The throwback uniforms and relocation to Carmichael Arena were good for one win, and next up for North Carolina is a stiff road test.
The Tar Heels, a No. 4 seed in the NIT, won their tournament opener by beating No. 5 seed William & Mary in the smaller and decidedly more intense Carmichael. UNC even hit 80 points for the first time in 2010.
When Deon Thompson made a mental error on the first play of the second half, the senior knew exactly where to go.
He ran straight up to UNC coach Roy Williams and pleaded, “Don’t kill me.”
Williams only said he’d think about it at the time, but after Thompson led UNC to an 80-72 win in the opening game of the NIT, he had nothing but compliments for his big man.
William & Mary drilled 16 3-pointers, but North Carolina held off the Tribe 80-72 in the first round of the NIT tournament.
The Tar Heels dominated in the paint, as senior Deon Thompson piled up 20 points on 9-for-13 shooting. Freshman John Henson added nine points and 10 rebounds.
-Carmichael returns! The historic home of North Carolina basketball before the Smith Center, Carmichael Arena (newly christened after renovations) will serve as home court one last time since the Smith Center is under construction. This is the same court on which Phil Ford, Michael Jordan and countless other greats played.
Around 9:30 p.m. Sunday, when the National Invitational Tournament gave North Carolina a No. 4 seed and a home opener, there were two buzz words in the Tar Heel locker room: relief and surprise.
GREENSBORO – It’s one and done in the ACC Tournament for the North Carolina men’s basketball team.
The formula for UNC’s latest loss – a 62-58 defeat to Georgia Tech (20-11) – was a familiar one. Too many turnovers, too many missed shots and too much inexperience down the stretch.
GREENSBORO - Couple of pre-game notes on tonight's clash between Georgia Tech and North Carolina.
-Tonight is the first time UNC has appeared in the ACC Tournament's first round. UNC was the only current ACC team not to have played in a first-round game before this season.
As if the 82-50 loss to its arch rival wasn't enough injury, North Carolina was dealt insult by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association on Monday when they did not put a single Tar Heel on the first, second or third All-ACC teams.
It's the first time in the history of the ACC that UNC was not represented on at least one team on the honorary squad.
DURHAM — Duke's Saturday-night thrashing of North Carolina was a tale of two seniors.
On one hand, there was Duke's Brian Zoubek. The 7-footer from Haddonfield, N.J., hauled in 13 rebounds as Duke clobbered the Tar Heels on his Senior Night.
DURHAM – In Duke vs. North Carolina, there is seldom a sure thing. But Saturday’s regular season finale was never in doubt.
Duke built a 20-point lead in just 11 minutes and a 30-point lead in 26. After four straight losses to UNC in their own building, the No. 4 Blue Devils took back Cameron Indoor Stadium. Emphatically.
