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Fri 11/20/2009
Burney at peace with decision to leave baseball

In the minutes leading up to practice, North Carolina’s football players can always count on hearing a couple of numbers being discussed while they stretch.

The digits are part of a game — a bet between coach Butch Davis and cornerback Kendric Burney.

Fri 11/20/2009
Larry Drew II directs UNC’s defense during No. 4 North Carolina’s 77-73 win against No. 15 Ohio State. DTH/Andrew Johnson

NEW YORK — In North Carolina’s biggest challenge this year, its best player was limited to the role of spectator for long stretches of the game.

But with forward Ed Davis in foul trouble all night, everybody else stepped up for No. 4 UNC in its 77-73 win against No. 15 Ohio State in the 2K Sports Classic.

Fri 11/20/2009
UNC’s Ed Davis goes for a shot against Ohio State’s David Lighty. DTH/Andrew Johnson

NEW YORK — Roy Williams said he’s spent much of this season chewing out sophomore point Larry Drew II.

Whatever he’s saying, it seems to be working.

When Ohio State made a late-game run, Drew was put on the spot again and again — and he answered just enough times to push UNC to a win.

Fri 11/20/2009
Dani Forword

To win in its 14th appearance in the final four, the North Carolina field hockey team will have to avenge one of its two losses.

Only Friday’s match against No. 2 Virginia, who knocked the Tar Heels out of the ACC tournament with a 1-0 victory in the semifinal round, stands between No. 3 UNC and a chance to win its sixth national title on Sunday in Winston-Salem.

Fri 11/20/2009
Michael Farfan

North Carolina begins its quest to repeat its surprising run to the NCAA Tournament final last season at Fetzer Field on Sunday.

The Tar Heels are one of 16 nationally ranked seeds, and therefore, they get to play their first game in their home stadium.

Fri 11/20/2009
Lucy Bronze

Once again UNC returns to the Sweet 16, aiming for its 20th NCAA title. The Tar Heels face fourth-seeded Maryland for the third time this season.

In their first meeting, UNC came away with a 1-0 victory at College Park in the final match of the regular season.

Fri 11/20/2009
The Tar Heels tallied an average of 28.2 ppg in these last five games — a 11.6 point improvement. DTH File/Phong Dinh

With the last home game in Kenan Stadium behind them, the UNC football team hopes to finish off the season in its current form.

After struggling in losses against Georgia Tech and Virginia, the Tar Heels have responded with five straight strong efforts and emerged with four victories.

Fri 11/20/2009

Thanks to an abysmal half of shooting from the floor by No. 15 Ohio State, No. 4 North Carolina has a 38-24 halftime lead in Madison Square Garden.

OSU is just 9-for-31 for (29 percent) from the field and 1-for-10 from 3-point range.

Fri 11/20/2009
Junior Cetera DeGraffenreid paced North Carolina with 20 points. She added eight assists and eight steals. DTH/Will Cooper

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Coastal Carolina 49
UNC 88

Thu 11/19/2009
North Carolina swimmer Vinny Pryor stayed in the pool despite a heart condition that threatened his career. DTH/Andrew Johnson

When the North Carolina swim team dove into the pool on the first day of practice in September, for many it was a familiar routine.

But for Vinny Pryor, it was a second chance.

In July his cardiologist surprised the 6-foot-2-inch junior by telling him a heart condition threatened to cut his swimming career short.

Tue 11/17/2009
UNC’s Evan Watchempino, right, finished 22nd in the Southeast Regional meet and earned All-Region honors. DTH File/Duncan Hoge

The men’s and women’s cross country teams raced to the finish line at Saturday’s NCAA Southeast Regional only to hold their breath — not to catch it.

Taking sixth and fifth places, respectively, North Carolina’s teams hoped to qualify for next week’s NCAA National Championships.

Wed 11/18/2009
Butch Davis and the Tar Heels started last season with a 7-2 record before dropping three of their last four games.

After reeling off three straight victories, two of those against top-15 opponents, North Carolina has assured itself of its second straight winning season and bowl eligibility.

But given what happened in the final games of last season, coach Butch Davis and the Tar Heels are planning on closing out this season like they closed out Saturday’s 33-24 victory against Miami.

Mon 11/16/2009

WINSTON-SALEM — It was easy to miss North Carolina goalkeeper Jackie Kintzer in UNC’s 4-1 victory against Ohio State Saturday.

In a game the Tar Heels dominated, Kintzer did not face a single shot on goal from the Buckeyes.

But on Sunday against Wake Forest, the junior goalkeeper had the entirety of Kentner Stadium taking notice, especially those wearing black and gold.

Mon 11/16/2009

The North Carolina wrestling team came into Sunday’s ACC Challenge missing three starters.

