Trailing No. 5 Iowa State by 17 points in the second quarter, the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels looked like they would finish the Phil Knight Invitational as runners-up.

Cyclones center Stephanie Soares was dominating the paint with 13 points, and the Tar Heels had made just seven field goals. Just three North Carolina players registered a point in the first half as the team shot 21.2% from the field.

In short, it was a disastrous half for the Tar Heels.

But when the game was over, those opening two quarters seemed like a distant memory. 

UNC completed a massive comeback, led by Deja Kelly, who scored 22 of her 29 points in the second half, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out four assists for her best game of the season. It was UNC’s second top-25 win in four days, coming after a victory against No. 18 Oregon on Thursday.

#ACCWBB Player of the Week 🔥

🏀 Deja Kelly, @uncwbb

📰: https://t.co/3ZyJoHYuZm pic.twitter.com/yrucliUxGO

— ACC Women's Basketball (@accwbb) November 28, 2022

Expectations were high for the Tar Heels heading into the season after they reached the Sweet 16 in 2021-22 for the first time since 2015 and hung with eventual national champion South Carolina in a 69-61 loss. So far, they’re living up to the hype.

Yet their last three victories – over James Madison, Oregon and Iowa State – have all been come-from-behind wins. UNC has the grit to win in difficult situations, but do the Tar Heels have staying power?

The team, which has moved up to No. 6 in the latest AP Top 25, is 6-0, with no stumbles against lower or unranked teams and now a statement win over Iowa State.

The next few weeks will provide further opportunity for the Tar Heels to prove themselves, as they play No. 6 Indiana on Thursday and No. 22 Michigan on Dec. 20 before heading into ACC play and taking on No. 11 Virginia Tech on Jan. 1.

So far, the Tar Heels seem like the real deal. Kelly and Alyssa Ustby turned heads last season as an elite scoring duo, but the win over Oregon proved they aren’t the team’s only weapons. UNC’s starting five all finished in double-figures, with Eva Hodgson leading the way.

𝘒𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 ☑️
𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵 ☑️#GoHeels x @dejakelly25 x @coachbanghart pic.twitter.com/1EKEAeLXD3

— Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) November 28, 2022

The transfer from William and Mary provides UNC with a reliable outside threat, making 45.5% of her attempts from long range. Hodgson came off the bench as a junior, but she’s embracing the starting role, and her point production has gone up from 9.1 ppg to 15.8. She’s also averaging 3.8 assists.

Hodgson’s offensive growth has made a difference for the Tar Heels, as Kelly and Ustby aren’t as reliable from long range as they are from inside the arc. Kennedy Todd-Williams has also provided a lift, shooting 38.5% from 3-point range. 

The long-distance shooters brings balance to the Tar Heel offense, while Kelly thrives off the bounce and Ustby posts up smaller guards and executes from the high-post. 

Defensively, the big question for the Tar Heels heading into the game with Iowa State was how they would defend 6-6 forward Soares. She has a significant height advantage over Tar Heel starting forward Anya Poole (6-2), and the tallest player UNC brings off the bench is 6-4 redshirt freshman Teonni Key, who plays just 10.3 minutes per game. 

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But UNC handled Iowa State by limiting the rest of the Cyclones. Soares finished with 19 points, and Ashley Joens had 18, but the rest of the squad was held to single-digits. North Carolina was also aggressive in its defensive attack, forcing 17 turnovers. 

Teams with multiple post threats or more productive guards are the next challenge for the Tar Heels. Thursday’s matchup with Indiana could be telling, as the Hoosiers have the second-most efficient big in the country in Mackenzie Holmes, who is shooting 76.6% and averaging 20 points per game. 

The Hoosiers will likely be missing Grace Berger (10.3 points per game) who was injured against Auburn on Friday – no update has been provided yet – but they have several other scoring weapons. Sara Scalia, Yarden Garzon and Sydney Parrish all score at least 10 points per game, and Chloe Moore-McNeil sits at 9.7 per game.

If UNC can top Indiana, then it will get that much closer to cementing its status as one of college basketball’s top teams. A difficult ACC slate will also allow the Tar Heels to showcase their talents and answer any lingering questions about their potential to make a deep run in March.

The grass court chaos of Wimbledon didn't disappoint this week, as the unpredictable surface claimed more than one surprise victim in the 2025 Grand Slam's first round.

A full 10 of the London tournament's 32 seeded players fell in the competition's first round, including four of the WTA's Top 10: World No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 6 Qinwen Zheng, and No. 9 Paula Badosa.

"I should just play no tournaments, get no wins, then roll into Wimbledon, and maybe I'll have better results," US star Pegula joked after her two-set Tuesday loss to Italy's No. 116 Elisabetta Cocciaretto, referencing her recent wins.

Gauff's short Wimbledon outing also represented a new challenge for the 21-year-old standout, as the top-ranked US tennis player struggled to bounce back after winning the 2025 French Open last month.

"I feel like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards," Gauff told ESPN. "So I didn’t feel like I had enough time to celebrate and also get back into it."

