University of North Carolina Athletics
Carolina Vs. Providence For Sweet 16 Berth
March 19, 2016 | Men's Basketball
THE MATCHUP
♦ Top-seeded North Carolina (29-6) will face ninth-seeded Providence (24-10) on Saturday night in Raleigh, looking to make its record 33rd appearance in the NCAA Tournament regional semifinals. The Tar Heels and Friars will take the opening tip at approximately 9:40 p.m. at PNC Arena.
♦ UNC beat Florida Gulf Coast, 83-67, on Thursday night to advance to Saturday's second-round contest. Providence beat No. 8 seed Southern California in a 70-69 thriller in the first round.
♦ Carolina is vying for its record 33rd appearance in the NCAA Tournament round of 16 and its record 27th official Sweet 16 appearance (since 1975).
♦ Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Reggie Miller (analyst), Dan Bonner (analyst) and Lewis Johnson (reporter) will call the game for a TBS national TV audience (and anywhere with the March Madness Live app). Watch online now.
♦ Westwood One Sports will carry the game nationally on radio. John Sadak (play-by-play) and John Thompson (analyst) will have the call. Listen online now.
UP NEXT
♦ The winner of Saturday's game will advance to next Friday's East Regional semifinal in Philadelphia against the winner of the game between No. 4 seed Kentucky and No. 5 seed Indiana.
A TAR HEEL WIN WOULD ...
♦ Make UNC 30-6 in 2015-16.
♦ Advance Carolina to its 33rd NCAA regional semifinal and its 27th official Sweet 16.
♦ Improve Carolina to 52-10 as an NCAA Tournament No. 1 seed.
♦ Improve Williams' NCAA Tournament record to 67-23, including 33-9 at UNC.
♦ Improve Carolina to 9-1 in the NCAA Tournament in Raleigh.
♦ Mark UNC's 29th consecutive win in an NCAA Tournament game played in the state of North Carolina, improving the Tar Heels to 33-1 in-state in NCAA action.
♦ Improve Williams' career record as a head coach to 780-208 overall, including 362-107 at Carolina.
A TAR HEEL LOSS WOULD ...
♦ End UNC's 2015-16 season at 29-7.
♦ Drop UNC to 51-11 in the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed.
♦ Drop Roy Williams' career record to 779-209 overall, including 361-108 at UNC.
♦ Drop Williams to 66-24 in NCAA action overall, including 32-10 at UNC.
♦ Drop UNC to 8-2 in the NCAA Tournament in Raleigh.
♦ Snap UNC's 28-game winning streak in NCAA Tournament games played in North Carolina.
TAR HEEL TIDBITS
♦ This season, Carolina won the regular-season title and the ACC Tournament in the same year for the 11th time (1957, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1977, 1979, 1982, 2007, 2008 and 2016). In eight of the previous 10 occasions, UNC subsequently advanced to the NCAA Final Four (1957, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1977, 1982 and 2008).
♦ This is the third time that Roy Williams has coached the Tar Heels to the regular-season and Tournament titles in the same year (2007, 2008, 2016).
♦ Four UNC players have at least 100 assists this year: Joel Berry II (122), Marcus Paige (110), Theo Pinson (103) and Justin Jackson (101). This season marks only the second time and the first since the 1972-73 season four Tar Heels have tallied 100 assists (George Karl 192, Bobby Jones 130, Donn Johnston 112, Darrell Elston 100).
♦ UNC's defense has allowed only one opponent to shoot 50 percent or better from the floor this season (Maryland at .508 on Dec. 1).
♦ The Tar Heels have held 26 consecutive opponents to under 45 percent in field goal percentage.
♦ Assist-Turnover Ratio: Carolina's assist-to-turnover ratio (1.66) ranks third in the nation and is the best of any Tar Heel team since turnovers were first recorded in 1981-82. The second-best figure is 1.53 in 1985-86. Other top-five seasons include 1.45 (2008-09), 1.45 (2011-12) and 1.42 (1997-98).
♦ Cutting Down on Turnovers: UNC is averaging 10.8 turnovers per game, the lowest figure of any Carolina team since turnovers were first recorded in 1981-82. Last year, the Tar Heels averaged nearly 13 turnovers per contest.