Still, the Tar Heels managed to win dual meets against Gardner-Webb and No. 16 American University, and just barely missed a clean sweep against Bucknell in the finale.

“I’m extremely pleased with the way my guys wrestled,” coach C.D. Mock said.

Mon 11/16/2009

For the North Carolina women’s soccer team, playing in the first round of the NCAA tournament has become a formality.

Sitting in the corner of Fetzer Field is a reminder of the 20 national championships won by former Tar Heel teams, including two by this year’s senior class.

Mon 11/16/2009

Deon Thompson, a senior and the team’s only returning starter, knew he had made a mistake more characteristic of a freshman.

After being whistled for a technical foul for shoving a Valparaiso player, Thompson headed to the bench for the last few minutes of the first half.

Mon 11/16/2009
Senior Deon Thompson led the Tar Heels with 20 points Sunday against Valparaiso. DTH/Phong Dinh

North Carolina’s Will Graves had to think for a few seconds before assigning a grade to his team’s performance in its 88-77 victory against Valparaiso.

His final verdict? The Tar Heels passed — but barely.

 “I’d say a D,” Graves said. “We showed intensity in spurts, but you can get a couple questions right on a test and still come out with a D.”

Mon 11/16/2009
UNC quarterback T.J. Yates threw for 213 yards and one touchdown and did not turn the ball over against Miami. DTH/Phong Dinh

Until the first play of North Carolina’s fourth drive during Saturday’s game against Miami, quarterback T.J. Yates wasn’t looking too good.

In North Carolina’s first three drives, the junior quarterback was sacked once and amassed a whopping two passing yards on 1-for-3.

But then, Yates found sophomore fullback Devon Ramsay in the flat for his second completed pass.

Tue 11/17/2009
Sophomore Laura Broomfield saw extensive action against College of Charleston. DTH/B.J. Dworak

Like last year, North Carolina entered its season opener with the title of preseason ACC favorites.

Less familiar were some of the names defending it.

The No. 5 UNC women’s basketball team routed College of Charleston 88-57 on Friday.

Mon 11/16/2009
Freshman Lucy Bronze (center) scored two goals and added an assist on the weekend. DTH/Andrew Dye

North Carolina needed 67 minutes and 26 shots to score its first goal against High Point on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Sunday was a different story as Courtney Jones put the Tar Heels (19-3-1) up for good in just the ninth minute of its 4-0 second round win against Georgia (15-6-1).

Mon 11/16/2009
Kendric Burney (16) intercepted Miami quarterback Jacory Harris three times Saturday, with two leading to scores. DTH/Phong Dinh

North Carolina secured its biggest upset win since 2004 and its second straight season of postseason eligibility with the following:

An interception, a fumble, a potentially illegal forward pass, a 90-yard return, a defensive touchdown and an official’s review.

Mon 11/16/2009

WINSTON-SALEM — Somehow, the North Carolina field hockey team was winning 2-1 at halftime in its NCAA regional finals game against Wake Forest.

The Demon Deacons had outshot, outhustled and outplayed the No. 3 Tar Heels through the first 35 minutes of play, but through proper execution and taking advantage of its few chances, UNC scored two goals on just three first-half shots.

Mon 11/16/2009

With a press conference in Ames, Iowa, and an announcement via Skype, Roy Williams and North Carolina completed a major recruiting victory on Friday’s signing day.

Harrison Barnes, ESPNU’s No. 1 recruit in the high school class of 2010, inked his letter of intent with North Carolina.

Mon 11/16/2009

 

Sun 11/15/2009

North Carolina earned bowl eligibility and gave the Butch Davis era a statement win Saturday night, upsetting No. 12 Miami 33-24 at Kenan Stadium.

UNC's defense picked off Miami quarterback Jacory Harris four times, and UNC senior cornerback Kendric Burney had three of them. His 170 interception return yards Saturday is an ACC record for return yards — in a season.

Sun 11/15/2009

Thanks to two second-quarter interceptions by Kendric Burney, North Carolina went into the locker room with a 20-7 halftime lead against No. 14 Miami.

Burney took the latest pick 77 yards the other way for a touchdown with less than a minute to go in the half. His first interception also led to a field goal.

Mon 11/16/2009

 WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.--The North Carolina field hockey team took the first step toward its goal of a National Championship on Saturday, defeating No. 16 Ohio State 4-1 in the first round of the NCAA field hockey championship.

Sat 11/14/2009

Defensive tackle Marvin Austin is one of the biggest personalities on North Carolina’s football team in addition to being one of the team’s biggest bodies.

The junior lineman, who already has been projected to be a force in the NFL by draft experts, chatted with SportSaturday Editor David Reynolds about a variety of topics, including dancing, dreadlocks and music.

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