UNC Basketball 1984 : One of the Best Teams that Didn't Win It All

"The If-Only Years: UNC Basketball's Best Ever Teams that Didn't Win It All"
THE 1983-84 TEAM :  Michael Jordan's Swan Song
BY : Bob Wingate    6/25/20

Dynamic Duo : Jordan & Perkins

     Note : The 1984 Tar Heels are widely regarded as the best Tar Heel squad to not win a National Championship.

     On paper, the 1983-84 UNC basketball team looked like one of the best teams ever, not only for the Tar Heels, but in college basketball history.    They sported an incredible roster, with a starting lineup which included returning All-American Player of the Year Michael Jordan in his final season, big man Sam Perkins, and talented freshman point guard Kenny Smith. They were #1 in the AP Basketball Poll for all but one week of the season.  The Associated Press and Sports Illustrated both unanimously chose UNC as the preseason pick to go to the Final Four and win it all.  

     On the court, all indications were the same: this would be a very special team and season. Their overall season record was 28-3, winning 90% of their games and their first 21 in a row.   No one, except perhaps Georgetown (34-3), had a better team or record.   In 1984, only seven measly points (that's 3 baskets and a free throw)  stood between UNC and a perfect, undefeated record. Two of their three losses had been by just one (to Arkansas) and two points (to Duke). 

1984 UNC BASKETBALL

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

   For all intensive purposes, every bit of the hoopla about the team was 100% true.  Except for one thing: in the end, UNC didn't ultimately live up to all of the hype. They came home, at the end of the season, with no NCAA trophy. They had a marvelous season, with the one exception being how it ended.  They pooped out, instead of popping the cork.


   Two years prior, coming off of a successful 1981 season in which they had beaten rival Virginia in the national semifinals and were runnerups to Indiana, the Tar Heels had won all but two games and clinched coach Dean Smith's first NCAA title in 1982 by beating Georgetown in a close thriller, 63-62, freshman sensation Michael Jordan's jump shot with 17 seconds left being the deciding points.   At the team celebration a few days later before 25,000 screaming fans, Jordan had uttered these prophetic words :  "I hope in the next three years that I'm here, we can win at least two or three more."   By 1984, with experience as a player, and a restacked team, it looked highly likely that the Tar Heels would fulfill part of Jordan's prophecy, and in so doing, add another championship trophy to their collection.  

Michael Jordan with Coach Dean Smith

   No previous Tar Heel player had won so many accolades and honors as did Michael Jordan in the 1984 season. He won Player of the Year honors by the AP, UPI, USBWA, NABC and Sporting News, as well as the national Wooden, Naismith, and Rupp awards as the best college basketball player in the nation.   

   Fellow teammate Sam Perkins had forgone his successful NBA career to stay and try to win one more championship.    And since 1982, they had added 7 foot center Brad Daugherty, and brought in incredibly talented freshman point guard Kenny Smith from New York City. 

   Things appeared to be running on all cylinders as they started the season with 21 straight wins, while maintaining the #1 ranking in all of the basketball polls.  In the fourth game vs. Stanford, Dean Smith earned his 500th coaching win.  With PG Kenny Smith running the show, role player Matt Doherty being an overall handyman, sensational Michael Jordan creating his unbelievable magic, and big men Sam Perkins and Brad Daugherty collecting rebounds and dominating the inside, the Tar Heels looked almost invincible.   Add to that UNC's usual dependable bench players, like Steve Hale, Joe Wolf, and Buzz Peterson.  It appeared North Carolina was on their way to the Kingdome in Seattle and the Final Four.

   As it turns out, sometimes things are not always as they seem, and bad events can happen to cause our best-laid plans to go awry.   So was the case with the 1984 Tar Heels basketball team.   You might guess that the first loss to Arkansas (Feb. 12) was the turning point where everything started going south for the team.  And if you did, you'd have guessed wrong, because the ultimate wrench thrown into UNC's perfect dream season was not a loss, but a win on Sunday, January 29, in a game vs. LSU.   For even though they won the game, their 17th straight, 90-79, a crazy thing happened that day on the way to the Final Four.    With Carolina playing well, and breaking away from a closely fought game, LSU's John Tudor grabbed UNC's Kenny Smith on a steal and breakaway layup, and Smith landed on his left wrist, making a clean break.  Watch the highlights and see for yourself.. it was much more painful.. for Smith AND the Tar Heels.. than it may look.

