University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels Set To Open ACC Tournament Play
March 9, 2006 | Men's Basketball
March 9, 2006
2006 ACC Tournament
Matchup: No. 2 seed North Carolina vs. No. 7 seed Virginia or No. 10 seed Virginia Tech
Date: Friday, March 10, 2006
Time: 7 p.m.
Site: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.
Records: Carolina 21-6, 12-4 ACC; Virginia 14-13, 7-9 ACC; Virginia Tech 14-15, 4-12 ACC
Rankings: UNC is ranked No. 10 by the AP and No. 10 by the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll this week. Virginia and Virginia Tech are both unranked.
TV: Raycom/Jefferson-Pilot in the ACC area, ESPN2 across the nation
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Network, a division of Learfield Communications. Woody Durham (play-by-play), Eric Montross (analyst) and Jones Angell (host) provide the call. A live broadcast also is available (on a subscription basis) on the University of North Carolina's official athletic website, TarHeelBlue.com
TAR HEELS AIMING FOR 16TH ACC TOURNAMENT TITLE
The University of North Carolina (21-6, 12-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) will try to win its eighth game in a row and its 11th in its last 12 games when it plays in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C. The Tar Heels, seeded second, will play the winner of Thursday's game between No. 7 seed Virginia (14-13, 7-9 ACC) and No. 10 seed Virginia Tech (14-15, 4-12 ACC). Friday's game will be televised nationally by ESPN2, with syndicated coverage by Raycom/Jefferson-Pilot in the ACC region.
Carolina has won 15 ACC Tournament championships, tied with Duke for most in conference history. UNC is looking for its first ACC Tournament crown since winning back-to-back titles in 1997 and `98.
The Tar Heels are coming off their seventh straight win, an 83-76 victory at No. 1 Duke last Saturday night in Durham, N.C. UNC is ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll and No. 10 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll.
After losing three of four games in mid-January, the Tar Heels have won 10 of their last 11 contests (eight by double digits). Carolina is currently riding a seven-game winning streak and has won those games by an average of 18.3 points per outing.
CAROLINA IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT
LAST TIME OUT -- CAROLINA 83, DUKE 76
Tyler Hansbrough scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half and Danny Green had a crucial defensive play with 38 seconds left to play as No. 13 Carolina beat No. 1 Duke 83-76 on Senior Night at Cameron Indoor Stadium on March 4.
The game was tied at 59 with 9:32 left to play in the second half before Carolina went on an 11-0 run to seize control of the action. Four different Tar Heels scored in that span, including consecutive baskets by senior Byron Sanders. Duke fought back to pull within 77-74, using an 8-0 run in less than a minute that included two three-pointers by DeMarcus Nelson. The Blue Devils were down three with the ball when Sean Dockery drove the lane with 38 seconds left and Green prevented him from getting off a shot. Bobby Frasor hit a pair of free throws and Hansbrough went 4 for 4 in the final 0:11 as UNC played with poise down the stretch to earn the win.
Hansbrough finished with 27 points and 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. Marcus Ginyard had 12 points and four rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench and played strong defense against Duke's J.J. Redick. Frasor had 10 points and five assists. Reyshawn Terry had nine points and eight boards. David Noel had eight points and 12 rebounds to win at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the first time in four career tries. Green finished with six points and six boards.
Eight of the nine Tar Heels to see action scored at least five points, with only Wes Miller (zero points) failing to do so.
The four Carolina freshmen to play (Hansbrough, Ginyard, Green and Frasor) outscored the four starting Duke seniors (All-Americas Redick and Shelden Williams, Sean Dockery and Lee Melchionni) 55-51.
Duke led 13-2 after the first 3:24 of the game. Redick hit four of his first five shots but scored only seven points after halftime. Redick missed 15 of his last 16 field goal attempts and finished with 18 points, 10 below his average. He made only one field goal in the last 36 minutes.
The win was Carolina's first in Durham since Feb. 1, 2001. It also was Carolina's biggest margin of victory over Duke since an 83-68 win in the ACC Tournament final on March 8, 1998. It was UNC's first win in Durham on Senior Night since 1996.
