University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: That Retro Feeling
February 16, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2005
By Adam Lucas
Carolina fans seemed fully immersed in Wednesday night's retro night activities.
Not necessarily with the clothes, although there were a few noteworthy ensembles (Eric Montross with the Chuck Taylors, Freddie Kiger's multihued sports coat, etc.). But the attitude surrounding the Tar Heels' 85-61 victory was decidedly 1980s.
Ho-hum, you could almost feel the blue seats saying. A 24-point win over an ACC opponent at home. Boy, could you believe the end of that Duke game?
Now that's retro Carolina basketball, but maybe more late 1980s than the early 1980s theme the evening was supposed to recreate.
Try these scores for a minute:
Virginia 71, Carolina 67, Jan. 12, 2002.
Virginia 90, Carolina 76, Feb. 20, 2000.
Both of those games were in the Smith Center. Both are of such recent vintage they don't even make a throwback jersey for those teams. And both, especially on nights like Wednesday, seem like ancient history.
Since those games, the programs have diverged diametrically. Now Virginia is the team resorting to squeezing every last second off the shot clock, a strategy the Heels had to employ in the 2002 ACC Tournament. When Carolina finally dropped into a zone against the Cavaliers after stretching the lead into double figures, it was like watching a Ferrari stuck behind a Sunday driver in I-40's right lane.
"Coach kept emphasizing that teams that face us down the road are going to try to slow things down," Rashad McCants said. "He wanted us to prove that we can win games even when it's in the 50s or 60s and teams are trying to slow down the tempo and that we can still get out and run and pressure."
Here's the thing: just 24 games into the season, not even three full months worth of games, this team has spoiled us. We've grown so used to seeing 10-2 runs, to seeing Raymond Felton throw no-look passes, to seeing Sean May battle on the boards, to seeing Jawad Williams score in double figures, to seeing Jackie Manuel locking down an opposing guard, that it's become a little bit boring.
Be honest: at some point Wednesday night, you turned to your buddy and said, "Geez, can you imagine how badly we'd be beating them if we had Marvin?"
The freshman prodigy sat out with turf toe, wisely deciding that resting it Wednesday and during Thursday's scheduled off day would be more efficient than trying to play through it. It would've been nice to see him in the old-school jerseys, but it would be even nicer to have him at full strength for an upcoming 10-day stretch that includes road trips to suddenly formidable NC State and Maryland.
Breaking out those old jerseys and the familiar shorts with the feet on the side was a nice touch, although it was hard to see number 11 and not think of Mike Pepper, or number 21 and not think of Jimmy Black, or number 42 and not think of Brad Daugherty. But that's what retro night is about--connecting the past with the present.
Terry Holland was in the building, and if you squinted your eyes hard, you could almost transport yourself back to Carmichael Auditorium in 1983. There were those familiar blue-and-white jerseys and there was Melvin Scott (Michael Jordan?) stealing the ball in the backcourt late in the second half and cruising in for a layup (if you squint harder you can turn it into Jordan's one-hand stuff after the strip of Rick Carlisle). And at the other end, there was Brooks Foster (again, Jordan) soaring head-high to the rim to grab a rebound over a Virginia player (except Foster grabbed his impressive board over someone named Hank Nacey and Jordan's was over Ralph Sampson).
That's retro.
And so was the way the win was received.
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly and can be reached at alucas@tarheelmonthly.com. His book on Roy Williams's first season at Carolina, Going Home Again, is now available in bookstores. To subscribe to Tar Heel Monthly or learn more about the book, click here.
