No. 17 North Carolina Baseball Upends Princeton 12-5
Bryant Gaines (1-0) earned his first win of the season to lead No. 17 North Carolina over Princeton 12-5 Wednesday. Seven different Tar Heels had at least one hit to help Carolina improve to 14-4 overall this season. The Tigers were plagued by four errors defensively as Princeton falls to 1-8 on the young season.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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North Carolina women will be first-round underdogs
The Tar Heels sweated out an at-large bid after an uncharacteristic seventh-place finish in the ACC before sliding in as the No. 10 seed in the Sacramento Regional. They will open at 10:30 Saturday night in Seattle, against No. 7 seed Gonzaga. The Tar Heels (19-11) will make their 22nd appearance. They're one of six ACC teams in the field, the eighth straight year that the conference has had at least that many.
(Winston-Salem Journal)
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Tar Heel women earn shot to prove it vs. Zags
A fresh start is something North Carolina is looking forward to as it gets ready to play Gonzaga in the first round of the NCAA Women's Tournament on Saturday in Seattle, Wash. The Tar Heels have gone through an unpredictable season that has left Coach Sylvia Hatchell grasping for answers. Her team enters the tournament facing one of the questions that been around since the start of the season: Who is the starting five?
(Durham Herald-Sun)
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Ty Lawson having solid rookie year
Before going down [to injury], Ty Lawson was quietly putting together a solid rookie campaign serving as Chauncey Billups' backup. Lawson is averaging 9.0 points, 3.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds in just under 22 minutes per game. He is shooting 51.4 percent from the field, 43.2 percent from beyond the three-point line and his player efficiency rating (16.78) is actually superior to those of Stephen Curry (15.37) and Brandon Jennings (14.81).
(Washington Post)
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Butch Davis Clarifies Bryn Renner's Status
UNC football coach Butch Davis told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that red-shirt freshman Bryn Renner will continue playing both football and baseball this spring, albeit with a strong emphasis on the pigskin. When Davis was asked about sharing Renner with the baseball team prior to Monday’s practice, the head coach responded by saying, “Now that it’s football practice, he’ll be here 100 percent of the time."
(Inside Carolina)
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Bobcats beat Thunder to give Jordan first win
Michael Jordan was known to play his best against the best. The team he now owns seems to fit that description, too. Hours after Jordan was approved as the first former player to be a majority owner of an NBA team, his Charlotte Bobcats continued a remarkable string of success against the better teams in the NBA, rallying from 19 points down to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-92 on Wednesday night.
(WRAL Sports Fan)
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Troy Douglas, Part III: Developing Depth
With the four senior starters - Kendric Burney, Charles Brown, Deunta Williams, and DaNorris Searcy - back in the secondary, defensive backs coach Troy Douglas knows that this spring is a time to start building for the future, as much as preparing for this coming season. “The older guys, we could probably roll out a ball tomorrow and play a game, but what if someone pops a string on their shoulder pads and has to come out for a play or two?"
(Inside Carolina)
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Mariners send Dustin Ackley down; he'll be back sooner rather than later
Dustin Ackley, the second player taken in last June’s draft, won’t start the season with Seattle. The Mariners made that clear Tuesday when Ackley was optioned to the club’s Double-A West Tennessee roster. That being said, Ackley made a lot of fans when he was with the Mariners in the last three weeks, and it would surprise no one if the left-handed hitting former UNC star would make it to Triple-A and the majors both later this year.
(Seattle Post Globe)
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George Karl returns from cancer treatments
Nuggets coach George Karl was back on the bench Tuesday night against the Washington Wizards after missing four games over the past week for cancer treatments. Karl is battling neck and throat cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments regularly for a six-week period. Last Monday, he had a surgical procedure to insert a feeding tube into his stomach.
(ESPN.com)
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Michael Jordan's bid for Bobcats approved by board
The NBA Board of Governors has unanimously approved Michael Jordan's bid to buy a controlling interest in the Charlotte Bobcats. NBA commissioner David Stern said in a statement Wednesday that he was pleased the $275 million purchase was "closed in such a smooth and expeditious fashion." Jordan is the sole investor in the ownership group, but he's expected to try to find local partners.
(WRAL Sports Fan)
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Thad: Special Night
How ironic that for all the preparation, hype, special uniforms, and special events that have gone into the 100th year of Carolina basketball, the most special night of the season was one that no one planned on. The NIT selection committee handed UNC a gift it didn't expect (and maybe didn't deserve) -- a home game, and by sheer chance, a home game that had to be played in Carmichael.
(Inside Carolina)
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Deon Thompson finds success in NIT win
When Deon Thompson made a mental error on the first play of the second half, the senior knew exactly where to go. He ran straight up to UNC coach Roy Williams and pleaded, “Don’t kill me.” Williams only said he’d think about it at the time, but after Thompson led UNC to an 80-72 win in the opening game of the NIT, he had nothing but compliments for his big man.
(Daily Tar Heel)
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Mariners like Dustin Ackley's bat, defense
The Seattle Mariners were attracted to Dustin Ackley by his magic bat. But now that they see the former North Carolina star's work ethic when it comes to defense, they are excited about the 2009 No. 2 overall draft selection all over again. He is headed to AA West Tennessee this season but is showing that could be a very temporary situation. Ackley has looked smooth in the field and typically at home at the plate.
