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(11/30/09 5:28am)
RALEIGH — North Carolina entered Saturday’s game against N.C. State with dreams of a nine-win season and a possible berth in the Chick-fil-A or Gator Bowl. The shrill blast of a referee’s whistle snapped the Tar Heels back into the reality of another blown halftime lead and another loss to their in-state rival, 28-27.Ten times, yellow flags flew against North Carolina. As a whole, that amounted to 122 yards against UNC. “We can’t have the penalties that we made today,” UNC coach Butch Davis said. “A lot of things that prevented us from scoring more often were self-inflicted.”In the second quarter, the Wolfpack offense was stagnating. With only seven points, NCSU trailed UNC by 10, and the Wolfpack was staring at a third-and-23. But Charles Brown bumped the intended receiver while N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson’s pass hung in the air.The whistle blew for pass interference and an automatic first down.And it didn’t stop there. What should have been a punt turned into three UNC penalties; a pass interference call against Kendric Burney and a personal foul against Michael McAdoo. It ended in a 14-yard touchdown strike from Wilson to Jarvis Williams to make the score 17-14.In the 11-play, 77-yard drive, 45 of those yards came from penalties.The whistles and flags beset UNC on all sides. While UNC’s defense gave up chunks of yardage, the Tar Heel offense often found itself moving backward.“Penalties killed us all day long,” UNC quarterback T.J. Yates said. “We had some drives where we got up there close, and penalties took us back. … As a team, we’ve just got to play smarter.”Yates referred specifically to UNC’s first drive of the game.The Tar Heels opened the game by marching downfield and looked likely to find the endzone. With third-and-one from the NCSU 12-yard line, UNC tight end Zack Pianalto was called for holding and minus-10 yards. Instead of a touchdown, UNC settled for a field goal. It hurt more when Johnny White fumbled at the one-foot line on the next drive.“There’s never a time where you (could) score a touchdown and fumble another one where it could have been 14 points, and you have to settle for three — sure, you feel like you’ve left points on the field,” Davis said.In spite of the penalties, Saturday was the most prolific day of offense for UNC this season. Yates threw for a season-high 280 yards and two touchdowns. Both Greg Little and Jheranie Boyd topped 100 yards receiving. All told, the Tar Heels racked up 481 yards of total offense and 24 first-half points. But it wasn’t enough in a rivalry matchup against an N.C. State team that played far better than its record.“We could play this team in the McDonald’s parking lot, and it would be a big game,” N.C. State’s Owen Spencer (4 catches, 130 yards) said.The win was the Wolfpack’s third straight against the Tar Heels, and it stung extra for players like Yates and junior defensive tackle Marvin Austin, who have never beaten the Wolfpack in their careers.“This is the toughest loss possible,” Austin said. “N.C. State, crosstown rivals. They came out, they wanted it more.”The game also changes UNC’s postseason picture. It now falls to 8-4 and 4-4 in the ACC, the same record as last season when they went to the Meineke Car Care Bowl.Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(11/30/09 12:32am)
No. 11 North Carolina leads Nevada at halftime at the Smith Center.
(11/29/09 11:20pm)
North Carolina vs. Nevada
(11/28/09 9:12pm)
RALEIGH — No. 23 North Carolina opened up its regular-season finale against N.C. State gunning on all cylinders. The Wolfpack closed the game that way.
(11/28/09 6:45pm)
RALEIGH — No. 23 North Carolina leads the Wolfpack of N.C. State 24-14 at halftime at Carter-Finley Stadium.
(11/28/09 4:34pm)
North Carolina vs. NC State liveblog
(11/24/09 6:04am)
It was supposed to be the rebound game.
(11/24/09 2:44am)
No. 12 North Carolina used the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs for a post-loss rebound, dominating the Bulldogs in a 93-72 win Monday night at the Smith Center.
