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Tar Heels

North Carolina guard Caleb Love says he will enter his name into the transfer portal after three seasons with the Tar Heels.
The 6-foot-4 Love announced his decision with a social media post Monday. He had big moments during an unexpected run to last year&rsquo;s national championship game though he also wrestled with inconsistency for most of his college career.
At his best, Love has game-changing scoring potential and is fearless in taking a big shot. That included scoring 28 points with a huge late 3-pointer to help the Tar Heels beat Duke in the Final Four for the first NCAA Tournament meeting between the rivals and the final game for Blue Devils Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski.
This season he led the team by averaging 16.7 points. but his shooting percentages all dipped after showing gains in 2022. He never shot 40% from the field for a season and twice failed to shoot 30% on 3s.
UNC returns Armando Bacot, the program&rsquo;s career leading rebounder and an Associated Press third-team All-American, and guard R.J. Davis at the core of an expected roster revamp. That comes after the Tar Heels became the first team to go from No. 1 in the AP preseason poll to missing the NCAA Tournament since it expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

This season, Love led the team by averaging 16.7 points. but his shooting percentages all dipped after showing gains in 2022.

Tar Heels’ Caleb Love plans to enter name in transfer portal

North Carolina started the year at No. 1 only to miss the NCAA Tournament. And that was enough for the Tar Heels to call it a season.
The Tar Heels on Sunday officially became the first&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-basketball-new-orleans-north-carolina-college-4a628bd0aaab8e17f1c83b6e45182f81" target="_blank" rel="noopener">top-ranked team in The Associated Press preseason poll</a>&nbsp;to miss March Madness since the field&rsquo;s expansion to 64 teams in 1985. Shortly after the NCAA field of 68 teams was revealed, the school announced it had &ldquo;chosen not to participate&rdquo; in the NIT to end its season.
In a statement, coach Hubert Davis said the focus all season had been for the team to reach its potential and have another shot at the NCAA title that had eluded the Tar Heels in last March&rsquo;s magical run to the championship game. Instead, as Davis said, the season &ldquo;wasn&rsquo;t what we had hoped for.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Many factors go into postseason play and we believe now is the time to focus on moving ahead, preparing for next season and the opportunity to again compete for ACC and NCAA championships,&rdquo; Davis said.
The statement came a few hours before the NIT field of 32 teams was to be unveiled.
The Tar Heels (20-13) returned four starters from last year&rsquo;s wild postseason ride under Davis, who was in his first season replacing retired Hall-of-Famer Roy Williams. The highlight <a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-north-carolina-tar-heels-mens-basketball-duke-blue-devils-mens-basketball-sports-mike-krzyzewski-76be1099a009ac7c2993c36a2eba00a8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was beating Duke in the Final Four</a> &mdash; and sending Hall-of-Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski into retirement &mdash; in the first-ever NCAA Tournament meeting between the famed rivals.
Yet little went to plan in&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/unc-tar-heels-ncaa-tournament-hubert-davis-54011db3081d9c471cf23b7e56d32842" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a season of unfulfilled expectations</a>, down to being listed as one of the first four teams outside the field.
The Tar Heels were one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in program history, and that allowed defenders to sag down on AP All-ACC big man Armando Bacot inside and take away driving lanes while daring them to make outside shots. They also had a mystifying knack for failing to close out tight games or making simple mistakes that proved critical the longer games wore on.
The combination first knocked them out of the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AP Top 25</a>&nbsp;for good before the start of 2023, then turned a once-unthinkable Selection Sunday outcome into a reality.
&ldquo;The pressure, I think, can get to everybody,&rdquo; Bacot said after a second loss to the Blue Devils at the end of the regular season. &ldquo;I mean, we&rsquo;re human. I&rsquo;d definitely say it somewhat got into our locker room.&rdquo;
Of the 38 teams to be AP preseason No. 1 since 1985, 18 reached at least the Final Four, with six winning the NCAA championship. The Tar Heels were among that group in 2016, losing the title to Villanova on Kris Jenkins&rsquo; last-second 3-pointer in Houston &mdash; ironically the site of this year&rsquo;s Final Four. But they returned the next year to claim the title that had eluded them.
This year&rsquo;s team was trying to become the third in program history to pull off that redemption arc. The other came in 1982, when a team that lost to Isiah Thomas and Indiana returned to beat Patrick Ewing and Georgetown with a roster featuring program greats James Worthy, Sam Perkins and a skinny freshman named Michael Jordan.
Yet this year&rsquo;s Tar Heels couldn&rsquo;t land the bid to even get that shot.
They had no bad losses yet stood at just 1-9&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/c2bbc8025fb6abfa07ec5183dc920dbb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in Quadrant 1 games that top an NCAA resume</a>. Most notably: there was&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-alabama-north-carolina-mens-college-basketball-f8bd87aa3f1593ce55dde62a25fcb483" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a four-overtime November loss to eventual No. 1 overall NCAA Tournament seed Alabama</a>&nbsp;in a game that highlighted both the Tar Heels&rsquo; ability to play with anyone yet also their inability to close out a quality opponent considering they led after halftime in eight of their 13 losses.
The Tar Heels arrived at the home-state Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in Greensboro knowing they had to work to do to bolster their NCAA chances. They beat Boston College but struggled against No. 13 Virginia&rsquo;s grinding defense, while Bacot exited early with an ankle injury from the BC win.
By the end&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/acc-tournament-unc-virginia-ba41c053cd1ad191b12d18431833755e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">of that 68-59 loss</a>, the Tar Heels seemed resigned to Sunday&rsquo;s outcome.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a lot of emotions just to see from last year, the type of run we made,&rdquo; guard R.J. Davis said. &ldquo;Like you said, looking from the outside in this year, it&rsquo;s tough. It&rsquo;s a tough position to be in.&rdquo;

