All season Tyler Hansbrough has been climbing up in the North Carolina record books - free throws, points, rebounds. Now, after winning the Sporting News Player of the Year award Tuesday, he will finally be looking down.
Down from the rafters of the Smith Center as only the eighth retired jersey in North Carolina history.
"I look at them often," Hansbrough said Wednesday. "Even when I got here, it's kind of a little bit of a dream to imagine one day that my jersey would be up there - it's an honor."
According to the UNC Athletic Council policy, athletes have to be the national player of the year to have their number retired. The Sporting News award was one of the six awards approved by the council.
Hansbrough, No. 50, will join some elite company on the front row of the rafters: Jack Cobb (did not wear a number), George Glamack (No. 20), Lennie Rosenbluth (No. 10), Phil Ford (No. 12), James Worthy (No. 52), Michael Jordan (No. 23) and Antawn Jamison (No. 33).
"I've had players who are more gifted - I've never had a player who wanted it more. I've never had a player who did things every day to try and be the best player he can be," coach Roy Williams said Saturday.
"I'd be the best daggum coach that's ever lived if I could put that kind of heart and desire into every one of our players. But I'm also the luckiest coach that I've got one like that."
Hansbrough, who ended the regular season with averages of 23.1 points and 10.5 rebounds, has been neck-and-neck for much of the year with Kansas State freshman stud Michael Beasley.
After this weekend, Hansbrough owns Player of the Year Honors from The Sporting News, Sports Illustrated and ESPN.com.
And he kept up the production in the ACC Tournament with 22 points against Florida State, 26 points and the game-winning jumper with 0.8 seconds left against Virginia Tech, and 18 more in the title game.
In the game against the Hokies, Hansbrough moved into third place on the UNC all-time scoring list, with only Phil Ford and Sam Perkins ahead of him.
He also is set to break the all-time record for free throws made by an ACC player. Hansbrough has 710, trailing only Duke's Christian Laettner, who has 713.
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
Hansbrough by the numbers
2,067 career points - third all time in UNC history
7-time ACC player of the week - tied for most in a single season
912 career attempted free throws (first all time in the ACC)
710 made free throws (second all time in the ACC)
