UAB begins to prepare for North Carolina
UAB whipped N.C. State, 72-52, in a NIT second round game on Saturday in front of a crowd of 4,096 at Bartow Arena. Now you want the big news? North Carolina is coming to Bartow Arena. The Blazers will play host to the Tar Heels on Tuesday night in a NIT quarterfinal game. The game will begin at 8 p.m. and will be telecast nationally on ESPN. The line for tickets was at least 200 people deep more than an hour after the game.
(Birmingham News)
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Drew drives a stake through MSU’s heart
With the game tied and the ball inbounded to him, UNC point guard Larry Drew II knew exactly where to go. “To the basket,” the sophomore point guard with a laugh. Drew took the ball the length of the floor with 8.2 seconds and made a game-winning layup over Mississippi State center Jarvis Varnado to give the Tar Heels a 76-74 victory. “We do work on those things (in practice) with four seconds so eight is plenty of time,” Roy Williams said.
(Biloxi Sun Herald)
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Heels clipped: Gonzaga women use late run to pull past North Carolina
Scoreless for 31 minutes, Gonzaga's Tiffany Shives had 14 of her 16 points in a crucial five-minute stretch of the second half and the seventh-seeded Bulldogs held off No. 10 seed North Carolina 82-76 on Saturday night in the first-round of the NCAA women's tournament. North Carolina used its superior size on the interior to stay close, but the Bulldogs closed on an 10-5 run.
(Daily Press)
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Larry Drew Plays Hero
Larry Drew rose above the harsh criticism that has plagued him all season long on Saturday, driving the length of the floor and hitting an improbable left-handed high floater over three-time SEC defensive player of the year Jarvis Varnado with 2.0 seconds left to give UNC a 76-74 victory over Mississippi State. Mississippi State knocked down three early 3-pointers to jump out to a 16-4 lead, but UNC’s underclassmen rallied their squad.
(Inside Carolina)
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UNC-Mississippi State: Postgame Quotes + Audio
"We were very lucky, and this has been the unluckiest year I’ve ever had in my entire life. I’m not saying that just one game evens everything out. It was bizarre. One time in the first half we deflected the ball it bounced between our guys legs to one of their guys and he made a three. There is no question, I don’t think Will intended to make his shot, but it went in and we have had some of those shots happen to us this year."
(Inside Carolina)
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Lucas: Unexpected Endings
In a place UNC had never been, in a tournament they never expected to be part of, it seemed fitting that the ending to Saturday's game against Mississippi State would involve an ending you could never anticipate. The extraordinarily nice people of Starkville made it clear that the second-round NIT visit from the Tar Heels was a big deal. In a town with a population of approximately 21,800, almost half of that figure crammed into Humphrey Coliseum.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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Larry Drew's layup wins it for Heels
In retrospect, perhaps it’s a good thing Larry Drew II didn’t realize that the 6-feet-9 guy standing in the way of his game-winner was the NCAA’s all-time leading shot-blocker. Because instead of over-thinking, the sophomore drove the length of the court on instinct. Instead of missing, he laid it up with his left hand over Bulldog Jarvis Varnado – beating No. 1 seed Mississippi State 76-74.
(Raleigh News & Observer)
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Drew II drives a winning bargain
Larry Drew II kept North Carolina alive in the postseason. He hit a shot over center Jarvis Varnado with 2 seconds to play to give the Tar Heels a 76-74 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday in the second round of the NIT. The 6-2 point guard drove to the basket and was able to get the shot over the 6-9 Varnado, who was second in the nation this season with 4.8 blocks per game.
(Durham Herald-Sun)
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No Roy Williams Radio Show Monday
Because of Carolina's travel schedule for Tuesday night's NIT game at UAB (9 p.m., ESPN), there will be no Roy Williams Live radio show this week. The program will resume live from Spice Street at University Mall next Monday, March 29, unless the Tar Heels are traveling to New York City for further NIT action.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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No. 17 Tar Heels Even Series, Defeat No. 4 Seminoles 10-4
Freshman Chris Munnelly earned his first win of the season to lead No. 17 UNC over No. 4 Florida State 10-4 Saturday at Boshamer Stadium. Jesse Wierzbicki paced UNC offensively with three RBI and two hits. The Tar Heels improve to 15-5 and 2-3 in the ACC, while the Seminoles fall to 14-5 and 2-3 in the ACC. Starter Colin Bates allowed just two runs on five hits while striking out five in 3.2 innings.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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North Carolina beats Mississippi State in final seconds, 76-74
The Tar Heels are still playing basketball. North Carolina won a nail-biter against Mississippi State Saturday afternoon, as Larry Drew's layup with two seconds left in regulation gave the Heels a 76-74 win in the second round of the NIT. The Heels now await the winner of N.C. State's game with UAB.
(WRAL Sports Fan)
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Mississippi State Game Guide
North Carolina will travel to Starkville, Mississippi for the first time ever to face Mississippi State (24-11) in the second round of the NIT. The Bulldogs are the No. 1 seed while UNC is the No. 4 seed. The winner will play the winner of a game between NC State (six-seed) and UAB (two-seed). Carolina is 10-4 in the NIT and is coming off of an 80-72 win in Carmichael Arena over William and Mary in the first round on Tuesday.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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Tyler Zeller doesn't worry about what might have been
Over the past two games, Tyler Zeller has scored 30 points, recorded his first double-double, and sealed a first-round NIT victory with a steal-and-dunk in the final minute. It makes you wonder what might have been - for both Zeller and the fourth-seeded Tar Heels, as they prepare to play at No. 1 seed Mississippi State in the second round today - had the 7-footer not missed ten ACC games with a stress fracture in his right foot.