(11/23/09 5:02am)
NEW YORK — In the second half of the 2K Sports Classic Championship game, Marcus Ginyard needed a moment.North Carolina’s senior wing took a hard shot to the side from a Syracuse player with about 16 minutes to play. During the next timeout, he crouched on the floor in pain and was subbed out.Such a moment epitomized Syracuse’s (4-0) 87-71 win over UNC (4-1) on Friday night at Madison Square Garden. “Marcus got whacked, and we took him out,” UNC coach Roy Williams said. “They were already whacking us pretty good when we took him out.”When Ginyard left, the Tar Heels were down by seven. When he returned with 13:19 to play, the deficit was 12. It would eventually balloon to 19 as part of a 20-1 Syracuse run to open the half.“I don’t think we could have played a worse half of basketball,” Williams said. “I sure hope we can’t.”
(11/23/09 4:43am)
CHESTNUT HILL, MASS. — By halftime, seagulls were circling Alumni Stadium like vultures. It made sense considering what North Carolina’s defense was doing to Boston College.More than the interceptions, more than the defensive touchdowns, the Tar Heels destroyed a Boston College offense by not allowing a single third-down conversion in 13 chances.In those chances, the Eagles threw seven incomplete passes, rushed twice for a total loss of two yards, and turned the ball over three times. BC’s one completion was for 14 yards on a third-and-19. “We knew coming in that we had to emphasize third downs,” senior defensive end E.J. Wilson said. “They gave us a couple of turnovers, and we capitalized on those opportunities. I think third down might have been a bigger story than the turnovers really were. It’s a story that a lot of people don’t see and not a lot of people appreciate.”UNC coach Butch Davis certainly saw it on the stat sheet. For two seasons, he has emphasized putting opposing offenses in third-and-long situations, where one down needs to go for at least seven yards. He saw plenty of those Saturday.“The defense was outstanding throughout the whole ball game on third downs,” Davis said. “I think at one point they were 0-for-9, 0-for-10, 0-for-11 on third down opportunities. And if you can get them off, it certainly gives your team a chance.”And while UNC’s defense did carry the day, North Carolina’s offense surprised with effectiveness in the same scenarios. In 17 third downs, North Carolina’s offense converted eight times. In the second half, the Tar Heels converted five of 10 third downs.And while nobody could say that the Tar Heel offense was particularly effective, UNC did manage to hold onto the ball for 21:08 of play in the second half, allowing only 8:52 of possession to a Boston College team trying desperately to come back. In the fourth quarter, UNC had drives of 3:17 and 4:09 — both involving key third-and-long conversions. First, with UNC facing a third and 10 and a three-and-out drive, quarterback T.J. Yates threw a strike to a slashing Erik Highsmith for 12 yards and the first down.On the next Tar Heel possession, Yates found tight end Zack Pianalto just beyond the first-down marker for a six-yard gain.Not only did the third down conversions keep Boston College from scoring, they also kept North Carolina’s defense fresh — a fact that the Tar Heel defenders were quick to point out.“It’s great when the offense has our back like that,” Wilson said. “They might have been stopped on first and second, but it shows they still have the resiliency and the drive to convert on third and long.”Between Boston College’s ineffectiveness on third down and North Carolina’s ability to get just what it needed, the Eagles’ comeback bids fell flat for the rest of the game. Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(11/21/09 9:13pm)
North Carolina got three touchdowns in the opening 10 minutes of play — and not a whole lot else.
(11/21/09 1:38am)
As the first half of No. 6 North Carolina's up-and-down contest with Syracuse drew to a close, the Tar Heels had a plan.
(11/20/09 11:15pm)
UNC vs Syracuse
(11/20/09 7:17am)
Powell and David try volleyball in this week’s episode of Back at the Desk.
