No. 1 WCBB Prospect Kate Harpring Commits to UNC over Iowa, South Carolina, More

Top-ranked women's college basketball recruit Kate Harpring informed 247Sports' Dushawn London on Saturday that she has committed to play collegiately at the University of North Carolina.

Harpring, who is a 5'10" guard from Atlanta, is rated by 247Sports as a 5-star prospect and the No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2026.

Iowa, UCLA and South Carolina were among the major programs that pursued Harpring before getting beaten out by UNC.

Harpring told London she chose North Carolina based on a "gut feeling" before adding: "It feels like a family to me. Coach [Courtney] Banghart has a lot of confidence in me, and she's the head coach I want to play under. I feel like their program is on the rise. I'm really excited about Coach Banghart, her staff, and just the whole all-around family feel of the school."

Banghart, who has been the head coach at UNC for the past six seasons, has led the Tar Heels to five consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Sweet 16 last season.

In Harpring, North Carolina is getting a player who has proven herself against a high level of competition.

She was named the Overtime Select MVP in 2024 before helping Team USA win the gold medal in the 2025 Under-19 FIBA World Cup.

The Marist School standout comes from a basketball family as her father, Matt Harpring, played collegiately at Georgia Tech before spending 11 seasons in the NBA with the Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers and Utah Jazz.

In 665 NBA regular-season games, he averaged 11.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per contest.

While North Carolina has been a strong team in recent years, it has been quite some time since the Tar Heels were legitimate national championship contenders.

They have not reached the Elite Eight since 2014 or the Final Four since 2007, and their only national title came back in 1994.

However, with a potential superstar in Harpring set to join the program, North Carolina may have a chance to get back in the title mix in the coming years.