UNC vs LSU * 1/29/84

   
   It was the real disaster of the 1984 season, because even though Smith came back in the last game of the regular season, playing with a cast on his left arm, and continued playing in both the ACC and NCAA tournaments, he was never the same, explosive Kenny Smith that the Tar Heels had enjoyed throughout the rest of the season.   A similar "Murphy's Law" moment happened in the 2012 NCAA tournament  to the Tar Heels with point guard Kendall Marshall breaking his right wrist on an almost duplicate play.

   Still, the Tar Heels adapted and won 10 of their next 11 games, most of them without Smith.  Reserve guard Steve Hale did an admirable job in his place, but it just was not really the same.  Smith was much faster and more explosive than Hale, plus it somewhat put the team's chemistry out of sync, and Smith's return at less than full strength did not rectify that situation.
   
   In the NCAA tournament regional semifinal game vs. Indiana (March 22), Michael Jordan had tried to will the Tar Heels to victory, but he just didn't have his normal, extraordinary game, shooting 6 of 14 for a total of only 13 points.  Part of that might have been due to the Indiana defense,  which packed the middle, and forced Jordan and the Tar Heels to take more perimeter jump shots.  Jordan said later : "...when I look back at the shots I had, I lick my chops. I just missed them."  For the game, Indiana shot 65% to 42% for Carolina.   Still, it was a close game, and could've gone either way, right down to the final minute, when guard Steve Alford cinched Indiana's win with clutch free throw shooting.

   In the end, it is kinda ironic that one of the Final Four teams, Georgetown went on to win the championship.   A rematch of the 1982 final would've been a wonderful thing for a Tar Heel fan to witness.   Unfortunately, that would not become a reality, as the Hoyas' opponent would be Houston, who they beat to win their first ever championship.   Maybe turnabout is fair play.  But for the loyal Tar Heel, we want to win ALL of them, right?   YEP.. 


   When I look back at some of the incredible game films, and think about the whopper of a team that UNC had in 1984, it's a mind blower to think of the potential and what slipped through their elusive fingers.  Legendary coach Dean Smith always felt that this was one of his best, if not the very best, UNC team ever.   

   They accomplished a lot that year.  But what could have been?  What would have been?   What if Jordan had played better in the final game?   What if Kenny Smith had not broken his wrist?   Who knows?   It's interesting to consider the "what-if's" of a situation.  But in the end, it is what it is.   A great season.   But somewhat colored by the unfortunate event of an injury.  It happens.   But we all wish it would've just happened to someone else.  [BW]


ARTICLES & REFERENCES

* SPORTS ILLUSTRATED : The following two articles appeared in Sports Illustrated on November 28, 1983, two days after the beginning of the season, giving high praise and predictions for the Tar Heels.

   -TOWERING TWOSOME  https://vault.si.com/vault/1983/11/28/a-towering-twosome 

   -PREVIEW OF #1 NORTH CAROLINA  https://vault.si.com/vault/1983/11/28/1-north-carolina

* ONE OF THE BEST TEAMS TO NEVER WIN IT    https://www.tarheelblog.com/2020/4/19/21226429/one-of-the-best-teams-to-never-win-it-the-1983-84-tar-heels-jordan-last-dance-basketball

* 25 GREATEST GAMES IN UNC BASKETBALL HISTORY : 
UNC vs. Duke (1984)
https://www.tarheelblog.com/unc-tar-heels-basketball/2019/6/19/18684411/north-carolina-tar-heels-basketball-senior-night-1984-jordan-perkins-duke

1983-84 UNC TAR HEELS

THE BEST TEAM TO NEVER WIN IT? 

Prima Donnas--- or Champion Wanna's?

My aunt Jayne and I have had an unscheduled routine over the last couple of months. Whenever the Tar Heels game comes on, we will habitually text each other, remarking on particular plays or the general feeling of a game. Some of our texts include "We need to play lights out to beat this time" and my witty retort, "We might actually play better with the lights out."