♦ Shooting 50 Percent: UNC is 18-1 this year when shooting at least 50 percent from the floor.
♦ Carolina is 175-16 under Roy Williams when its opponents shoot under 40 percent.
♦ UNC's three-point percentage of 31.5 would be the lowest in school history. The current low is 32.8 percent, set in 2010-11.
♦ 80 or More: Carolina has scored 80 or more points in 22 of 35 games and is averaging 82.3 ppg this season.
♦ The Tar Heels are 234-28 in 13 seasons under Roy Williams when they score at least 80 points (21-1 this season).
SEEKING ANOTHER SWEET 16
♦ A win over Providence would give Carolina its record 33rd appearance in the NCAA Tournament round of 16 and its 27th official Sweet 16 appearance.
♦ It would be UNC's eighth Sweet 16 in 12 NCAA trips under Roy Williams.
♦ The NCAA record book lists Sweet 16 appearances only since 1975 (when all teams have needed to win at least one game to reach the regional semis). Carolina has advanced to the Sweet 16 an NCAA-record 26 times since 1975. Kentucky and Duke are second with 24.
♦ UNC has an all-time record of 25-7 in NCAA Tournament regional semifinal games, including a 19-7 mark since the NCAA field expanded in 1975.
♦ Carolina has won 11 of its last 12 games in the regional semifinals, winning 11 in a row before losing to Wisconsin in 2015. UNC's 11 straight Sweet 16 wins came in 2012, 2011, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2005, 2000, 1998, 1997, 1995 and 1993.
♦ UNC has reached the Sweet 16 24 times in its last 32 NCAA Tournament appearances.
♦ In the last 32 years, the years in which UNC made the NCAA field but did not reach the Sweet 16 were 1994 (lost to Boston College in the second round), 1996 (lost to Texas Tech in the second round), 1999 (lost to Weber State in the first round), 2001 (lost to Penn State in the second round), 2004 (lost to Texas in the second round), 2006 (lost to George Mason in the second round), 2013 (lost to Kansas in the second round) and 2014 (lost to Iowa State in the second round).
♦ Roy Williams has taken 16 teams to the Sweet 16 and is making his 26th NCAA Tournament appearance as a head coach.
SERIES HISTORY
♦ Carolina leads the all-time series with Providence, 3-1, including a 79-77 Carolina win in the 2014 East Regional first round in San Antonio.
♦ In that game two years ago, Marcus Paige had 19 points and Brice Johnson had 16 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots in a 79-77 Tar Heel win. Kennedy Meeks added 12 points. James Michael McAdoo had 16 points and 10 rebounds. Carolina had 21 offensive rebounds and a 26-13 edge in second-chance points.
♦ The first three meetings in the series came in the 1970s. UNC beat the Friars in the 1971 NIT on the way to winning the title. The Tar Heels also lost 61-59 at Providence on Feb. 12, 1978 and beat the Friars 89-55 on Feb. 10, 1979, in Charlotte.
CAROLINA'S HISTORY IN THE NCAA EAST REGIONAL
♦ Carolina is making its 28th NCAA Tournament appearance in the East Regional and its first since 2014.
♦ UNC is 62-14 in the NCAA East Regional.
♦ UNC has advanced to through the East Regional in 14 of its 18 Final Four seasons (1946-1957-1967-1968-1969-1972-1977-1982-1991-1993-1997-1998-2005-2008).
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY IN N.C.
♦ Carolina is 32-1 in NCAA Tournament games played in the state of North Carolina. That includes an 11-0 record in Charlotte, 7-0 in Greensboro, 8-1 in Raleigh and 6-0 in Winston-Salem.
♦ Carolina has won 28 consecutive NCAA Tournament games in the state of North Carolina, last losing on March 11, 1979, to Penn in Raleigh.
♦ Six of the last nine times that UNC's NCAA tournament road has included a stop in the state of North Carolina, the Tar Heels have advanced to at least the Final Four (2009, 2008, 2005, 1998, 1997, 1993). The exceptions came in 2007, 2011 and 2012.
♦ Carolina's last four national championship runs have started with first-round games in North Carolina (2009 in Greensboro, 2005 in Charlotte, 1993 in Winston-Salem and 1982 in Charlote and Raleigh).
