University of North Carolina Athletics
McCants' Return a Bright Spot from ACC Tournament
March 14, 2005 | Men's Basketball
March 14, 2005
by Dan Blank, TarHeelBlue.com
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The shot felt good when it left his hands. Seconds earlier he's swished a 3-pointer from the exact same spot and this shot had the same feeling.
But this one clanged off the front rim and into the hands of Georgia Tech's Jarrett Jack as the final buzzer sounded.
All Rashad McCants could do was stand near midcourt of the MCI Center, staring at the rim that had just denied his potential game-tying shot.
Although North Carolina lost its fourth game of the year and never looked totally comfortable in either of its ACC Tournament games, the Tar Heels do have to feel good about the return of their most potent scoring weapon.
After missing four games with an intestinal disorder, McCants scored 30 points in 37 minutes during his two games in Washington. He also reclaimed his role as the Tar Heels' go-to man in late game situations.
"It looked like it was going nothing but net, but it hit the rim," said McCants, who scored 17 points in 22 minutes against the Yellow Jackets. "The first thing that came to mind was Michael Jordan when he said, `I've missed over 1,000 shots, I've made over 100,000 shots but I failed to succeed,' so I have to keep going."
McCants scored eight of the Tar Heels' final 13 points and was who they looked to in the final minute. With 18 seconds left he was fouled behind the arc and only converted one free throw, but UNC maintained possession and he drilled a 3 from the left side off the inbounds pass.
After Georgia Tech's Will Bynum knocked down a pair of free throws to push the Yellow Jacket lead to three, McCants got a clean look from the same spot as the previous shot - and the same spot where he's knocked down big shots like the one that beat Connecticut last season - but came up short.
Only a day before, McCants received spot minutes against Clemson. But he was in the middle of several crucial plays that sparked the Tar Heels' 13-poitn comeback. With UNC down 10, McCants sank a 3-pointer off a handoff and screen from Jawad Williams.
Seconds later, McCants sprinted cross-court and dove on a loose ball to force an alternate possession that gave the ball back to UNC. The largely pro-North Carolina crowd at the MCI Center erupted and although the Tar Heels still trailed by seven, they knew they were going to win the game.
"I'm thinking in the lockerroom (at halftime) that we started a little bickering and whining, things like that. Throughout the year, we had nobody complain or point the finger at anybody," McCants said. "When I got back out there I just wanted to set the tone by example and not really have to go out there and say anything to anybody. Diving on the floor, getting that loose ball and getting the jump ball our way after scoring, I think that was a big turn for our team and a big turn for our confidence."
In his first game action since Feb. 19, McCants scored 13 points in 15 minutes while shooting 3-of-5 from the field. But his teammates felt McCants' presence in more ways than just a box score would indicate.
After North Carolina struggled from behind the arc against Duke in the regular season finale, the Tar Heels welcomed back their most potent outside threat who could extend the defense and create space for his teammates.
"He hit some big 3s for us and he gives us another scoring weapon out there," Jawad Williams said after the Clemson victory Friday. "The defense has to focus on Rashad when he's on the floor, so that frees other people up."
Even though the Tar Heels played far from their best basketball at the ACC Tournament this weekend, they still grabbed a No.1 seed in the Syracuse Regional of the NCAA Tournament and although they lost to Georgia Tech, they regained their most feared offensive player.
"I thought he might struggle for a game or so, but it only took him about 20 minutes to really get into and he was fine," Sean May said Friday. "He played like his old self."
Dan Blank is a staff writer with The Daily Tar Heel, UNC's student newspaper.
