University of North Carolina Athletics
Men's Basketball Hosts Marquette Saturday
January 12, 2001 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 12, 2001
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North Carolina Tar Heels
Date & Time: Saturday, January 13, 2001, 1 p.m.
Site: Smith Center, Chapel Hill, N.C. (21,750)
Records: Carolina 12-2 overall, 3-0 ACC, Marquette 7-5 overall, 2-0 Conference USA
Rankings: Carolina 9th Associated Press, 11th ESPN/USA Today
Series Record vs. Marquette: Tar Heels lead, 2-1 overall
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Radio Network, a division of Learfield Communications. Woody Durham (play-by-play) and Mick Mixon (color) provide the call. A live broadcast also is available on the University of North Carolina's official athletic website, TarHeelBlue.com
Television: ABC (Brad Nessler, Brad Daugherty)
Tar Heels Host Marquette in Final Non-Conference Game of 2000-2001 Season
The Tar Heels play host to Marquette on Saturday, January 13, at 1 p.m. This is Carolina's final regular-season, non-Atlantic Coast Conference game this year. UNC is 9-2 thus far against non-conference teams this season.
Carolina has won nine games in a row since losing back-to-back decisions to Michigan State and Kentucky. The nine-game winning streak is UNC's longest since winning nine straight midway through the 1997-98 season. A victory over Marquette would give the Tar Heels their longest winning streak since beginning the `97-'98 season 17-0.
UNC returns to ACC action on Wednesday night when it hosts Clemson at 7 p.m. in the Smith Center.
Carolina and the Golden Eagles
The Tar Heels lead the series, 2-1, although the two teams have not met since the 1986-87 season.
Marquette won the first game in the series, 67-59, in the 1977 NCAA championship game at The Omni in Atlanta. The Tar Heels have won their last two games with Marquette, including a 66-64 road win in Milwaukee in Joe Wolf's homecoming game during the 1985-86 season and a 83-74 win in the return game the following year in Chapel Hill.
Smith Center Voted No. 1 Arena in College Basketball
In a recently published survey of Division I head coaches, The Sporting News ranked the Dean E. Smith Center as the No. 1 Game Venue in all of college basketball. The Smith Center beat out Kansas' Allen Fieldhouse and Madison Square Garden. The Sporting News wrote that "packing more than 21,000 people who bleed Tar Heel blue into the Smith Center is a sure thing for creating that warm glow that college sports fans flock to in the dead of winter."
Carolina also was selected by the coaches to have the best NBA Alumni Association of former players, the best two-sport athlete in the country in defensive end/forward Julius Peppers and the best rivalry in the country with Duke. Carolina's uniforms were voted the second-best in the country behind Cincinnati and UNC was tied with Duke for the third-best on-campus visit behind Pepperdine and UCLA.
Tar Heels Explode in Second Half, Top No. 14 Terps, 86-83, in College Park
Joseph Forte scored 20 second-half points, including 11 straight in one stretch after halftime, as Carolina won at No. 14 Maryland, 86-83, for the first time since the 1996-97 season. The win was UNC's ninth in a row, equalling its longest winning streak in three seasons, and ended Maryland's 10-game winning streak. Four days earlier, Carolina stopped Wake Forest's 17-game win streak with a 70-69 win over the No. 4-ranked Demon Deacons.
Trailing 36-32 at the break, UNC shot 54.3 percent in the second period and went on a 9-0 run to start the second half and seize control of the contest. The Tar Heels hit four consecutive three-pointers to begin the second half, at one point making them 8 for 10 on the night. After entering the game shooting 33.3 percent from behind the arc, the Heels finished the game 10 for 16 from long range, the second-most three-pointers they have hit in a game this season (behind 11 at Appalachian State).