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY IN RALEIGH
♦ Carolina is making its sixth NCAA Tournament appearance in Raleigh (1968-1977-1979-1982-2008-2016) and is 8-1 in those games. The first six of those games were played at Reynolds Coliseum and the last three have been at PNC Arena.
♦ UNC advanced to the Final Four in 1968, 1977, 1982 and 2008 after playing NCAA Tournament games in Raleigh.
♦ Roy Williams-coached UNC teams are 14-2 in Raleigh in PNC Arena, including an 11-2 mark against North Carolina State and a 3-0 record in NCAA Tournament games (2008, 2016).
♦ Carolina is 16-4 overall in PNC Arena, going 2-2 there prior to Williams' arrival at UNC.
A WIN AWAY FROM 30
♦ Carolina (29-6) needs one win to capture its 12th 30-win season.
♦ UNC is seeking its sixth 30-win season in 13 years under head coach Roy Williams. The Tar Heels have won 30 games in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2012 under Williams.
♦ Prior to Williams' arrival, Carolina had won 30 games or more six times in the history of the program (93 seasons).
♦ Williams is going for his 11th 30-win season as a head coach (including five at Kansas).
TAR HEELS DOWN FGCU, 83-67
♦ Brice Johnson scored a game-high 18 points, had seven rebounds, a career-high eight blocked shots, three assists and no turnovers to lead an 83-67 win over Florida Gulf Coast in the East Regional first round. He set a Carolina NCAA Tournament record with the eight blocks.
♦ Head coach Roy Williams moved into second place in all-time NCAA Tournament wins with victory No. 66. He passed Dean Smith, who won 65 at UNC. Duke's Mike Krzyzewski is first with 89.
♦ Joel Berry II had 14 points and six rebounds and Justin Jackson scored 12 points. Isaiah Hicks scored in double figures (12) for the 18th time this year (third time in four post-season games). Marcus Paige hit three three-pointers and had 10 points and six assists.
♦ FGCU shot 60 percent from the floor in the first half. That was the highest percentage in a half by any opponent this year (previous was .560 by Maryland in the first half on 12/1/15).
♦ FGCU's first half percentage (.600) was the first time a UNC opponent has shot 60 percent for a half in the NCAA Tournament since Texas Tech shot 65 percent in the second half of a 92-73 Red Raider win on 3/17/1996.
♦ For the game, however, Carolina held the Eagles to 43.1 percent from the floor, the 26th consecutive game the opponents have shot under 45 percent for the game.
♦ Carolina had a 20-0 advantage in fast break points. UNC is 21-1 when it has at least 10 fast break points.
♦ UNC scored 21 points off turnovers, the most in a game since the Tar Heels scored 24 vs. Pitt on 2/14/16.
♦ Carolina blocked a season-high 10 shots (previous eight vs. Kansas State). It was the sixth time in UNC history the team blocked at least 10 shots in an NCAA Tournament game.
♦ Carolina had seven turnovers, which ties the third-fewest by UNC in an NCAA Tournament game.
♦ The Tar Heels scored 44 points in the paint. UNC is now 21-1 this year when it scores 40 points in the paint.
ROY WILLIAMS IN NCAA PLAY
♦ The Tar Heels are in the NCAA field in 2015-16 for the 12th time in 13 years under head coach Roy Williams. Williams has made 26 NCAA Tournament appearances in 28 seasons as a head coach.
♦ Carolina is 32-9 (.780) in NCAA play under Williams.
♦ With the win over Florida Gulf Coast in the first round, Williams moved into second place in all-time NCAA Tournament wins with victory No. 66. He passed Dean Smith, who won 65 at UNC. Duke's Mike Krzyzewski is first with 89.
♦ Williams has coached in 26 NCAA Tournaments. His teams have won at least one game in all 26 NCAA appearances, something no other coach has ever done.
♦ Williams' Tournament winning percentage of .742 (66-23) ranks fifth all-time (among coaches with 50 or more games).
♦ Williams' 20 straight NCAA appearances (1990-2009) are tied for the second-longest streak in NCAA history, trailing only the 23 in a row by Carolina's Dean Smith (1975-97).
♦ Williams has coached in 89 NCAA Tournament games, the third-most all-time behind Mike Krzyzewski (115) and Dean Smith (92).