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The upsets continued as Wimbledon entered its second round on Wednesday morning, claiming several more seeded players like world No. 5 Jasmine Paolini and No. 15 Diana Shnaider, though both No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and unseeded fan favorite Naomi Osaka cruised into the Slam's third round on two-set wins.

No. 8 Madison Keys now leads the US contingent, with fellow US contender No. 12 Amanda Anisimova joining the 2025 Australian Open champion in snagging their own two-set, second-round victories on Wednesday.

How to watch the 2025 Wimbledon Championships

Second-round play at the 2025 Wimbledon women's singles tournament continues on Thursday, as seven US players — including No. 10 Emma Navarro and No. 28 Sofia Kenin — look to advance to the competition's third round.

Live continuous coverage of the London Grand Slam airs on ESPN.

The world No. 1 USWNT will close out their summer international break against a familiar foe on Wednesday night, facing North American rival No. 8 Canada for the first time this year.

"It's never friendly, you know? It's always like a final," US midfielder Sam Coffey told media earlier this week. "We all know each other super well."

"I'm really excited to be a part of it again for our younger, newer players," she continued. "I think it's going to be a huge learning opportunity on what representing this crest means."

The Northern neighbors are the USWNT's most frequent opponent, with the US entering the pair's 67th meeting with a 53-4-9 all-time record against Canada.

Wednesday's matchup will also mark Canada's first US clash under new head coach Casey Stoney, who joined the team in January following her abrupt June 2024 dismissal by the NWSL's San Diego Wave FC.

As for US boss Emma Hayes, she'll be looking for yet another refreshed set of starters on Wednesday after swapping out all 11 players between the team's two friendlies against Ireland last week.

"It's a testament to players and staff alike that we can rotate to different groups like we did last game, and everybody's understanding [the tactics] to varying degrees," Hayes said on Tuesday.

With months to go before the next USWNT camp in October, Wednesday's showdown serves as the last chance for bubble players to prove their worth, all while the team aims to cap the summer window with a big win over their longtime rivals.

How to watch the USWNT vs. Canada on Wednesday

The USWNT will cap their three-friendly summer break against Canada at 7:30 PM ET in Washington, DC.

Live coverage of the clash will air on TNT.

The Indiana Fever lifted their first trophy since 2012 on Tuesday night, winning the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup with a 74-59 upset victory over reigning Cup champs Minnesota — all while injured star guard Caitlin Clark watched from the sidelines.

To snag the win, Indiana leaned on balanced scoring, with forward Natasha Howard's 16-point, 12-rebound double-double leading the Fever's five double-digit shooters.

At the same time, the Fever employed a shutdown defense, limiting the Lynx to their lowest point total of the season.

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Beyond the $500,000 payout, Tuesday's win gives the 8-8 Fever a momentum boost as the team continues contending with both high-profile departures and the limited availability of their floor general.

"We have a resilient group, you know?" Indiana head coach Stephanie White said after the game. "They're tough, mentally and physically, they pull for one another. I'm just really proud."

"It felt good to get a win under gut-check circumstances," echoed guard Kelsey Mitchell. "To have so much going on and still stay consistently for each other, it was beautiful. It felt really amazing."

As for the league-leading Lynx, the Commissioner's Cup loss won't impact Minnesota's regular-season WNBA standings — and they’ll hope to build on the learnings from last night's ego blow.

Minnesota also has a bit of history one their side, as the last two Commissioner's Cup runners-up went on to win the WNBA Championship in the same year.

"We have to take this game to heart and learn from the mistakes we made, the way we showed up, the way we prepared, and make sure we don't do it again," said Lynx center Alanna Smith.

How to watch the Indiana Fever, Minnesota Lynx this week

Neither 2025 Commissioner's Cup contender will have much time to reflect on Tuesday's game, as both Indiana and Minnesota will dive back into regular-season WNBA play on Thursday.

The Fever will host the Las Vegas Aces at 7 PM ET, airing on Prime, before the Washington Mystics visit the Lynx at 8 PM ET, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.

Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham turned heads on Tuesday, criticizing the latest WNBA expansion plans in light of ongoing WNBPA CBA negotiations.

Cunningham drew ire from some fans after expressing skepticism about the WNBA awarding expansion teams to Detroit and Cleveland over other possible cities, while also suggesting that the league might be growing too quickly.

"You want to listen to your players, too. Where do they want to play?" she told reporters ahead of Indiana's Commissioner's Cup win. "I'm not so sure what the thought process is there, but at the end of the day, you want to make sure that you're not expanding our league too fast."

"It's kind of a hard decision-making situation. But man, I don't know how excited people are to be going to Detroit or [Cleveland]."

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Elsewhere, Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally also voiced her expansion concerns on Tuesday, calling on the WNBA to keep player support at the forefront when adding expansion teams.

"We really have to put an emphasis on the players that are in our league right now," she told reporters. "Maybe focus on the teams that find excuses continuously to lack investment in their players before we focus on adding more to the grain of people that can't really be sustained."