Maryland made a late run, cutting the lead to as little as three points in the final 30 seconds before Forte hit two free throws and a layup and Julius Peppers had a thunderous dunk to ice the victory. Three-pointers by Steve Blake and Drew Nicholas in the final 0:05 made it an 86-83 final. Brendan Haywood blocked five shots, including a three-pointer by Nicholas with 1:51 remaining that could have cut the UNC lead to five.
Carolina committed just 15 turnovers against a Maryland defense that entered the game forcing 20.0 miscues per contest.
Ronald Curry played perhaps his best game as a Tar Heel, tying his career high with seven assists for the second game in a row. All seven assists came after halftime, as the Tar Heels went on a 39-16 run in the first 11:45 in the second half. Curry finished with a season-high 11 points and a career-high six rebounds in addition to hitting three crucial three-pointers. Only one of his four turnovers on the night came against the Terrapin press.
The Terps shot 36.4 percent from the floor in the game, becoming fifth UNC opponent in the last six games to shoot less than 40 percent from the field. Maryland shot just 31.7 percent in the second half.
Haywood Named National Player of the Week after Big Night vs. Wake Forest
Brendan Haywood scored 24 points in the win over Wake Forest and was named the Rivals.com National Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 2-8 for his efforts.
The 24 points were four more points than he combined to score in Carolina's previous four games. However, in those four games, all of which were UNC wins, Haywood had 32 rebounds and played exceptional post defense. He helped limit UCLA's Dan Gadzuric and Georgia Tech's Alvin Jones to a combined 18 points on 5 of 22 shooting from the floor. Haywood had been to the free throw line 18 times in the previous four games, but made just four. Against the Demon Deacons, he was 9 for 13 from the field and made six of eight from the free throw line. The Wake Forest game followed his first scoreless game since his freshman season.
The double-double was the 18th of his career. Haywood had eight points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots in UNC's win at Maryland on Jan. 10.
Curry (and Carolina) Taking Care of the Ball
Sophomore point guard Ronald Curry played perhaps the best game of his Carolina career on Jan. 10 at Maryland. Curry scored a season-high 11 points, grabbed a career-high six rebounds and tied his career high for the second game in a row with seven assists. Curry committed four turnovers against the Terrapins, but handled the ball well, committing just one turnover against the press. Curry's on-the-ball defense also spearheaded a UNC defense that held Maryland to 36.4 percent shooting, the fifth Carolina opponent in the last six games to shoot less than 40 percent from the floor.
Four days earlier against No. 4 Wake Forest, Curry hit a clutch three-pointer late in the game, but it was his passing and running the offense that had people complimenting him after the game. Curry matched his career-high with seven assists and committed only two turnovers in 35 minutes of action in the 70-69 win. He had six assists and only one turnover in 18 second-half minutes. In his last four games, Curry has played 133 minutes and committed nine turnovers while dishing out 19 assists.
As a team, the Tar Heels are taking better care of the ball, especially in the second half. They had just six turnovers in the second half of the 64-60 win over the College of Charleston, just two second-half turnovers at Georgia Tech, three second-half turnovers against the Deacons and seven in the second half at Maryland.
Forte's Numbers Continue to Climb
Sophomore guard Joseph Forte is having an outstanding season. Forte is scoring 20.5 points per game, grabbing 5.2 rebounds, shooting 47.5 percent from the floor and 81.4 percent from the free throw line and has an assist-turnover margin of 49-34. Plus, he is playing well defensively and gets better almost daily in that aspect of the game.
He was the MVP of the NABC Classic and the Hardee's Tournament of Champions, was ESPN's National Player of the Week after the NABC Classic and the ACC Player of the Week after he torched UCLA for 29 points.
Forte has scored 20 or more points in eight of UNC's 14 games (he had nine 20-point outings in 36 games last year), including six of the last eight games. Since an eight-point effort against Miami (which Matt Doherty called his best overall game as Forte had seven assists, six rebounds and three steals), Forte has erupted for 23 points against both Texas A&M and Buffalo, 29 at UCLA, 16 versus UMass, 29 against College of Charlestion, 20 at Georgia Tech, 15 vs. Wake Forest and 26 at Maryland. In that eight-game stretch, Forte is 66 for 129 from the field, a percentage of .512.