UNC became the first top-ranked team in the AP's preseason poll to miss March Madness since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

How UNC went from preseason No. 1 to missing NCAA Tournament

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) &mdash; KJ Adams scored a career-high 22 points and No. 2 Kansas closed the game on an 18-4 run to beat Oklahoma 79-75 on Tuesday night.
Kansas (14-1, 3-0 Big 12) got 17 points from Jalen Wilson, 11 from Dajuan Harris and 10 from Zach Clemence. The Jayhawks have won 22 straight games against Oklahoma in Allen Fieldhouse, including 16 straight under coach Bill Self.
Oklahoma (10-5, 1-2 Big 12) was led by Grant Sherfield&rsquo;s season-high 25 points. Sam Godwin added 12 points, Milos Uzan had 11 and Tanner Groves had 10.
Kansas went more than 12 minutes without a field goal in the second half, but Adams ended that streak with a thunderous dunk at the 5:06 mark.
NO. 5 TENNESSEE 77, VANDERBILT 68
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Santiago Vescovi and Julian Phillips each scored 15 points as Tennessee recovered from a halftime deficit to pull out a win over Vanderbilt.
Vescovi scored 12 of his points in the second half to lead the recovery for the Volunteers (14-2, 4-0 Southeastern Conference), who won their 25th straight game at Thompson-Boling Arena. Uros Plavsic contributed 11 points.
Vandy&rsquo;s 7-foot Liam Robbins won the battle of the big men with 18 points off the bench. Noah Shelby had 12 points and Jordan Wright added 13 for Vanderbilt (8-8, 1-2).
NO. 11 KANSAS STATE 65, OKLAHOMA STATE 57
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) &mdash; Markquis Nowell scored 20 points and found Keyontae Johnson for an alley-oop dunk with 38 seconds left as Kansas State held off Oklahoma State.
Johnson added 12 points and Desi Sills had 11 for the Wildcats (15-1, 4-0 Big 12), who won their ninth straight and matched their victory total from last season. Predicted to finish last in the Big 12, Kansas State went from unranked last week to just outside the top 10 in the AP poll.
Kalib Boone scored 23 points and Caleb Asberry had 15 for the Cowboys (9-7, 1-3), who have lost three of four, all by 10 points or fewer.
NO. 13 VIRGINIA 65, NORTH CAROLINA 58
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) &mdash; Ben Vander Plas had 17 points and eight rebounds and Virginia used a 17-2 second-half run to beat North Carolina, which lost leading scorer and rebounder Armando Bacot to a left ankle injury.
Reece Beekman scored 13 points and Armaan Franklin had 12 points and nine rebounds as the Cavaliers (12-3, 4-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) won their eighth straight meeting with the Tar Heels at John Paul Jones Arena.
Bacot rolled his ankle 1:18 into the game and did not return. RJ Davis led the Tar Heels (11-6, 3-3) with 16 points and Caleb Love and Jalen Washington added 13 each. Washington, a freshman, played 27 minutes in Bacot&rsquo;s absence.
NO. 14 IOWA STATE 84, TEXAS TECH 50
AMES, Iowa (AP) &mdash; Gabe Kalscheur scored a season-high 25 points to help Iowa State roll past Texas Tech.
Kalscheur made five of six shots from 3-point range and was 10 of 14 overall as the Cyclones (13-2, 4-0 Big 12) coasted to their sixth straight win.
Jaren Holmes added 15 points. Caleb Grill finished with 14 after hitting four of his first six 3-pointers. Iowa State finished 12 of 22 from behind the arc.
De&rsquo;Vion Harmon led Tech (10-6, 0-4) with 14 points.
MICHIGAN STATE 69, NO. 18 WISCONSIN 65
MADISON, Wis. (AP) &mdash; A.J. Hoggard made a tiebreaking layup with 41 seconds left and Michigan State rallied past Wisconsin for its seventh consecutive victory in a game that had 14 lead changes.
Wisconsin (11-4, 3-2 Big Ten) was playing its second straight game without leading scorer and three-year starter Tyler Wahl, who averages 13.2 points per game.
Joey Hauser had 20 points for Michigan State (12-4, 4-1), which won its first road game since Dec. 7. Tyson Walker added 13 points, Jaden Akins 12 and Hoggard 10.
Steven Crowl scored 19 points, Chucky Hepburn 14 and Connor Essegian 13 for Wisconsin.
NO. 21 AUBURN 82, OLE MISS 73
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) &mdash; Wendell Green Jr. scored 23 points, including 18 in the second half, and Auburn dominated after halftime to beat Mississippi.
Auburn (13-3, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) trailed 35-34 at the break but put together runs of 6-0, 10-2 and 9-4 in the opening 10 minutes of the second half.
Johni Broome had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Allen Flanigan added 15 points and Jaylin Williams scored 11 for the Tigers, who shot 17 of 28 (60.7%) in the second half.
Matthew Murrell led Ole Miss (8-8, 0-4) with 24 points, adding six rebounds and four assists. Tye Fagan scored 13 points and Jaemyn Brakefield added 12 for the Rebels, who lost their fifth straight.
NO. 23 SAN DIEGO STATE 74, NEVADA 65
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Matt Bradley scored 17 points and Lamont Butler added 15 and San Diego State took sole possession of first place in the Mountain West Conference.
The Aztecs (13-3, 4-0 MWC) dominated on both ends of Steve Fisher Court in a showdown between the last two undefeated teams in the conference to extend their winning streak to six games. Keshad Johnson added 11 points for SDSU, which has beaten Nevada nine straight times.
Nick Davidson scored 17, Kenan Blackshear 12 and Jarod Lucas 11 for Nevada (14-4, 4-1), whose six-game winning streak was snapped.

