Lang Leads White Team to Win

The off-the-court actions continued to be more intriguing than the first exhibition of the Tar Heels. Julius Peppers' mere presence in the stands captivated fans. And while the two weren't playing, Jason Capel gave Kris Lang a technical foul after Lang reacted to a foul call.

Sure, the "T" didn't stick, but Lang got the last laugh on Capel as he lead the White team to a 62-61 win in the annual Blue-White Game.

"We just wanted to see who was going to win," Lang said. "It was, ahem, moi."

Lang scored 18 points in 24 minutes of play, and Capel shot 6 of 9 from the field for 16 points. Doherty apologized to the 9,325 Smith Center fans for the game's running clock and the fact that Lang and Capel's playing time was cut short.

Doherty limited the two to rest their minor injuries, although North Carolina was plagued with injuries. Brian Bersticker didn't dress because of a sore shoulder, and Neil Fingleton and Brian Morrison played with ankle injuries.

Fingleton put up 13 points on

5-of-7 shooting. He dunked at the beginning of the second half, earning one of the night's loudest cheers. "I hope they're behind me," Fingleton said. "A lot of people are counting us out. We believe as a team that we have a better shot in the ACC than anybody else."

Although the 7-foot-5 Fingleton might have made the biggest debut, UNC's three freshmen and two walk-ons made large impressions of their own.

Jawad Williams led the freshmen with 14 points, while Jackie Manuel's

3-of-11 and Melvin Scott's 1-of-5 performances were less than spectacular beginnings. Scott did hit two key free throws to extend the White team's lead to 62-58 with seven seconds remaining. Jonathan Holmes hit a 3-pointer with one second left for the Blue team, but it wasn't enough.

"They can't be bashful," Doherty said of the freshmen. "They're going to have to help us this year."

Walk-on candidates Damien Price and Phillip McLamb did their best to prove that they would be helpful. McLamb added six points on 2-of-5 shooting.

Doherty said, "I was joking with Phillip that he took the most shots for a walk-on in the history of the Blue-White game."

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.