Forte's scoring is up this year from 16.7 to 20.5, his field goal percentage is up from .459 to .475, his free throw shooting is up from .752 to .814 and his assists have increased nearly one a game from 2.6 to 3.5 per game.
He is second in the ACC in scoring, ninth in free throw percentage, 14th in field goal percentage, fourth in steals, 14th in field goal percentage and 12th in assists.
Carolina Receives Fourth Straight ACC award
Joseph Forte was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week on January 2 following his MVP performance in wins over College of Charleston and Massachusetts in the Hardee's Tounament of Champions. It was the fourth straight week a Carolina player had won the award. Brendan Haywood (Miami), Jason Capel (Buffalo) and Forte (UCLA) had been previous winners for the Tar Heels.
This was the first time Carolina has had three different players earn ACC Player of the Week honors in consecutive weeks since Serge Zwikker, Antawn Jamison and Shammond Williams were named in February and March 1997.
Forte Earns Another MVP Honor
Sophomore guard Joseph Forte was named the Most Valuable Player of the Hardee's Tournament of Champions played December 29-30 in Charlotte, N.C. He scored 16 points in Carolina's 91-60 win over Massachusetts and had a game-high 29 points in the championship game win over the College of Charleston.
Forte was named the MVP of the Maui Classic and the NCAA South Regional as a freshman. Earlier this season he was named the MVP of the NABC Classic in Chapel Hill.
"Forte is a sensational player," John Kresse, College of Charleston's head coach, said after the tournament. "He is very opportunistic. I would pay admission to see him play. He's a ballerina. He makes the game look easy. He's so smooth, he's poetry in motion. He has a mid-range game and a go to the hoop game."
Capel Third Alltime at UNC
Junior guard Jason Capel is third alltime at Carolina in free throw shooting at 83.8 percent. He trails only guards Shammond Williams and Jeff Lebo among UNC's best free throw shooters. This year, Capel is fifth in the ACC in free throw percentage at .837. He was second in the ACC in free throw percentage in each of his first two seasons.
He has made 22 of 24 free throws in the last six contests. He did not have a free throw attempt against Wake Forest, only the second time this year he did not have a single attempt. He was nine for nine against UCLA and seven for seven at Georgia Tech.
Owens Expected to Play vs. Marquette
Senior guard Max Owens pulled a muscle in his neck in the final minute of the win at Maryland on Wednesday night after being fouled by Byron Mouton. He is expected to be at full strength for Saturday's game with Marquette.
Owens Making Big Contributions
Senior guard Max Owens has played well in UNC's last five wins over Massachusetts, College of Charleston, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Maryland. He has come on strong since the Kentucky game, when he fully recovering from a high ankle sprain suffered just before the season-opener vs. Winthrop.
He had 11 points in 12 minutes against UMass, added another 11 points in a then-season-high 21-minute stint against Charleston and had 17 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in a season-high 25 minutes in Atlanta. Against the Deacons, Owens had seven points, including a second-half three-pointer, and played good perimeter defense. At Maryland, he had five points in 12 minutes at Maryland
The Macon, Ga., native had three assists, two steals, and most noteworthy, only one turnover in 33 minutes of action against UMass and Charleston. Owens played the final 8:02 against the Cougars and scored seven points in the last 5:03.
Owens scored seven first-half points and added 10 in the second half of UNC's win over Georgia Tech. His basket and free throw gave Carolina the lead at 52-51, an advantage it would not give up the rest of the game.
Defense Limiting Good Looks
Carolina held Wake Forest to 37.1 percent shooting from the floor in its 70-69 win. That was the Deacon's lowest shooting performance of the season. The Tar Heels followed that effort by holding Maryland to 36.4 percent shooting in an 86-83 victory.