Dazed and Filled with Malaise

   My general feeling after the recent loss to Wofford is that we are still a good team, but not one that looks like a defending national champion, or a team that deserves to be ranked #4 or #5 nationally. Albeit, national rankings are only a weekly barometer of where teams are during a season, and the only ranking that really matters in the end is the last one. But when the new poll comes out, we will most certainly deserve that ranking more than the Top Ten ranking which we were just given this past week.


   Look at the reactions of the two team's coaches. Wofford's head coach, Michael Young, tempered the monumental win over Carolina, their first win ever over a nationally ranked team. After getting doused with a cooler by his team in the locker room, he pointed out in the midst of the wild celebration that it was only -one- regular season win. And Roy Williams, UNC's legendary coach, correctly pointed out that his team has to "be ready to play and not act like we're prima donna.. and we can walk out there and the other team is going to fold."


   Wofford was the typical blue-collar team that Carolina normally has trouble with (along with the occasional powerhouse teams like Kentucky and Duke), that is, ones like Princeton, or George Mason. Wofford beat UNC by utilizing tough defense and rebounding, and good outside shooting. It is fair to blame Carolina for shooting so poorly, but also fair to give Wofford credit for their part in causing that to happen.


   Most sports fans of any kind base their support not on facts and trends, but on pure emotion and dedication to their favorite teams. This is also true to a great extend of Carolina's fans. I'd just like to point out that it is extremely difficult to repeat as champions in any sport, and particularly in NCAA Division I basketball. There are over 350 men's basketball teams, and at least 15 or 20 that have a legitimate chance to make it to the Final Four and win a championship. We are only one of those teams.

Prima Donnas--- or Champion Wanna's?

   The term "prima donna" initially referred to the star singer in an opera. But Roy William's use of it would include "one who finds it difficult to work under direction or as part of a team." Wow! What an indictment of his own team. As previously stated, they are a good team. Somewhat inexperienced. Untested. Full of potential. Prone to mistakes and errors. Yes, a good team. But not yet a great team. Not like the '82 team, with Michael Jordan and James Worthy. Not like the '09 team, with Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson.


   The solid truth is that the 1982 team wouldn't have won without Sam Perkins and Matt Doherty, and Buzz Peterson. The 2009 team wouldn't have won without Wayne Ellington and Danny Green. UNC's beach also contributed greatly to their success.


   I can't read our players' minds. I don't know all of their thoughts and attitudes. All I, or anyone, can do is judge them based on their performances. For UNC fans, we will never be satisfied with a mediocre or even average performance from our team. In that sense, we are "prima donna." We expect more out of them. But the proper and correct way for them to live out this sense of expectation is to lay down their own high-minded thoughts and lower themselves to be able to dig out the tough wins at tough times. Every single team will be out to give us their best effort. Some of those teams will not succeed. Not because of a lack of effort. Some of our victories may be because we are so much more talented than our opponents. But at times, like with Wofford, we run into a team that may not be as talented, but may nevertheless eke out a win in spite of that gap due to an amazing effort.

Check Your Attitude...

   At this point, most would feel fortunate to be 10-2. It's a good record. But our glaring losses to Michigan State.. and oh, how difficult it is to say.. Wofford.. stand out as warning signs that our team will not compete for another title unless they can manage to "get it right" with supreme effort.


   We have some growing pains yet to experience. Our young players need time to develop. There may be more losses to overcome. But effort is not something one can grow into over time. It's just an attitude and determination to give their very best.. every minute of every game.


   Is that too much to ask? Not from UNC basketball. Not ever.


MORE LATER...

Beginning & End --- New Year-- New Team

   A year-and-a-half has passed since my last post.  Seeing how the Tar Heels won it all this year (2017), it's hard to believe-- for me and for you, my reader-- that I went all year long in the 2016-17 season, and did not have the motivation to sit down and write even one blog about the team and its marvelous ride to the NCAA Basketball Championship.

  Yeah, I get it.  Actually, I don't get it.  But for whatever reasons, and there are some, I didn't.    So now, after the fact, I ponder what went on, and what lies ahead.   Here are some of my musings about this and that.

