-4, beat Little Rock 10-6. Won Baton Rouge Super Regional: beat West Virginia 16-9, beat West Virginia 12-5. 2025 record vs. CWS teams: 2-1. Last CWS appearance: 2023. All-time record in CWS: 46-29 in 19 appearances (won national titles in 1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2009, 2023). Meet the Tigers: C Luis Hernandez (.272, 9 HRs, 30 RBIs), 1B Jared Jones (.328, 20, 70), 2B Daniel Dickinson (.312, 12, 48), SS Steven Milam (.290, 11, 55), 3B Michael Braswell III (.201, 2, 17) or Tanner Reaves (.266, 3, 12), LF Derek Curiel (.347, 7, 52), CF Chris Stanfield (.309, 1, 28), RF Josh Pearson (.297, 7, 32) or Jake Brown (.315, 8, 44), DH Ethan Frey (.340, 13, 49). Starting pitchers: LHP Kade Anderson (10-1, 3.58 ERA), RHP Anthony Eyanson (11-2, 2.74), RHP Jaden Noot (2-1, 4.26). Relievers: LHP DJ Primeaux (0-0, 3.86), RHP William Schmidt (7-0, 4.73), RHP Maverick Ritzy (0-0, 4.74), LHP Cooper Williams (0-1, 1.83), RHP Chase Shores (5-3, 5.24), RHP Casan Evans (4-1, 1.90), RHP Zac Cowan (3-3, 3.09), LHP Conner Ware (4-1, 5.48). MLB alumni: Joe Adcock, DJ LeMahieu, Aaron Hill, Albert Belle, Todd Walker, Ben McDonald, Alex Bregman, Brad Hawpe, Ryan Theriot, Russ Springer, Kevin Gausman, Jason Vargas, Warren Morris, Austin Nola, Paul Byrd, Aaron Nola, Mark Guthrie. Short hops: Tigers went 2-1 this season against Arkansas, their opening opponent. ... Tigers have second-highest all-time NCAA Tournament winning percentage (.708, 182-75). ... Anderson's 163 strikeouts are most among CWS pitchers and rank second nationally. Eyanson's 135 Ks rank third. ... Pitching staff is in top 10 nationally in ERA (3.80), hits allowed per nine innings (7.34) and strikeouts per nine innings (11.9). Quotable: 'Everyone just plays for each other. We know we're a team and if we don't get the job done, the guys behind us or the guy in front of us is going to protect us and get it done for us. Everyone genuinely cares about each other." — Eyanson. ___ Arkansas (48-13) Coach: Dave Van Horn (931-470 in 23 seasons at Arkansas; 1,516-710 in 38 seasons overall). Road to Omaha: Won Fayetteville Regional: beat North Dakota State 62, beat Creighton 12-1, beat Creighton 8-3. Won Fayetteville Super Regional: beat Tennessee 4-3, beat Tennessee 11-4. 2025 record vs. CWS teams: 1-2. Last CWS appearance: 2022. All-time record in CWS: 18-22 in 11 appearances. Meet the Razorbacks: C Ryder Helfrick (.320, 14 HRs, 36 RBIs), 1B Reese Robinett (.276, 2, 12), 2B Cam Kozeal (.346, 15, 62), SS Wehiwa Aloy (.348, 20, 64), 3B Brent Iredale (.289, 14, 56), LF Charles Davalan (.355, 14, 59), CF Justin Thomas Jr. (.278, 9, 35), RF Logan Maxwell (.360, 13, 35), DH Kuhio Aloy (.330, 13, 70). Starting pitchers: LHP Zach Root (8-5, 3.59 ERA), RHP Aiden Jimenez (4-1, 3.66), RHP Gage Wood (3-1, 5.02). Relievers: RHP Ben Bybee (3-0, 4.38), RHP Steele Eaves (1-0, 1.86), LHP Colin Fisher (3-0, 4.62), RHP Gabe Gaeckle (4-2, 4.76), LHP Parker Coil (3-0, 1.27), LHP Landon Beidelschies (4-0, 4.92), RHP Will McEntire (1-0, 2.59), RHP Dylan Carter (6-0, 2.18). MLB alumni: Kevin McReynolds, Eric Hinske, Jeff King, Andrew Benintendi, Les Lancaster, Tom Pagnozzi, Ryne Stanek, Blake Parker, Drew Smyly, Cliff Lee, Dallas Keuchel, Colin Poche, Jalen Beeks, Robert Person, Tim Lollar. Short hops: No. 3 Razorbacks are the highest remaining national seed. ... Wehiwa Aloy is the SEC player of the year. His first name means 'prized one' in Hawaiian. He leads the team with 20 homers and is among seven Arkansas players with double-digit homers. ... Hogs' 123 homers are program record and fifth in the country. ... Arkansas has had at least one player selected in each of the past 50 MLB drafts dating back to 1975.
