November 17, 1998
North Carolina (2-0) advanced to the second round of the Chase Preseason NIT with a 65-44 win over Florida International on Monday evening. The Tar Heels will face Southeastern Conference foe Georgia in the second round on Wednesday, November 18 at 9:30 p.m. at the Smith Center. Georgia won its first-round game against Charleston on Monday with an 84-63 victory.
The Carolina vs. Georgia game is being televised nationally by ESPN. * The winner of Wednesday's Carolina-Georgia game will advance to the NIT semifinals in New York City on Nov. 25 to face the winner of the Gonzaga-Purdue game. The NIT semifinals and championship/consolation games will be played Nov. 25 and 27, respectively, in Madison Square Garden.
Carolina is playing in the preseason NIT for the first time since the 1993-94 season and the third time overall. In 1993, Carolina played the first two rounds at home and beat Western Kentucky, 101-87, in the first round and Cincinnati, 90-63, in the second round. In the semifinals in Madison Square Garden, Carolina dropped a 91-86 overtime decision to Massachusetts, but came back to defeat Minnesota, 90-76, in the consolation game to finish third.
Carolina also participated in the preseason NIT in 1988-89, finishing third. The Tar Heels beat UT-Chattanooga and Georgia in the first two rounds at the Smith Center, dropped a 91-81 decision to Missouri in the semifinals at Madison Square Garden and beat Indiana, 106-92, in the consolation game.
TAR HEELS AND BULLDOGS
Carolina leads the alltime series, 12-5, and has won three in a row over the Bulldogs. The two teams completed a home-and-home series last year in Athens, Ga., with the Tar Heels pulling out an 82-80 overtime victory. UNC beat the Bulldogs, 85-74, on Dec. 7, 1995 in the Smith Center in the first game of the series.
Carolina is 7-0 against Georgia in Chapel Hill, including a 2-0 mark in the Smith Center. The Tar Heels also registered wins over UGA in Chapel Hill in 1918, 1927, 1928, 1963, 1964, 1989 and 1996.
Wednesday's game is the second between Carolina and Georgia in the Preseason NIT. The two schools also played in the second round of the 1988 NIT with Carolina taking a 99-91 victory.
The last time Carolina lost to Georgia was in the 1983 NCAA East Regional Finals. Despite 26 points from Michael Jordan, the Tar Heels came up short, 82-77, as Georgia advanced to the Final Four.
The two squads first faced each in 1918 and then renewed the series in the 1920s as members of the Southern Conference.
Tar Heel shooting guards Max Owens and Michael Brooker are both from Georgia. Owens, a 6-4, 190-pound sophomore, is a native of Macon, Ga., and played two years at Central High School before transferring to Mt. Zion Academy in Durham for his final two seasons. Brooker, a 6-6, 200-pound sophomore is from Sandersville, Ga., and played prep ball at Brentwood Academy where he led the team to a 21-6 record. He broke the Georgia state record for consecutive free throws made with 87 over an 11-game span.
The last time Carolina played a Southeastern Conference school other than Georgia was South Carolina in Harris Teeter Pepsi Challenge in Charlotte on Dec. 7, 1996. Carolina defeated the Gamecocks, 86-75.
Carolina has not lost to an SEC school since falling, 75-68, to Arkansas in the 1995 Final Four in Seattle.
LAST YEAR VS. GEORGIA
Carolina trailed most of the game vs. the Bulldogs last season in Athens, and were down by as many as 11 points late in the second half, but rallied for an 82-80 overtime victory.
The Tar Heels trailed by eight points with 3:16 remaining, but sliced into the lead by playing great defense and converting five of eight free throws. Georgia aided the Carolina cause by missing the front end of a one-and-one free throw attempt with 1:53 remaining and missing four of five free throws in the final 2:23 of regulation.
Ademola Okulaja tied the game with two free throws with just 25 seconds left and then forced a jump ball (the arrow favored UNC) by knocking the ball losse on Georgia's last possession. Ed Cota's long three-point attempt hit off the front rim as time expired.