• I feel really bad for Tar Heels PG Marcus Paige, and F Brice Johnson. They both had a marvelous ride during their careers at UNC, and for it all to go down to two last-minute and last-second shots was a bittersweet ending.   It seems that Paige probably won't make it as a starter or player in the NBA.  Did you see the replays of the double-clutch shot he made in the championship game?   Nothing short of spectacular.  But I guess the Villanova fans are marvelling over their player's last second shot to win the game and the title.

• As much as I feel badly for Paige, I also feel great for Tar Heels PG Joel Berry II.   He also has had a great ride in Chapel Hill, and the Heels depended on him in large part to get to the NCAA Championship in 2017, along with the big play of insiders Meeks and Hicks.  He dominated the other point guards in the ACC and NCAA, and played best when it mattered most.   I was really proud and happy with the way he led our team.

• Not to forget to mention Justin Jackson, who came into his own in a spectacular way this past season, and like Meeks and Hicks, left in the NBA Draft.  The Tar Heels are going to sorely miss players like Jackson, Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks this coming year.

• After giving the starters their due, it would be amiss not to mention that reserve forward Luke Maye gave the Tar Heels some excellent play during last year, and even though Berry & Jackson led the way, UNC wouldn't have made it without his heroics in the last seconds of the Kentucky game.  We'll remember that shot for a long time to come, just like we'll remember Marcus Paige's shot the year before.  Only Luke's shot eventually had a happier ending.

• It is difficult to REPEAT as a NCAA basketball championship team.  I can recall DUKE doing it in the 90's.  I don't think anyone else has repeated that repeat since then.   As a fan, I'd like to hope that the Tar Heels could manage this feat.  But with so many players leaving, it's going to be difficult for them to even win the ACC title, much less the national crown.

• The Tar Heels will have Berry back for his senior season, as well as Theo Pinson, and junior Maye.  They will have talented shooter G Kenny Williams back after recovering from injury.   After those four, who are sure to be four out of the five starters, UNC looks very inexperienced.  Most of their frontcourt graduated or left for the pros.  They do have three new freshmen big's in Johnson (6'8), Brooks (6'10), and Manley (6'11).   And reserve PG Seventh Woods is back after showing some promise in his freshman year.

• All in all, there are a LOT of questions surrounding this year's Tar Heels team.   Will any of the freshman BIG MEN step forward?   Will Kenny Williams have a great year from the 3-point line?   How will Luke Maye respond as a starter rather than a reserve?    The only player who is really NOT a question mark is returning PG Joel Berry.   There is no reason to doubt that he will have a breakout year in his senior season.   He could average 20 points a game, and he's also a great passer.

• How will the Tar Heels do this year?   I look for them to win at least 20 games, but will they get back to the Final Four?    Hard to say.   Realistically, it looks doubtful.   But less talented Tar Heel teams have made it there before.   

• Check out how they play in an early three-game span against Stanford (11/20), Michigan (11/29), and Davidson (12/1), and also in a holiday game against powerhouse Ohio State (12/23).  If they come out 3-1 or better in these games, it will spell out a good season the rest of the way.

•  UNC will play in a Thanksgiving weekend tournament in Portland, OR and will draw either Arkansas or Oklahoma (11/24) and Connecticut, DePaul, Michigan State, or Oregon in the championship game (11/26).

• And of course, my friends tell me that Virginia and Duke have remarkable teams on the court this year, ones they say may threaten to win a championship themselves.  So check out the conference games at the Cavaliers (1/6) and against the Blue Devils at home (2/8).

   Okay, hopefully, I will stay in touch better this year, but alas, my perennial warning, should the Tar Heels falter, I may lose hope, and also my motivation for writing.  If I got paid for this, I would do it more faithfully.   Once again, I apologize to Tar Heel fans and readers of this blog for my lack of dedication and blog posts this past year.   The Tar Heels performed a lot better than I did.. and I'm glad of that fact.

Congratulatons!

UNC TAR HEELS

2017 NCAA Basketball Champs

POOP HAPPENS

© 2016 by Bob Wingate

     I was born Carolina blue. You see, I’m from North Carolina. And for as long as I can remember, I’ve been a Tar Heel basketball fan.

