University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Wake Forest
North Carolina Falls At Wake Forest, 75-60
March 5, 2003 | Men's Basketball
March 5, 2003
By JENNA FRYER
AP Sports Writer
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Josh Howard had butterflies all day with an emotional pre-game speech to give. In his final home game for Wake Forest, Howard was determined to go out on top.
Howard overcame a shaky early start to get 24 points and nine rebounds and give the ninth-ranked Demon Deacons at least a share of the Atlantic Coast Conference title with a 75-60 victory over North Carolina on Wednesday night.
"I was kind of nervous all day," Howard said. "I had to settle down when I came into the locker room (at halftime). I took a deep breath and said `This senior night stuff is over. Let's go play."'
That's what he did, scoring 17 points in the second half - six on thunderous dunks - to give Wake Forest (22-4, 12-3) a chance to win its first outright ACC title since 1962 with a victory at North Carolina State on Saturday.
Howard closed his senior season a perfect 17-0 at home, the first time Wake Forest has finished undefeated at Lawrence Joel Coliseum since the Tim Duncan-led team of 1995-96.
"This was his last game and there was a lot of emotion," freshman forward Chris Ellis said. "Josh had a lot of butterflies during the walk-thru today and his pre-game speech was special. We just went out and played for him."
The Deacons know how much they owe Howard, who has carried this young team that was picked to finish sixth in the preseason ACC poll.
After the game, his teammates lifted him into the student section to grab a sign that thanked "J-Ho" for the memories.
Howard, a Winston-Salem native, then ran back to midcourt and grabbed a microphone, thanking the fans for their support.
"The idea of not losing on senior night, the underclassmen showing love and understanding we didn't want to lose the game, it all just came together," he said. "And the crowd, they were so supportive. It's been a wonderful four years."
Justin Gray added 16 points and Jamaal Levy scored 13 and had eight rebounds as the Deacons beat North Carolina (15-14, 5-10) for the fourth straight time - the first back-to-back regular-season sweep of the Tar Heels since 1962-1963.
Jawad Williams led North Carolina with 17 points and Jackie Manuel added 12. Rashad McCants scored 10, but he fouled out with 5:56 to play and the Tar Heels trailing 62-49.
Williams, Manuel and Raymond Felton all played with four fouls throughout the second half, which North Carolina coach Matt Doherty said changed the complexion of the game.
"With my young guys in foul trouble like that, it really hurt us," he said. "Part of our game plan was to spread the court, but once they got into trouble, we had to change that."
In front of a raucous crowd - a rarity for Wake Forest, but a growing trend over the past four games - the starters were introduced behind the Deacon, who rode into the arena on a motorcycle.
NFL running back Jerome Bettis sat courtside and baseball Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda was 10 rows back, getting a standing ovation when he showed the Wake Forest T-Shirt he was wearing under his blazer.
It was an unusual sight for Wake Forest, which draws a traditionally conservative crowd.
Not this time, though.
Fans waved "We Love You, Josh" and "J-Ho, Player of the Year" signs and gave the senior star a rousing ovation.
Only he didn't play up to their expectations in the first half, missing eight of 11 shots and scoring seven points. Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser expected Howard to start the game in a funk.
"What are you going to do, not play him?" Prosser asked. "That doesn't seem that attractive. That usually happens on senior night."
He started to snap out of it right before the half, when he made his first 3-pointer with 55 seconds to play.
Then he opened the second half with another one, giving Wake Forest a 40-36 lead.
He opened the second half with a two-minute spurt of eight points, hitting a 3, scoring on a hanging two-handed dunk, then made another 3 to put the Deacons up 62-49.
His one-handed slam with 3:22 to play gave Wake a 69-51 lead, sent Howard screaming down the court in celebration and brought the entire arena to its feet in applause.
"I thought Jackie did a great job on (Howard) in the first half," Doherty said. "He had a lot on his mind - his last home game, his family, winning. Then he settled down and had a great second half."