(11/20/09 6:01am)
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.With about six minutes to play, the Buckeyes brought the score to within 11. Drew drained a three to extend UNC’s lead to 14. And with just less than two minutes remaining, Drew found Marcus Ginyard for another three-pointer to keep UNC’s nose in front when OSU had closed the gap to eight.“To win games you have to be very tough mentally and physically, and I thought we were tonight,” Williams said.Nobody epitomized that statement more than Drew in the game’s final seconds. With Ohio State closing in at 75-73, Drew was fouled and stepped to the line — having already missed a series of late-game free throws that could have iced the game and earned his fourth foul minutes before. But Drew drained his last two free throws to give UNC the necessary margin, in front of a national television audience and under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden.“I was pretty relieved,” Drew said. “It was a hard-fought win for us. They did a good job coming back. I think guys got a little content with the lead.”Most of Drew’s night before the final seconds was spent dueling OSU’s junior point guard Evan Turner — a preseason All-America candidate. Late in the first half, the much taller and more experienced Turner had Drew posted up. Turner could back Drew down and score or rebound at will.But Drew drew a bump from Turner and took a dive — drawing an offensive foul and a turnover. Turner could only stalk away in frustration. Despite his accolades, it was Turner who looked unseasoned for all but the final two minutes Thursday night, while Drew played the part of a seasoned veteran for much of the game.For the game, Drew had 11 points and eight assists — a career high. He was 6-for-10 from the foul line, and 1-for-1 from beyond the arc. It was just enough.Drew was a big part of a Tar Heel defense that hampered and harassed Turner all night, as OSU’s junior scoring leader had 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting but turned the ball over a whopping 10 times. At the half, Drew had five assists and just two turnovers, while Turner had no assists and five turnovers. While Drew was finding open teammates, Turner was struggling to find his own shot.And on Thursday, Drew’s play was just enough.Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(11/16/09 5:27am)
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. At the end of the play, Ramsay was 27 yards downfield and Yates had the confidence he needed. Yates went on to complete his next six passes, including a 29-yard touchdown to Greg Little that put the Tar Heels ahead and in control of the game, 7-0.“It was good just to get the ball on the edge, just to get something going in the passing game,” Yates said of his first completion. “That definitely did a lot for my confidence, get things rolling.”And when Miami tied the game on the Hurricanes’ ensuing drive, Yates kept rolling the Tar Heels down the field — on just the type of plays that should have killed the drive.On first down, Yates picked up a fumbled snap, and instead of going down for a sack, avoided the rush, picked up the ball and threw a one-yard completion to Todd Harrelson. A sack or loss of yardage would have moved UNC out of field goal range.The next play, Yates was flushed to the right and under pressure as Miami sent a full blitz. But instead of throwing the ball away on second-and-nine, Yates looked left — across the blitzing defenders — and lofted a perfect pass over the blitz to a wide-open Johnny White for 25 yards to the Miami nine-yard line.The play set up a UNC field goal to put the Tar Heels in the lead for good.Yates finished 10-for-17 in the first half and 17-for-31 for the game with 213 yards and a touchdown.But more importantly, Yates managed a UNC offense that did not turn the ball over against Miami — while the Hurricane quarterback Jacory Harris tossed four interceptions. Before the game, Harris was the most efficient quarterback in the ACC. Yates wasn’t even in the top 10.But it was Yates who put the Tar Heels in position to win with efficient play, while Harris struggled with pressure and a ball-hawking UNC defense.“The role of your quarterback is to get the ball into the hands of playmakers and to make plays that give you a chance to win,” coach Butch Davis said. “He’s just poised and presence of a guy that’s had experience.”And while it was Yates who put UNC in the drivers’ seat, he handed the keys to junior tailback Ryan Houston in the fourth quarter. Of Houston’s 83 rushing yards (a game-high) 38 came on nine fourth-quarter rushes.Houston averaged 4.2 yards per carry in the fourth quarter, and following Miami’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive, it was Houston who slammed the door on Miami by spearheading a 11-play, 60-yard drive that took 5:18 off the clock and gave the UNC defense some time to rest. “It was the best drive I’ve ever seen in my life,” said cornerback Kendric Burney. “Because we were pretty much blown up … Our offense definitely bailed us out there.”Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(11/16/09 5:15am)