     UNC Basketball first gained national notoriety in 1957 when a group of talented but no-named New York transplants beat seven-footer Wilt Chamberlain’s Kansas team in a classic David vs. Goliath matchup to win the national championship. This exciting triple overtime thriller capped off a perfect 32-0 season for the Tar Heels. I would’ve probably eaten this experience up, but I was only one-and- a-half years old at the time, and hungering for milk and baby food rather than basketball.

     It wasn’t until the late sixties that I began passionately following the Tar Heels, when they put together a string of several championship seasons. During 1967 to 1969, I watched each and every game with keen interest, glued to an old black and white television set, feeling as if I was magically transported onto the court.   Led by All-Americans Larry Miller and Charlie Scott, who was the first black player ever recruited in the south, Carolina finished in the nation’s Top Five and won three straight conference championships and trips to the national Final Four tournament.  Their combined record was 81-15. Unfortunately for a true blue fan like me, each year ended with a disappointing loss.  

     Though it didn’t register with me back then, the accomplishments of these earlier Tar Heel teams stand out because in that era, the NCAA, college’s athletic association, only invited 24 teams to their post-season basketball tournament, not the 68 teams in today’s field. It required less games to earn the coveted national title, but all of the opponents were usually of a much higher caliber. Only the tournament champion from each conference was allowed to participate. This meant that a great team might go undefeated for three months, but then lose out in their three-day weekend tournament.

     I didn’t have much in the way of connections or finances as a teenage boy, but a couple of my Tar Heel dreams did come true. During 1969 and 1970, my doctor helped me to attend the Carolina Basketball School, a summer teenage sports camp, which at the time was one of the most exciting thrills of my life. I got individual instruction from the coaches, and got to be up close with the players, and watch them play pickup games. Then in the 1980’s, a family friend helped me get tickets, and I was finally able to visit the new Dean Dome in Chapel Hill and watch the Tar Heels play in person.

     The Tar Heels have long been involved in an inner-state rivalry with Duke University.  Playing twice each year on one another’s home courts, these games take on a greater significance for coaches, players and fans alike. Separated by Interstate 40 and less than ten miles, UNC (in Chapel Hill) and Duke (in Durham) are like two twin siblings fighting one another for their family’s favor.   

     I’ve never known anyone who was a Tar Heel fan that did not hate Duke until one day my Dad told me that he liked both teams equally.  This came about because a dear friend of his, a local minister, was also a beloved Duke fan and through his friendship with my father, my Dad eventually adopted a policy of rooting for both teams. I always respected and loved my father. However, this is one area in which I have not followed in my father’s footsteps.  

     I’m sure many Duke fans will disagree, but I find the evidence for superiority to be overwhelmingly in favor of the Tar Heels.  First of all, there’s an old sports adage in North Carolina that says, “If God is not a Tar Heel, then why did he make the sky Carolina Blue?”   I guess we Tar Heel fans could quote Romans 8:31, “If God be for us, then who can be against us?”   Carolina’s coaches have easy–to-remember names, for example, Tar Heel coaches Dean Smith and Roy Williams.  However, Duke’s coach, Mike Krzyzewski has such a difficult name that they simply refer to him as “Coach K”.   I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be a fan of a team whose coach’s name I can neither spell nor pronounce.

     Most ordinary fans would point out Michael Jordan (or “MJ” as we like to call him) as the highlight of all of the years of watching the Tar Heels. And he definitely is one. I enjoyed watching Michael play, and followed him into his NBA career. But to a true fan, each and every game, and each and every 
player, made their own contribution to the overall legacy and history of UNC Tar Heels basketball.  Following Tar Heel basketball through the years has had its shares of ups and downs, but overall it has been a wonderful experience. Some non-sports fans may say, “What’s the big deal?” Something like this is hard to explain to the unitiated outsider. It’s kind of like an exclusive club. Only those on the inside can truly appreciate its significance. And-- it probably kept a young guy like me out of trouble.