A recap of Tuesday's men's top-25 action includes a career night from Jayhawks forward KJ Adams.

No. 2 Kansas extends home win streak against Oklahoma to 22

Houston and Texas remain firmly entrenched atop The Associated Press men&rsquo;s college basketball poll, while preseason No. 1 North Carolina has dropped out entirely after a fourth straight loss.
The Cougars earned 37 of 62 first-place votes in Monday&rsquo;s poll, extending the program&rsquo;s first stay at No. 1 since the &ldquo;Phi Slama Jama&rdquo; days in the 1980s for another week. Houston (8-0) beat Norfolk State and Saint Mary&rsquo;s in its first week at the top.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t dwell on it,&rdquo; coach Kelvin Sampson said last week about the No. 1 ranking. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re not running around here pushing our chest out, thinking we&rsquo;re something we&rsquo;re not.&rdquo;
The Longhorns received 14 first-place votes. No. 3 Virginia got three votes and No. 4 Purdue got the remaining eight.
Connecticut (9-0) climbed to No. 5, the program&rsquo;s highest ranking since early in the 2011-12 season. Other than the top five, there are three other teams in the AP Top 25 that entered Monday undefeated (No. 11 Auburn, No. 13 Maryland and No. 23 Mississippi State).
SWIFT FALL
North Carolina is only the sixth team to go from preseason No. 1 to unranked since at least the 1961-62 season, most recently with Michigan State during the 2019-20 season.
Of that group, the Tar Heels had the swiftest exit from the poll to start the season (four weeks) excet for UCLA in 1965-66. The Bruins fell out of the poll after just three weeks back when only 10 teams were ranked.
Ranked No. 18 last week, the Tar Heels (5-4) l ost their fourth straight game over the weekend at Virginia Tech while playing without banged-up big man Armando Bacot. They appeared on a single ballot this week from the 62-member panel that votes on the AP Top 25.
&ldquo;I told them also that I&rsquo;m not panicked, I&rsquo;m not any of that,&rdquo; coach Hubert Davis said afterward. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m convinced we&rsquo;re going to be a great basketball team by the end of the season.&rdquo;
Last year&rsquo;s Tar Heels were on the bubble to even make the NCAA Tournament well into February in Davis&rsquo; debut season. They went on a final-month tear all the way to the NCAA championship game before falling to Kansas.
THE TOP TIER
Kansas climbed to No. 6, followed by three Southeastern Conference teams in Tennessee, Alabama and Arkansas. For the Volunteers and Crimson Tide, it marked their first appearances inside the top 10 this year. Arizona rounded out the top 10, falling six spots after a loss at Utah.
RISING
No. 13 Maryland had the biggest jump of the week, vaulting nine spots after wins against Louisville and Illinois last week in the Terrapins&rsquo; first year under Kevin Willard. That marks the program&rsquo;s highest ranking since pushing into the top 10 during the 2019-20 season.
Tennessee was next up with a six-spot climb, while No. 11 Auburn rose four spots.
In all, 13 teams climbed from last week.
SLIDING
Creighton had the week&rsquo;s biggest fall, tumbling 14 spots to No. 21 after losing at Texas and at home to Nebraska last week.
No. 12 Baylor fell six spots after a loss to Marquette, though the Bears responded by beating Gonzaga on Friday in a rematch of the 2021 NCAA championship game won by Baylor.
