Mired in what would be a 1-7 slump and playing without her point guard for most of January, North Carolina women’s basketball coach Sylvia Hatchell was just hoping to close the season with a .500 record.

But after a three-week absence, Nikki Teasley returned to the team. And with the junior star back in the lineup, North Carolina’s postseason hopes were resurrected.

The Tar Heels went on to win eight of their final 11 games, including a victory over Duke in their regular-season final. So with an 18-12 record, Hatchell said her team wasn’t surprised to receive an at-large bid for the 2000 NCAA tournament.

Twelfth-seeded UMaine will play No. 5 seed North Carolina in Saturday’s 9:35 p.m. West region first-round game at the University of California-Santa Barbara.

“We feel like we’re playing our best ball and we’re excited to play,” said Hatchell, who is in her 14th season with the Tar Heels and coached UNC to the 1994 NCAA title.

“Four weeks ago we were 12-11 and now we’re 18-12. So you can tell how we’ve done.”

Teasley was named the ACC tournament’s Most Valuable Player even though the Tar Heels lost to the Blue Devils in the championship final 79-76, and is an All-America honorable mention.

Hatchell said Teasley’s absence was not basketball or disciplinary related, but the coach asked her star to concentrate on some personal problems. The time away made a huge difference.

“She’s just a really good player and we’re a completely different team since she was back,” Hatchell said. “It was a difficult decision but I know now that I did the right thing because the kid’s great. Her life is so different.”

The 6-foot junior guard averages 14.9 points per game (15.6 in ACC games), and 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per contest.

While Teasley runs the offense, 5-foot-11 forward LaQuanda Barksdale leads the team in scoring (17.5 points per game) and rebounds (8.5 per game). She can play around the basket, but she also averages 41.7 percent from the 3-point arc.

“She’s only 5-11 but we play her at the four position because we run a motion offense and she’s so good with her back to the basket or facing the basket and also gives matchup problems for the other team,” Hatchell said. “If they don’t come out and guard her she’s gonna shoot [3-pointers] and so you’ve got to guard her outside.”

Carolina’s other starters are 6-foot-5 center LaShonda Allen, 5-foot-11 guard Leah Sharp and Juana Brown, also a 5-foot-11 guard.

The year’s UNC team is the program’s first to have no seniors, but Teasley, Brown and Barksdale started for last season’s Sweet 16 squad.

Of course, Maine also received an at-large bid after losing to Vermont in the America East championship game. Hatchell said the Tar Heels are well-aware of the Black Bears.

“We know Jamie [Cassidy is] really good inside, she’s a WNBA player, and she’s just sort of their go-to kid,” Hatchell said. “We also know that their point guard [Amy Vachon] probably has a school record with assists, so we know that she’s very good at getting the ball to people. They do what they do well.”