     Over the years my Aunt Jayne, who is a UNC alumnus and fan, has shared all of these highs and lows with me. We rejoiced in 1982 when UNC won its first championship for coach Dean Smith, when young freshman Jordan hit the game winning shot with only 17 ticks of the clock left against Georgetown. And we’ve also had collective groans and sighs whenever things didn’t go our way… like this year.

     I guess some of you have been wondering how the title of this article fits into the story. Well, someone has said, “Whenever life gives you a lemon, make lemonade.” But what do you do when life poops on you? It seemed that kind of a dilemma just a short time ago, when this year’s Tar Heels had gone on a ten-game winning streak to advance to the national championship game against Villanova.  Carolina had been picked in the preseason polls as the #1 team and was the favorite to win the title.  My guitar student, a fellow Carolina fan, and I had decided to watch the game together on his big-screen TV.  We sat glued to the set as the game went back and forth, and eventually swung in Villanova’s favor. But the Tar Heels, down by as many as ten points, mounted a comeback. Star point guard Marcus Paige made an acrobatic shot from the three-point line to tie the game with less than five seconds left.

    We sat, mesmerized and shocked, as we watched the final ticks of the clock play out on the floor.  We were hoping for overtime, but could not believe the unbelievable ending as one of Villanova’s players cooly tossed in his own three-point shot to win the game at the buzzer.

     About a week later, I was standing in front of our house, preparing to leave on a walk, when suddenly I felt and heard something above me. I reached up, grabbing the UNC ball cap off of my head.  There, on the bill of my cap, was the residue of a bird’s not-so- welcome deposit. Later, when talking to one of my sports buddies, a Duke fan, he remarked : “Yeah, I sent him down from Durham just for you.”

     Yeah…Right.  Poop happens!

__________________________

Bob Wingate is a freelance writer living in Salisbury.

You can read his Tar Heels sports blogs at www.bobstarheels.blogspot.com.

Final Four--- Meeting of the Minds

UNC TAR HEELS

2016 FINAL FOUR

    Thursday night, the Tar Heels, along with Oklahoma, Villanova, and Syracuse all prepared in Houston for their matchups on Saturday.  But in Salisbury, Howard Platt and Bob Wingate converged at a local restaurant to enjoy food and fellowship, with the conversation--- although occasionally veering off the path-- centered on the Tar Heels and the Final Four.  This is the 19th trip to the Final Four for the Tar Heels.

    Perhaps we should have planned it a few days in advance and invited more guests to join us, although we did put out a Facebook post welcoming anyone to join us.   It may have been more lively and entertaining to both of us if we had a few Duke fans or others to spice up the conversation.

    Frankly, Howard and I agree with each other on most aspects of UNC basketball.   We agree the team has come a long way in improvement, from last year, and also in the midst of this season.   Several players have blossomed or added new dimensions to their games.   Some reserves have stepped up to take new roles with greater responsibility.  A few players have surprised us along the way.

     Howard says, "I think the depth of the Tar Heels could really tell the story. If guys like Pinson, Britt, Hicks, and even James make major contributions, as they have been lately, the Heels should have an easier time.  Also it seems UNC has dominated the second half of games recently because of that depth. ...This gives the Heels so many options which I feel gives them the edge against every team in this tournament."

    Howard also says that the two biggest statistical factors in the game for Carolina will be rebounding and shooting at least 45% to 50% from the field.
So far in the tournament, the Tar Heels have been averaging almost a whopping 90 points per game, and shooting at a phenomenal 62% rate.

    He believes that the Syracuse zone and press defenses may give the Tar Heels some problems on Saturday. I agree-- although Coach Roy Williams said in his press conference that his team has been practicing and watching game film to prepare for these things.  (see below video)

    Syracuse and Carolina have one thing in common-- which may be a benefit to both teams.   They played each other twice during the ACC season.  UNC won both games, but they were not necessarily easy wins.  They won by 11 points, 84--73, at Syracuse in early January, and then almost two months later, won by only five, 75--70, in Chapel Hill.   One could theorize that the Tar Heels were a better team in the second game, played on their home court. But then Syracuse was also a better team.  It's an even better bet that both teams are much improved now, playing in the Final Four.

