University of North Carolina Athletics
Kennedy Meeks vs. Oregon in 2017
Photo by: NCAA Photos
Lucas: April 1 Flashback
April 1, 2020 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Looking back at key Tar Heel moments from this day in NCAA Tournament history.
By Adam Lucas
Carolina's win over Oregon in the 2017 Final Four is largely a footnote to that year's redemption run to the national championship. But don't forget about just how unlikely this victory was.
The Tar Heels didn't make a field goal in the final 5:53 of the game. They missed four straight free throws with a one-point lead in the final minute of the game. Kennedy Meeks' first-half production saved the rest of the Tar Heels from a 4-for-24 performance that might have otherwise been a 2008 Kansas situation.
And yet Carolina somehow emerged with a 77-76 victory over the Ducks, advancing them to the national championship game against Gonzaga. They largely had Meeks to thank for staying alive, as the senior had one of the best games of his career. He shot 11-for-13 from the field to tie his career high with 25 points. He also had 14 rebounds, none bigger than in the final minute.
First it was Meeks who missed a pair of free throws, but Theo Pinson kept the ball alive and tipped it to Joel Berry II. Berry was also fouled, and he somehow missed both. At the game's most important moment, Meeks outfought Oregon standout post player Jordan Bell for the offensive rebound to preserve the win.
That essentially summed up the game, as the overall rebounding battle was even. But as they had done all year, Carolina controlled the offensive glass. Meeks had eight offensive boards, helping the Tar Heels to a five-rebound edge in that category. They turned those second chances into 19 points off offensive rebounds.
The narrow victory was the first time since 1969 that the Tar Heels had won back to back NCAA Tournament games by two points or fewer and continued a magical, yet improbable, run. Most of the postgame chatter was about the redemption story that could come to a close with a win in the championship game. The postgame column was about a focus on this year rather than last year, and on Meeks' incredible performance. By the way, if you've forgotten it, the night before the game Meeks wrote an incredible first-person account of his Tar Heel career and all of his ups and downs.
Also on April 1
1995: The only other Carolina game played on April Fool's Day in program history was a memorable one, but not for the right reasons. The Tar Heels fell to Arkansas, 75-68, in the Final Four in Seattle. Two fluky events conspired to work against Carolina: the Razorbacks' Dwight Stewart made a 55-foot shot at the halftime buzzer to change the momentum of the game, and Jerry Stackhouse suffered a thigh bruise immediately after tipoff. Stewart's shot came after Carolina had a seven-point lead and the ball with 3.6 seconds left; a turnover and his fling made it a four-point game at the break. Donald Williams had a good look at a potential game-tying three-pointer in the game's final seconds, but it wouldn't go down.
Carolina's win over Oregon in the 2017 Final Four is largely a footnote to that year's redemption run to the national championship. But don't forget about just how unlikely this victory was.
The Tar Heels didn't make a field goal in the final 5:53 of the game. They missed four straight free throws with a one-point lead in the final minute of the game. Kennedy Meeks' first-half production saved the rest of the Tar Heels from a 4-for-24 performance that might have otherwise been a 2008 Kansas situation.
And yet Carolina somehow emerged with a 77-76 victory over the Ducks, advancing them to the national championship game against Gonzaga. They largely had Meeks to thank for staying alive, as the senior had one of the best games of his career. He shot 11-for-13 from the field to tie his career high with 25 points. He also had 14 rebounds, none bigger than in the final minute.
First it was Meeks who missed a pair of free throws, but Theo Pinson kept the ball alive and tipped it to Joel Berry II. Berry was also fouled, and he somehow missed both. At the game's most important moment, Meeks outfought Oregon standout post player Jordan Bell for the offensive rebound to preserve the win.
That essentially summed up the game, as the overall rebounding battle was even. But as they had done all year, Carolina controlled the offensive glass. Meeks had eight offensive boards, helping the Tar Heels to a five-rebound edge in that category. They turned those second chances into 19 points off offensive rebounds.
The narrow victory was the first time since 1969 that the Tar Heels had won back to back NCAA Tournament games by two points or fewer and continued a magical, yet improbable, run. Most of the postgame chatter was about the redemption story that could come to a close with a win in the championship game. The postgame column was about a focus on this year rather than last year, and on Meeks' incredible performance. By the way, if you've forgotten it, the night before the game Meeks wrote an incredible first-person account of his Tar Heel career and all of his ups and downs.
Also on April 1
1995: The only other Carolina game played on April Fool's Day in program history was a memorable one, but not for the right reasons. The Tar Heels fell to Arkansas, 75-68, in the Final Four in Seattle. Two fluky events conspired to work against Carolina: the Razorbacks' Dwight Stewart made a 55-foot shot at the halftime buzzer to change the momentum of the game, and Jerry Stackhouse suffered a thigh bruise immediately after tipoff. Stewart's shot came after Carolina had a seven-point lead and the ball with 3.6 seconds left; a turnover and his fling made it a four-point game at the break. Donald Williams had a good look at a potential game-tying three-pointer in the game's final seconds, but it wouldn't go down.
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