In overtime, Carolina took its first lead since the 19:01 mark in the second half when Okulaja hit his only 3-pointer of the game to give UNC a 76-73 lead. After Georgia tied the game at 80, Cota found fed Vince Carter perfectly for an easy layup with 3.2 seconds left. The Bulldogs had one last chance to tie as Jones, an 88 percent shooter from the free throw line, was fouled with just over a second to play. Jones missed his first free throw and Carolina escaped with the victory.
TAR HEELS TAME FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
Senior forward Ademola Okulaja scored 15 points and grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds to lead the Tar Heels to a 65-44 victory in the first round of the Chase Preseason NIT. It was his sixth career double-double and first since scoring 11 points and grabbing 11 rebounds last season at home vs. Maryland on Feb. 14. Okulaja's previous rebounding high was 12 on two occasions. His 17 rebounds were the most by a Tar Heel since Antawn Jamison had 18 vs. Duke in the 1998 ACC Championship game on March 8, 1998.
Sophomore center Brendan Haywood recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. Haywood's previous rebounding high was nine in UNC's season-opening victory against Appalachian State three days prior.
The Tar Heels' 65 points were the fewest in a victory since a 60-45 win at Virginia on Feb. 11, 1998. Carolina shot 41.8 percent from the field, its lowest in a win since last year's 82-80 overtime victory at Georgia.
Carolina held Florida International to just 26.5 percent shooting >from the field. That is the lowest shooting percentage by an opponent since holding Chattanooga to 21.7 percent in a 68-38 victory on Dec. 5, 1997. The 44 points were the fewest allowed by a Carolina team since last season's 50-42 win vs. Princeton on Dec. 13, 1997.
GOOD START
Carolina is off to a 2-0 start for the ninth time in the last 10 years. The only time Carolina did not start the season with two victories was in 1996-97 when UNC lost to Arizona in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Classic in Springfield.
Carolina is attempting to go 3-0 for just the fifth time in the last 10 years. Last season, Carolina rattled off 17 straight victories before falling at Maryland.
TAR HEEL TRENDS
Carolina won each of its first two games this year by 21 points.
In only two games this season, Carolina opponents are a combined 40 of 133 (.301). Last year, the Tar Heels led the ACC in field goal percentage defense (.384). Over the last 40 games dating back to the start of last season, only one team has shot over 50 percent against UNC. Maryland shot 51.5 percent from the field in an 89-83 overtime victory at Cole Field House on Jan. 14, 1998.
With three players at least 6-10, Carolina hopes to continue its recent dominance on the boards. Carolina outrebounded its first two opponents by an average of 9.5 rebounds per game.
Carolina blocked six shots in its first game and eight on Monday vs. Florida International.
EVTIMOV INELIGIBLE FOR NOW
North Carolina sophomore forward Vasco Evtimov will be held out of competition by UNC until a matter concerning his eligibility is resolved between the school and the NCAA.
Evtimov played at Carolina in 1996-97, but spent 10 months in the French Military beginning in July 1997 to fulfill a mandatory stint in the armed forces. While in France, Evtimov played for a club team near his base. The NCAA is questioning his eligibility based on his competiton with the club team.
UNC officials continue to discuss the matter with the NCAA and hope for a ruling on the matter in the most expedient time possible.
CAROLINA OPENS SEASON WITH VICTORY
North Carolina opened the 1998-99 season at home with an 87-64 victory over Appalachian State on Nov. 13, improving to 84-5 alltime in season openers.
Eight Tar Heels played at least 12 minutes and two freshmen, forward Kris Lang and shooting guard Jason Capel, started the game. They became the 12th and 13th Carolina freshmen to start their first career game as a Tar Heel.