    So what to expect?  We both expect a hard-fought game, but we both feel that the Tar Heels will have the upper hand.  Both of predict a five-point victory.  Howard predicts the game score will be about 86--81 for Carolina. I'm wondering if the Tar Heels will be able to score that many points against an improved Syracuse defense.  I believe they will play well, but the Orangemen may still be able to slow the pace enough to keep the game in the 70's.  My prediction : 75--70-- same score as the earlier game in Chapel Hill-- but probably with a few new twists and turns along the way.

_______________________________________________

     We also discussed the problems with the Houston NRG Arena, which are documented, about the open ends behind the baskets, which cause outside shooters to lose focus and miss more shots than normal.   This may affect Paige, Berry, and Jackson from hitting behind the arc.  But if the game is contested mostly on the inside, the Tar Heels will hold a distinct advantage with Brice Johnson, Kennedy Meeks, and reserve Isaiah Hicks.

___________________________________

     I asked Howard about the other teams that are playing in the Final Four. He knows a little more about the other teams than I do, and I respect his opinions and insights.   

     We both believe that Oklahoma will beat Villanova, although it may be a close one.  Howard says, "This one could go either way.  Villanova's defense will be the key for them against Oklahoma. Villanova must also shoot very well in order to win.  They have been a hot and cold shooting team, but they have been hot throughout the tournament."  

    Our conversation about the Oklahoma-Villanova game immediately gravitated toward the Sooners' sensational guard, Buddy Hield, who was the 2nd--leading scorer in the nation this season, and who has literally "lit it up" in the NCAA Tournament.  He scored 46 for a season high in a loss to Kansas earlier this year, and hit for 36 and 37 against VCU and Oregon in the past two weeks, shooting at a 65% rate against the Ducks in the Regional Final. Howard said, "The Sooners are very difficult to control, especially with transition threes."

     If the Heels get by the Syracuse zone press, Hield and the Okies may be waiting in the wings for them on Monday night.   (although we both acknowledge that both Oklahoma and Villanova are strong, talented teams, and the team will most likely go down to the wire).  The Tar Heels have been snowed under by previous sharpshooters--- such as Rick Mount (Purdue-1969), Steve Kerr (Arizona-1988), and Glen Rice (Michigan--1989).   They should have a game plan already in place by Monday night to at least contain or disturb Hield's offensive threat and shooting.  Hopefully the "no-man's-land" view behind the baskets will get to him.  We shall see.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves--

the Heels first have to advance past Syracuse.

Should be a fun night to watch basketball!

GO TAR HEELS!

____________________________________
Thank you Howard for participating in these 
Tar Heel--Final Four Blogs

Tar Heels--- Final One?

      Hey-- I've been following the Tar Heels since 1967 or '68.  I remember going to Carolina Basketball Camp and watching Charlie Scott and other Tar Heel stars play pickup games in Carmichael Auditorium.  I remember the early 70's NIT Champions, and the first NCAA title in '82.  And there's been a few down years too-- like '77 or '84-- and more recently 2011.  But here we are, in 2016-- back in the Final Four.

      A lot of you Tar Heel fans have "analyzed until you're paralyzed" all of this basketball stuff, and I appreciate all of it-- I really do-- but gosh-- I think it will all come down to our team's heart and soul on Saturday and Monday.       I think the Tar Heels have a keen sense of ebb and flow in the game, and when the outcome is on the line, I think they are capable of making a run, or getting a stop--- and securing the win.

     Some-- not all-- but a few think that the Tar Heels are unbeatable now.  They've had a couple of ups and downs, but they hit their stride in the ACC Tournament and now they're rolling along, and no one can stop them.  As I've said before of the Panthers, and they possibly set the example-- It's Okay if EVERYONE ELSE thinks that-- but I just hope the TEAM won't buy into it. You see, there are three very good other teams in Houston-- and any of the three COULD beat us.  Fortunately, we only have to play TWO of them-- but we better not lose sight of what got us here-- and we also better be ready to play for forty minutes-- and not come out lackadaisical, or get a lead and get lazy or proud, and sit on it.