The Tar Heels have played solid team defense over the last nine games, coinciding with their nine-game win streak. Over that span, the opponents have made just 35.0 percent of its shots from the floor. Miami shot just 23.4 percent (a Smith Center low), Texas A&M hit 37.3 percent, Buffalo made 44.8 percent, UCLA shot 33.8 percent, Massachusetts made only 30 percent, Charleston shot 45.3 percent, Georgia Tech shot 32.8 percent, Wake Forest shot 37.1 percent and Maryland shot 36.4 percent.
The last nine opponents have made a combined 205 of 585 shots from the floor.
Only three teams - Michigan State, Kentucky and Charleston - have shot better than 45 percent against the Tar Heels. Kentucky shot a season-high 50.7 percent in its win over UNC and the Spartans made 46.6 percent from the floor in their win at East Lansing, Mich. Charleston led the Tar Heels by a point at the half and had the game tied with less than a minute to play before Carolina pulled out the victory.
The Tar Heels held the Cougars to 41.7 percent shooting from the floor in the second half. In the 84-70 win at Georgia Tech, the Yellow Jackets went 7 of 30 in the second half, a percentage of .233.
For the season, Carolina is third in the ACC in field goal percentage defense at .381 behind Wake Forest (.362) and Georgia Tech (.378).
Career Charts
Brendan Haywood is first alltime at Carolina in field goal percentage at .646, is second in blocked shots with 228 and is in 39th place in scoring with 1,180 points. Haywood moved past Pete Chilcutt (1,150) and Matt Doherty (1,165) with his 24-point outing against Wake Forest. Jerry Vayda, who scored 1,187 points from 1952-56, is 38th alltime at Carolina.
Jason Capel is third in UNC history in free throw percentage at .838. He went nine for nine from the line at UCLA and seven for seven at Georgia Tech. Over the last five games, he is 22 for 24 from the stripe.
On the Glass
Carolina is out-rebounding its opponents by 4.2 per game. However, over the last nine games, all UNC wins, the Tar Heels have 70 more rebounds than the opponents. Carolina has out-rebounded its opponents by at least 11 rebounds in five of those nine games.
The Tar Heels out-rebounded Miami by 17, Buffalo by 11, UCLA by 11, Charleston by 18 and Georgia Tech by 13.
Brendan Haywood and Kris Lang are ranked No. 5 and No. 8 in the ACC in rebounding, respectively. Jason Capel is tied for ninth. Haywood is second in the ACC in offensive rebounds at 3.29 per game. Lang is tied for seventh in offensive rebounds at 2.57 per game.
As a team, Carolina leads the ACC in rebounding with 41.9 per game and is third in rebound margin.
Forte named National Player of the Week by ESPN.com
Joseph Forte earned Most Valuable Player honors at the NABC Classic and was named the first recipient of ESPN.com's National Player of the Week award. Forte scored 48 points in the two wins in the NABC Classic, including a career-high 38 against Tulsa. His previous scoring high also came against the Hurricanes. Last year, he had 28 in the NCAA South Regional final.
Tar Heels in the Rankings
Carolina is ranked No. 9 in the nation by The Associated Press and 13th by the ESPN/USA Today poll. The Tar Heels are one of five ACC teams currently ranked in the Top 25 and one of four in the AP Top 10.
The No. 9 ranking is Carolina's highest since its was ranked No. 6 before losses to Michigan State and Kentucky.
UNC was No. 6 in the country in the preseason AP poll. This is the 16th consecutive season the Tar Heels were ranked in the Top 20 or Top 25 in the preseason AP poll. The last time UNC was not ranked to open the year was 1984-85, but the Tar Heels joined at No. 19 in the second week and remained ranked the rest of the year. This is the 27th time in the last 35 years that the Tar Heels have been ranked in the Top 10 in the country in the preseason Associated Press poll. UNC has been ranked in the preseason Top 10 17 times in the last 20 years. The only exceptions were 1984-85 (not ranked), 1995-96 (ranked No. 20 after Jerry Stackhouse and Rasheed Wallace left early for the NBA), and 1998-99 (ranked No. 11 after Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter left early for the NBA).