Center Brendan Haywood led the Tar Heels with a career-high 19 points on 6 of 11 shooting and added nine rebounds. His previous career-high was eight points three times last season. He was 6 of 6 from the floor in the first half and scored 11 of the Tar Heels* first 13 points in just over five minutes. Haywood was one of four Tar Heels in double figure scoring along with Lang (15 points), Ed Cota (17), and Michael Brooker (10).
Freshman Jason Capel had an impressive debut, scoring seven points, grabbing a team-high 10 rebounds and dishing out five assists.
Carolina shot 49.2 percent from the floor and held Appalachian State to just 33.8 percent. Carolina had an assist on 24 of its 31 baskets, a percentage of 77.4.
50 CONSECUTIVE OVER NON-CONFERENCE FOES AT HOME
Carolina has won 51 consecutive home games vs. non-conference opponents entering Wednesday's game vs. Georgia. The Tar Heels' non-conference record in the Smith Center is 66-2. Carolina*s only losses came to Temple in 1988 (83-66) and Iowa in 1989 (98-97).
REGULAR-SEASON TOURNAMENT TITLES
The Tar Heels are attempting to win their third consecutive regular-season title. Carolina won the Carrs Great Alaska Shootout last season with wins over UCLA, Seton Hall and Purdue and captured the Diet Pepsi Tournament of Champions in 1995 with victories over Tulane and Stanford. * Carolina has won a total of 34 regular-season titles, including six in the 1990s. The Tar Heels won the Red Lobster Classic in 1990, Tournament of Champions in Charlotte in 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1995.
COTA NAMED PRESEASON ALL-ACC
Point guard Ed Cota was named to the preseason All-ACC team along with Duke's Elton Brand and Trajan Langdon, Maryland's Laron Profit and Clemson*s Terrell McIntyre. UNC forward Ademola Okulaja was named honorable mention all-conference.
Cota is a preseason candidate for the John Wooden Award, which is presented to the nation's best collegiate player and was won last season by UNC forward Antawn Jamison.
Cota ranks seventh in school history with 522 assists. Jimmy Black is sixth with 525 assists.
CAPEL NAMED ACC PRESEASON ACC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Freshman swing man Jason Capel led all balloting for the 1998-99 Preseason ACC Rookie of the Year with 48 votes. Duke*s Corey Magette and Georgia Tech*s Tony Atkins tied for second with eight votes.
HEAD COACH BILL GUTHRIDGE
Guthridge is 36-4 as the Tar Heels' head coach. He is in his second year as head coach, but 32nd as part of the UNC program. He was an assistant coach for Dean Smith for 30 seasons before taking over last year following Smith*s retirement.
Guthridge, the 1998 National Coach of the Year, has won a total of 822 games as a member of the Tar Heel staff. Including 93 wins as an assistant coach at Kansas State, Guthridge has been on the sidelines for 915 collegiate victories.
Last year, Guthridge set the NCAA record for most wins by a first-year head coach with 34 and was named the National Coach of the Year by NABC, the Atlanta Tipoff Club, CBS/Chevrolet and The Sporting News. He was also selected the ACC coach of the Year after leading the Tar Heels to a 13-3 regular-season record and the ACC Tournament title.
CAROLINA HAS WON 52 OF 57
Carolina has won 52 of its last 57 games dating back to Feb. 1, 1997. That run includes a 16-game winning streak in 1996-97 and a 17-game win streak to open the 1997-98 campaign. The only five losses were to Arizona in the 1997 Final Four, Maryland on Jan. 14, 1998, N.C. State on Feb. 21, 1998, Duke on Feb. 28, 1998 and Utah in the 1998 Final Four.
Carolina has won 27 of its last 30 ACC games, including the 1997 and 1998 Tournaments.
IN THE POLLS
Carolina is ranked 10th in the Associated Press poll and 11th in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
The Tar Heels have been ranked by the Associated Press in 145 consecutive polls. That is the longest active streak in the country and is the fourth-longest overall streak. Marquette had the third-longest poll streak with 166 weeks in the AP rankings.
