University of North Carolina Athletics
Droschak: Getting Over The Butterflies
November 20, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 20, 2005
by David Droschak, TarHeelBlue.com
CHAPEL HILL -- Remember the first time you had to speak on a school project in front of your class. Remember how prepared you thought you were, yet how nervous you got when the moment unfolded. Now multiply that times 100 or 1,000 and that's how North Carolina freshmen Tyler Hansbrough, Marcus Ginyard, Bobby Frasor and Danny Green must have felt Saturday night in UNC's season opener against Gardner-Webb in front of close to 20,000 fans.
This isn't just any school or any program these guys were suiting up for. They took the Smith Center court as the defending national champions, if in name only.
More than 90 percent of North Carolina's offense was gone and almost as much of its rebounding and defensive prowess. For the four freshmen, three of whom started, it was quite overwhelming at times.
The opening five minutes was nothing short of a disaster. There were seven turnovers, off-balanced shots and an early deficit against a school most basketball fans don't know outside of the state borders.
"Just the pressure, getting all the butterflies out was the hardest part," said Green, who scored 17 points in 13 minutes off the bench and flashed some impressive defensive skills. "It was hard to stay calm and play under control."
Frasor, who started at the point, echoed Green's sentiments.
"If I had to do it over again I would just be myself," said Frasor, who didn't have his shooting touch in the 83-80 victory and turned it over a team-high five times. "I was trying to force the issue; I was trying to do stuff that really wasn't me. If I could take something back I would take those turnovers back."
In the end, it took a clutch 3-pointer by veteran David Noel with less than two seconds left to give the Tar Heels the three-point victory. That came after the Tar Heels missed six straight free throws down the stretch.
Noel refused to look at the win as "an escape" against a team that returned four senior starters and should make some noise in the Atlantic Sun Conference in just its fifth season in Division I.
"The freshmen didn't give up," Noel said. "We came out and had so many turnovers, but those guys learned and grew up in a half. That was big for us in getting those guys over the hump. Luckily the first game wasn't a blowout so those guys know how it is going to be from here on out."
Roy Williams hopes not. He'll be looking for rapid improvement from this talented group of freshmen in the next few weeks and will demand nothing less.
Williams said in the preseason he'll be more patient with this team, but six minutes into the second half he subbed all five players off the floor after be felt they weren't battling for rebounds. A tongue-lashing awaited the group once they reached the bench.
"Coach had his little spurts where he yelled at us a little bit, but at the same time he was a lot calmer than he normally is," Noel said. "He has to be that way because we don't know how everything is going to play out. He kept us focused and kept us relaxed even when we were making all those turnovers."
For those UNC fans who didn't get to see the game in person, there were some positives with the new kids on the block. Hansbrough has some major inside game and more than held his own against Australian national player Simon Conn. Ginyard and Green will be defensive forces by mid-season, while Frasor has a strong body and a mental toughness that should translate well to ACC play.
But Williams expected a major project this season, and Saturday night's narrow win didn't sway his opinion much.
"I told everybody it was going to be like this," Williams said of the 20 turnovers. "I had some friends that came in and sat on the front row and I told them to keep their hands up because we might throw the sucker to them."
David Droschak is the former sports editor for the North Carolina bureaus of the Associated Press, the largest news-gathering organization in the world. In 2003, Droschak was named the North Carolina Sportswriter of the Year. He currently works in public relations at Robbins & Associates International, based in Cary.