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.Barnes held a press conference in the Ames High School gym to announce his decision, saying that he would Skype the coach for whom he intended to play.Barnes pulled up Williams and the rest of UNC’s team in North Carolina’s player lounge. The team took a break from practice to watch with Williams.“You have a good feeling when they start talking about the Skype and setting it up, but you know they could have been doing that for every school,” Williams said. “But no, when he said, ‘I’m going to go over and Skype the coach,’ and when his face showed up on our computer, it was a pretty good feeling.”His was the third letter of intent UNC received Friday, as the Tar Heels pulled in an early front-runner for the top recruiting class.Barnes joined two other top-20 recruits.Kendall Marshall is No. 19 in ESPNU’s top 100, and would bolster a UNC roster with only one true point guard.Reggie Bullock is a 6-foot-6 shooting guard from Kinston, and the No. 13 recruit in ESPNU’s top 100.“This is certainly a really, really good class with three quality kids,” Williams said. “They’re all going to be really good for our program. There’s no question about it.”Those two alone fill two of UNC’s main needs — shooting and ball handling depth — but the addition of Barnes certainly bolstered the class. Barnes generated a tremendous amount of hype as he chose UNC instead of Kansas, Iowa State, Oklahoma, Duke and UCLA.“He’s a tremendous scorer; he’s a tremendous basketball player,” said Williams, who said he recruited Barnes harder than any player he’s ever recruited.“He may be 6-8, and he’s a perimeter player. He can really shoot. He can put the ball on the floor. He’s got the total package.”Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
(11/15/09 1:03am)
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.
(11/13/09 7:55am)
David Reynolds takes on a UNC varsity fencer in a spirited match after learning the ropes.
(11/11/09 5:11am)
Last year, 472 UNC students got a chance to travel to Detroit to watch North Carolina in the men’s basketball Final Four.More could get the chance if the Tar Heels return to the NCAA Tournament semifinals this year.The NCAA liked giving students from the participating schools courtside seats, and decided to increase the number of tickets allotted to each participating school to 660, spokesman Dave Worlock said in the NCAA’s 2009-10 basketball teleconference Tuesday.The tickets will remain at a $25 total cost.One reason that the NCAA was able to provide those tickets was that the 2009 Final Four took place at Ford Field, the home of the NFL’s Detroit Lions.The 65,000-seat arena was modified to sit almost 80,000 as a basketball arena, and as such could easily accommodate 400 or 600 student seats.Dan Guerrero, UCLA’s director of athletics and the chairman of the Division I men’s basketball committee, said that the NCAA liked the larger venues and that the games in dome arenas are getting a close look from the NCAA.“Dome stadiums for the most part have become what we call dress rehearsals for Final Fours,” Guerrero said. “It gives us the opportunity to dress up, if you will, those stadiums so we can anticipate what issues may come down the line in the future as we host Final Fours. “We’re pretty excited about the fact that what we’ve seen so far has been a success.”That interest from Guerrero puts the focus squarely on North Carolina’s Dec. 19 matchup against Texas at the new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.It’s a game with all the features of a Final Four game — No. 4 UNC vs. No. 2 Texas in a lucrative football stadium.And don’t be surprised if a Final Four comes to Arlington in the near future. The 2010 Final Four is in Indianapolis, and the 2011 Final Four is slated for Houston — both NFL domed stadiums.But despite the NCAA’s emphasis on the NCAA Tournament and making it “one of the best sporting events in the world,” as Guerrero said, UNC coach Roy Williams voiced some other plans.In the teleconference, Williams advocated for the NCAA Tournament’s first- and second-round games to be held only on Friday and Saturday and eliminate Thursday games so that players don’t miss almost a full week of class.“I wish everybody would play a Friday-Sunday approach, which means you can’t have every game on TV, and you can’t have those Thursday games,” Williams said. “We just ask the kids to miss so many days of school.”Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.