Carolina's average preseason ranking in the AP poll in the last 20 years is No. 6.
Haywood Is the ACC's Alltime Leader in Field Goal Percentage
Senior center Brendan Haywood is the ACC's alltime leader in field goal percentage. Haywood has made 453 career baskets in 701 attempts, a percentage of .646. That is the highest percentage in ACC history, ahead of former Tar Heel and current NBA All-Star Rasheed Wallace (.635).
Haywood led the nation last year with a field goal percentage of .697, the highest in ACC history.
He is among the leaders in the ACC in field goal percentage. The last player to lead the ACC in field goal percentage in consecutive seasons was Clemson's Dale Davis (1988-89 and 1989-90). Duke's Carroll Youngkin (1959-60-61), Carolina's Bobby Jones (1972-73-74) and Davis are the only three players to lead the league in consecutive seasons.
Haywood went zero for six from the floor at Georgia Tech. That was the first time since the Weber State game in the 1999 NCAA Tournament in which he failed to score at least one field goal. He had not been held without a point since the NCAA regional final against Connecticut in 1998. However, Haywood was a key player in Carolina's win at Tech as he grabbed seven rebounds and had three assists.
Peppers is Back
After considering declaring himelf eligible for this spring's NFl draft, sophomore forward and football defensive end Julius Peppers announced on Jan. 11 that he would return to Carolina for the 2001-2002 academic year and play football for one more season in 2001. Peppers was voted the No. 1 Two-Sport Athlete in the country in a recent survey of Division I men's basketball head coaches by The Sporting News.
Not since Vince Carter brought down the house has the Smith Center rocked after a dunk the way it did when Peppers slammed home an alley-oop pass from quarterback/point guard Ronald Curry against Wake Forest. The dunk tied the game at 55 with 8:19 to play and caused the Deacs to call timeout. At least a half-dozen replays were shown on the Smith Center video boards, prompting Coach Matt Doherty to ask his players in the huddle if they liked the dunk. "Oh yeah," said Joseph Forte, "that was a good one."
Peppers had five points and six rebounds against the Deacons and had an assist on a Brendan Haywood dunk. In the win at Maryland, Peppers had six points, three rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes.
The Bailey, N.C., native played his first basketball game of the season in Carolina's win at UCLA. Peppers rejoined the team for practice on December 20 after he finished his first semester exams.
Peppers played 12 minutes at UCLA and had six points and four rebounds. His play was crucial since Kris Lang and Haywood were plagued by foul trouble. Lang was limited to 22 minutes of action. Peppers had two dunks and hit both of his free throw attempts against the Bruins. Last year, he played in 31 games and was a key ingredient in Carolina's run to the Final Four. He was featured in Sports Illustrated after the win over Tulsa and was twice featured in front page photographs in USA Today during the NCAA Tournament.
Peppers scored seven points and grabbed six rebounds in the win at Georgia Tech. Two of his points came on a spectacular, follow slam dunk after a Lang missed shot. Peppers came in along the baseline and jammed it home with two hands.
In football this year, Peppers led the nation in sacks (15) and had a school-record 24 tackles for loss. He was second in the nation sacks pr game and third in tackles for losses per game. Peppers was a first-team All-ACC selection and was named a first-team All-America by CNNSI.com and CollegeFootballNews.com. He earned second-team All-America honors from the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the Associated Press and Football News.
Peppers started every game in 2000 and finished with 64 tackles, 24 tackles for loss for 146 yards and 15 sacks for 117 yards. His 15 sacks were one shy of Lawrence Taylor's school-record of 16 set in 1980. He was twice named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week for his performances vs. Wake Forest and Virginia. He scored two touchdowns this year, including a 12-yard fumble return at Wake Forest and a 27-yard interception return at Duke.
