Prior to the start of the 2025-26 season, Lady Vols basketball will reportedly face North Carolina in a closed scrimmage.
Mitchell Northam reports that Tar Heels head coach Courtney Banghart revealed this information on Tuesday afternoon. It is unclear where the Tennessee vs. North Carolina closed scrimmage will be played.
This will be the second year in a row that the teams will meet behind closed doors. Last year, it was reported that the Lady Vols won 96-79.
Tennessee currently does not have any other preseason events scheduled. However, it is likely the Lady Vols will match up with local school Carson-Newman, which has been the typical public exhibition opponent.
In the regular season slate, Tennessee will play road games at MTSU, UCLA, Stanford and UConn. Neutral-site games are scheduled against Louisville and NC State.
More From RTI: Former Lady Vols Basketball Star Wins WNBA Game With Buzzer Beater
This past season, North Carolina proved to be one of the premier programs in the ACC. The Tar Heels earned a 3-seed and made a run to the Sweet 16 before being eliminated in the NCAA Tournament. UNC went 29-8 (13-5 ACC) on the season.
Banghart is entering her seventh year atop the program after previously coaching at Princeton. She has reached the Sweet 16 twice, but is still looking to punch her ticket to her first Elite Eight.
Conversely, Kim Caldwell is entering her second season with the Lady Vols. In year one, she pushed Tennessee to the Sweet 16 after knocking off Ohio State on its home floor as a 5-seed.
In regular-season and postseason games, Tennessee is 16-3 all-time against the Tar Heels. The Lady Vols most recently defeated UNC 81-65 in Chapel Hill during the 2013-14 season. UT was led by Ariel Massengale, who dropped 20 points on five made 3-pointers.
Tennessee’s latest loss in the series was in Chapel Hill in December of 2006. North Carolina won that matchup 70-57. It’s been four straight wins since then for UT, though.
The Lady Vols are 7-0 in home games against UNC and 6-2 on the road. Tennessee is also 3-1 in neutral-site matchups. This upcoming closed scrimmage will not count toward these records.