(KNDU.com)
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UNC notes: Ginyard wins hard-headed title
UNC got a bit of a scare during its 80-72 win over William and Mary in the first round in the NIT on Tuesday when teammates Marcus Ginyard and Travis Wear collided -- leaving Wear with a bloody cut about his right eye, and Ginyard woozily sitting on the court. "Got hit right in the back -- his right eye to the back-side of my head,'' Ginyard said. "It knocked me down, it was a little fuzzy, and the referee just told me to stay down."
(Raleigh News & Observer)
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UNC Named College Basketball's Most Valuable Team
The Tar Heels won't be defending their title in this month's NCAA tournament, but when it comes to team value they can claim bragging rights for another year. The Tar Heels top our third annual ranking of college basketball teams with a value of $29 million, up 12% from last year when they also claimed the No. 1 spot. Their $17.7 million profit last season was greater than any other team and 70% higher, on average, than the rest of the top 20.
(Forbes)
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History and heartstopper: Tar Heels survive in NIT
Wearing throwback uniforms in a throwback gym, North Carolina needed to wake up just about every echo it could during Tuesday night’s 80-72 victory against William & Mary in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament. Thanks to hot long-range shooting from the visiting Tribe, the Tar Heels’ return to their former home, the on-campus Carmichael Arena, was more heart stopper than homecoming.
(Burlington Times News)
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Cold shooting costs Tribe late against UNC
The way they responded from a game-opening scoring drought gave Tony Shaver one more reason to be proud of this William & Mary team. And he wouldn’t let the scoring drought that ended the game spoil any memory of a season he’ll always cherish. Uncharacteristic turnovers and a cold shooting snap cost the Tribe late as North Carolina pulled away for an 80-72 victory Tuesday night in the opening round of the NIT.
(Wilmington Star News)
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Playing in Carmichael finally brings out the best in UNC
Maybe all it took was a little nostalgia to shake UNC out of its season-long doldrums, because with a raucous sellout crowd of 6,822 egging them on, the fourth-seeded Tar Heels responded with their best effort since the turn of the New Year. Wearing 1957 throwback uniforms, they topped the 80-point mark for the first time since Dec. 30 in holding off the Tribe 80-72 in the opening round of the National Invitation Tournament.
(Wilmington Star News)
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Heels get raucous NIT win at Carmichael
Deon Thompson excitedly clapped his hands in tune with the Carolina fight song as he prepared to be interviewed late Tuesday night. This might be the NIT, but UNC, playing at historic Carmichael Arena, didn’t play like it was second best. Spurred by a raucous crowd, the fourth-seeded Tar Heels beat No. 5 seed William and Mary 80-72 to advance to the second round; they will play at top-seeded Mississippi State on Saturday at noon.
(Raleigh News & Observer)
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Lucas: Thanks For The Memories
Carmichael is about as viable for the current men's program as a Members Only jacket is at Top of the Hill on Friday night. Three-fourths of the people reading this story would have never been to a Carolina game in person if the Tar Heels still played there. But watching Deon Thompson and Marcus Ginyard and the rest of their team grin through the 80-72 win, it was a nice once-in-every-20-years reminder.
(Tar Heel Blue)
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Heels Play On
UNC embraced the change of scenery that historic Carmichael Arena provided on Tuesday night, soaking up the sellout crowd’s energy and enthusiasm to survive William & Mary’s 3-point barrage with an 80-72 victory in the N.I.T.’s opening round. Deon Thompson scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Tyler Zeller added 13 points and five rebounds, while Marcus Ginyard contributed 12 points, four assists and five steals.
(Inside Carolina)
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UNC-William & Mary: Postgame Quotes + Audio
Marcus Ginyard: "We came into this game looking at it as a fresh start for us and try to get back to the place where this team gets better every day and does the things that we've talked about since Day One. I think today was the first step. We did a great job getting after, getting on loose balls and playing together as a team."
(Inside Carolina)
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Having Fun
It wasn’t just that UNC defeated William & Mary, 80-72, or that John Henson’s hands are probably sore after an array of electrifying dunks and blocks, or that Tyler Zeller’s Tyler Hansbrough impersonation in the open court gave UNC two key buckets, or that UNC overcame a fascinating 3-point barrage by the Tribe. It was because the Heels were loose. UNC embraced this evening and made the most of it.
(Inside Carolina)
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UNC-William And Mary Postgame Quotes
"We're very excited to still be playing. I am very excited about my team to the extent that we played pretty well in the first half, and went in [to halftime] with a ten-point lead. A hundred years ago I was Dean Smith's assistant and we were playing Loyola Marymount University and we had a twenty-five at half. When we were going into the locker room I told coach [Smith] that I was still scared to death. And that's how I felt tonight."
(Tar Heel Blue)
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UNC survives 3-pointers of William & Mary
An old building rocked to its foundations with deafening noise again last night as North Carolina charged from behind to win its NIT opener. North Carolina defeated William & Mary 80-72 in Carmichael Arena, its former basketball home. William & Mary led 72-69, but North Carolina held it scoreless for the last 5:07. UNC will play at Mississippi State in the second round at noon on Saturday.
(Winston-Salem Journal)
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