     One reporter said, "These are the Tar Heels we've been waiting for all year."  YES-- they are playing well.  It seems that most, if not all, of the players are contributing-- the stars and starters, as well as the subs and role players too.  They are giving it their BEST.   And it will probably take their BEST to win this thing.   One of the best things about this year's Tar Heel team has been their balance and sense of teamwork.  Lately, somehow they've also grabbed hold of the concept of stingy defense too, and their "D" has won them a few ball games down the stretch.

    Even though I recognize and admit that either Villanova, Oklahoma, or yes -- even our ACC rival Syracuse-- all could win the title this year, I believe the main ingredient is NOT the focus on the other teams-- but that OUR team play their absolute BEST.  If UNC plays their honest BEST game, I don't see how they can be beat.  And then-- even if they lose-- I'll somehow find a way in my heart to accept them as the champions that they really are.

     But heck-- or as Coach Ray says it, "Doggone It!"  Why win the Bronze or the Silver-- when we can win the GOLD ?

So--let's do it!

(YAY YAY) TAR HEELS IN FINAL FOUR (ALL THE WAY)

    Sometimes I feel a little less than enthusiastic posting blogs about Tar Heel victories.   Of course--- the Tar Heels are in the Final Four.   If you didn't see it on TV or in the newspaper, you heard it on the radio, or from a rabid Tar Heels fan on the street.   So-- what's the big deal?   Maybe it's NOT-- for you.   But it's been SEVEN years since the Tar Heels made it to the Big Dance the last time--- and for some college basketball teams, it's a great accomplishment to just get there--- ever.    

     I feel a bit for the players and coaches of UNC and the other schools in the Final Four--- Oklahoma, Villanova, and Syracuse--- because often fans and sportswriters expect their teams to go "all the way" and win a championship.   Unfortunately, only ONE team can win it all each year.   There will be three teams that go home a bit disappointed-- no, a LOT disappointed--- as "losers".   And in a bigger sense, there are 64 other teams that have already gone home with their heads hanging low.

Roy cutting down the Net

    I'm proud of what the UNC Tar Heels have accomplished already this year.  They are 32-6 and ACC Regular Season --and--- Tournament champions.    Not many teams can say that they've won 30 games and achieved first place in their league.   I know though that the Tar Heels as a team, and each individual player, want MORE.   It's been their dream all season, and for the seniors, all four years, to get to this point.   Now that they've "arrived", the desire to win a championship is burning even deeper inside of them.   

They can almost taste it now.

    Hey-- what these guys achieve (or don't) this year cannot be overshadowed or compared to the Dean Smith years, or the Michael Jordan years, or any other coach, player, or team.  It's their special year.   They have risen to the top.   It's been a year of some ups and downs. 

     Several players have especially improved this year.   

• G Marcus Paige has come back from a bad injury at the start of the year that obviously hampered him, and finally managed to regain some of his previous greatness, and shooting touch from the perimeter.  

• F Brice Johnson  has become a real dog inside.   He's become a great scorer, but I believe his greatest contribution to the Heels successful season, even more than his point production, has been his tenacious rebounding and defense inside.   He's a real ball hawk, and has consistently defended the basket. 

• F Isaiah Hicks and G Theo Pinson have really come into their own as valuable bench players who perform on the court as if they were regulars.   In the regional final against Notre Dame, they made several big plays down the stretch, including one momentum shifter when Pinson fed Hicks on a fast break for a slam dunk.

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  F Justin Jackson, along with Paige and Johnson, made the Eastern Regional all--tournament team, with Johnson being named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

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      All players on the Tar Heels team, especially the top 8--10 in rotation, contributed greatly to the Tar Heels success so far in the postseason.    It's been an obvious metamorphosis in their team play from the regular season to the tournament.    Especially noteworthy has been the upgrade in their intensity on the defensive end of the court.   UNC opponents in the ACC and NCAA tournaments have only averaged 65 points, while the Tar Heels are averaging 90 points.

       Okay-- here's the Million Dollar question, although (of course)--- if I answer it right, I will NOT stand to inherit or win a million dollars.   

       Will the Tar Heels win the Final Four?   Defeat Syracuse on Saturday, advance to the Championship game on Monday night, and win it all?

In a word--- YES!

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