(Charlotte Observer)
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Heels hope for success in first trip to Mississippi
North Carolina senior Deon Thompson admitted that its been tough to watch the opening-round games of the NCAA Tournament the past few days. For the past three seasons, Thompson has been a part of teams that have contended for Final Four spots, and he made it to two. But this season, Thompson and his teammates are trying to reach a different final four, that of the NIT.
(Durham Herald-Sun)
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Tar Heel women look to prove they belong in the field
Perimeter defense will be a key for North Carolina tonight when the No. 10 seeded Tar Heels take on No. 7 seeded Gonzaga in the NCAA Tournament in Seattle, Wash. (10:30 p.m., ESPN2). "They all put it up from the outside," UNC coach Sylvia Hatchell said. The Tar Heels know Gonzaga is loaded with outside shooters, including junior guard Courtney Vandersloot.
(Durham Herald-Sun)
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No. 4 Florida State Rallies Past No. 17 North Carolina 4-3
Mike McGee's RBI single and first save of the season propels No. 4 Florida State over No. 17 North Carolina 4-3 Friday in front of 2832 fans at Boshamer Stadium. Florida State (14-3, 2-2 ACC) scrapped together a pair of runs in the eighth and ninth inning to rally past Carolina. A brilliant effort from Matt Harvey that featured 11 strikeouts and seven shutout innings results in a no decision.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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Carolina's hotel rooms aren't big enough
I suppose it's better to be at home than in Starkville, Miss. I've never been to Mississippi but from the looks of Ed Davis' latest tweet, I definitely don't think they have anything close to an "Everything's bigger in Texas"-type motto. The Carolina basketball team rolled into town on Friday to get ready for Saturday's second-round NIT game against Mississippi State. Davis' tweet did not speak well of the Tar Heels' hotel accommodations.
(WRAL Sports Fan)
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Tar Heel women on a cold streak
Lately the Tar Heels haven't displayed much good shooting, making just 280 of 736 shots (38 percent) from the field over their past 11 games. For the season, they are shooting 41.4 percent. Despite losing eight of their past 11 games, the Heels earned a berth in the NCAA tournament and face seventh-seeded Gonzaga on Saturday (10:30 p.m.) in the first round at the Bank of America Center in Seattle.
(Raleigh News & Observer)
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Gonzaga women feel slighted
Seeing a "10" next to North Carolina's seeding is certainly different for everyone associated with the Tar Heels program. It's the lowest NCAA seed in the program's history, although the Tar Heels will take it after dropping eight of their final 11 to put their NCAA hopes in jeopardy. It's a young team Coach Sylvia Hatchell brings into the tournament.
(Winston-Salem Journal)
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This time, Duke and UNC are miles apart
This season has been horrible for the Heels. Mind you, the distance that really matters is the expanse from the head to the heart. And that would be the proverbial heart from which a group of kids found it within themselves to channel the spirit of their awe-shucks coach and proclaim, "Dadgummit, let's go out there and ball!" Carolina did that the other night at Carmichael Arena.
(Durham Herald-Sun)
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Jeff Lebo Emerges as Top Candidate at ECU
Former Auburn coach Jeff Lebo is the leading candidate to replace Mack McCarthy as head basketball coach at East Carolina. Sources indicate that one other candidate will be interviewed. Lebo was 96-93 in six seasons at Auburn. Lebo previously built programs at Tennessee-Chattanooga and Tennessee Tech. Lebo was an All-ACC point guard and four-year starter at the University of North Carolina from 1986-89
(WNCT)
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Previewing Mississippi State
Mississippi State is considered by many to be the favorite to win the NIT, and the Bulldogs are hosting the Tar Heels in Saturday's second-round matchup. Tip-off in Starkville, Miss. is scheduled for noon (ET) and will be televised by ESPN. Mississippi State enters Saturday’s contest with a 24-11 record. The Bulldogs' signature non-conference win was a 69-55 victory over Old Dominion on Nov. 28.
(Inside Carolina)
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MSU's Bost motivated for North Carolina
Dee Bost is looking forward to Mississippi State’s game against UNC in the second round of the NIT. The sophomore point guard, of Concord, N.C., believes he has something to prove Saturday. Bost was the Class 3A Player of the Year in North Carolina and he wants to play well because of what he perceived to be a lack of attention from UNC coach Roy Williams and his staff when he was being recruited.
(Commercial Dispatch)
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Time for another Groza award winner?
After a season filled with inexperienced place-kickers, the ACC now has some legitimate talent returning. Here are the top five Groza candidates this year in the ACC: Casey Barth, North Carolina: He led the ACC in field goals and finished 12th nationally, making 21 of 25 field goals and 34 of 35 PATs for 97 points. Barth ranks 13th among all returning place-kickers in career field goal accuracy (31-40, .775).
(ESPN.com)
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Friday Roy Williams Quotes
What’s your overall opinion of MSU? “It’s a well-rounded team. You’ve got to think about Varnado inside; he’s such a relentless rebounder and even on the offensive end, he gets his hands on so many balls. You’ve got to be concerned about him dominating that area six or eight feet around the basket.And then their ability to shoot the 3-point shot; four guys in the game all of the time that can shoot the 3-point shot and shoot it effectively."
(Inside Carolina)
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