2010-11 Preview
Italee Lucas

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By Milton Kent
AOL Fanhouse

More than 300 Division I coaches would have gladly settled for a 19-12 regular season mark that included a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

None of those coaches work at North Carolina, and none of them are named Sylvia Hatchell, for whom last year's mark, which included a 6-8 ACC record, was uncharacteristic.

But the smile has returned to Hatchell's face as she and the Tar Heels turn the page from the worst year in the previous nine in Chapel Hill.

Most of the happiness stems on two fronts from the return of senior Jessica Breland. Not only has the 6-foot-3 forward beaten the Hodgkin's Lymphoma that caused her to miss last season, but Breland comes back seemingly at the peak of her powers, which had her named preseason ACC Player of the Year last year.

Breland, who runs the floor exceptionally well for a frontcourt player, should kick start the North Carolina transition game as well as provide another lanky defender for the vaunted traps Hatchell likes to deploy.

Jessica Breland

Five other North Carolina starters return, including a talented backcourt. Seniors Italee Lucas and Cetera DeGraffenreid both averaged over 14 points and 2.5 assists per game. The guard duo and Breland form the first trio in school history to each have 1,000 career points.

Sophomore Tierra Ruffin-Pratt will join DeGraffenreid and Lucas on the perimeter, while junior Clay Shegog will start upfront with Breland. Junior Laura Broomfield, who got most of the starts last year for Breland, will come off the bench to help bolster the frontcourt.

Freshman guards Latifah Coleman and Shannon Smith should assist junior She'la White and senior Nicole Powell in backing up Lucas and DeGraffenreid at the guard slots, giving North Carolina remarkable depth in the backcourt.

In addition to welcoming back Breland, the Tar Heels will move back into a renovated Carmichael Arena, with a brand-new video scoreboard, refurbished lockerrooms and a women's basketball museum. If things go well, they may need space for another championship banner in the rafters.
Head Coach Sylvia Hatchell
Sylvia Hatchell enters her 25th season at the helm for North Carolina, and has guided the Tar Heels to 13 ACC Tournament finals in the past 17 seasons and a league-leading eight ACC titles ... In the past 19 seasons, North Carolina has received 17 bids to the NCAA Tournament, including 2010 when Hatchell led the Heels to their 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance ... Hatchell directed Carolina to its fourth consecutive 30-win season and a flawless 14-0 ACC showing in 2008, and guided the team to a 28-7 overall mark in 2009 ... North Carolina finished the 2010 campaign with a 19-12 overall record … The Tar Heels have recorded 20 or more wins 16 times over the past 18 seasons ... Hatchell guided Carolina to ACC Tournament titles in 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 ... Hatchell, who was inducted into the North Carolina Hall of Fame in 2009, became just the fifth Division I women's basketball coach to reach 700-career wins, a feat that came on Jan. 15, 2006 versus NC State, and reached her 800-career win on Jan. 11, 2009 versus NC State, a feat that only four head coaches in Division I history have accomplished ... In addition, Hatchell is the third-winningest active coach in the nation and has been named national coach of the year three times and has led teams to at least 20 wins 26 times, fifth-most nationally ... In 1994, Hatchell guided the Tar Heels to 33 wins and the NCAA Division I title, the first NCAA title won by an ACC school ... Hatchell was named USA Today's National Coach of the Year in 1994 and ACC Coach of the Year in 1997 ... Hatchell was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame on June 12, 2004 ... Prior to coming to Chapel Hill, she coached 11 seasons at Francis Marion, where she led the 1986 team to a 36-2 record and the NAIA national championship ... Her 1982 team won the AIAW national championship in the small college division ... Hatchell has accumulated six gold medals and one silver in international competition as either a head or an assistant coach for U.S. women's teams ... Hatchell graduated cum laude from Carson-Newman, where she played basketball and volleyball ... She was named Carson-Newman Alumnus of the Year in 1994 and inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 1999.