The Zags, now No. 18, fell four spots to their lowest ranking since checking in at No. 20 on Christmas Day in 2017.
In all, four teams slid from last week.
STATUS QUO
Beyond the top three, No. 25 Ohio State remained in place after a tough loss at No. 15 Duke last week.
WELCOME
No. 23 Mississippi State and No. 24 TCU were the new additions to the poll, with the Bulldogs (8-0) earning their first AP Top 25 ranking under first-year coach Chris Jans since January 2019.
The Horned Frogs were ranked 14th and 15th, respectively, in the first two polls before falling out for two weeks.
FAREWELL (FOR NOW)
In addition to UNC, Michigan State (No. 20) fell out after losses to Notre Dame and Northwestern.
CONFERENCE WATCH
The SEC led the way with six ranked teams, including No. 16 Kentucky. The Big Ten and Big 12 each had five ranked teams, followed by two each for the Atlantic Coast, Pac-12 and Big East conferences.
The American Athletic, West Coast and Mountain West conferences each had one.

Houston and Texas remain firmly entrenched atop the AP men’s college basketball poll, while preseason No. 1 UNC has dropped out.

Preseason No. 1 North Carolina drops out of AP Top 25

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) &mdash; Justyn Mutts scored 27 points to lead Virginia Tech to an 80-72 victory over No. 18 North Carolina on Sunday.
Mutts scored 21 of his points in the second half for the Hokies (8-1, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), who built an 18-point, second-half lead and then held on to hand the slumping Tar Heels (5-4, 0-1) their fourth consecutive defeat.
North Carolina cut that lead to 67-64 on a layup by Caleb Love with 3:06 remaining, but Mutts answered with a basket 17 seconds later, and the Tar Heels got no closer.
The Associated Press&rsquo; preseason No. 1 team, North Carolina played without center Armando Bacot, who missed the game with a bruised shoulder.
Caleb Love, Pete Nance, and RJ Davis each scored 18 for North Carolina.
NO. 4 ARIZONA 81, CALIFORNIA 68
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) &mdash; Azuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo combined for 42 points and 19 rebounds and Arizona bounced back from its first loss by holding off winless California.
Tubelis had 25 points and 12 rebounds, while Ballo &mdash; the Division I leader in field goal percentage &mdash; made 7 of 10 shots en route to 17 points, with seven rebounds and four blocks.
The Wildcats (7-1, 1-1 Pac-12) were coming off an 81-66 loss Thursday at Utah, just their fifth in 44 games under second-year coach Tommy Lloyd.
Cal (0-9, 0-2) continued its worst start in program history, extending the nation&rsquo;s longest active losing streak to 12 games. The Golden Bears were led by guard Devin Askew, who had 25 points, while forward Lars Thiemann added 18 on 9-of-14 shooting.
NO. 5 PURDUE 89, MINNESOTA 70
WEST LAFAYETE, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Zach Edey set career highs with 31 points and 22 rebounds, powering Purdue past Minnesota in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
The 7-foot-4 Edey started slowly, making only one of his first seven shots. He dominated after that, finishing 11 of 23 from the field and 9 of 10 from the foul line.
Fletcher Loyer scored 20 for Purdue (8-0).
Jamison Battle led the Golden Gophers (4-4) with 21 points. Ta&rsquo;Lon Cooper added 15 points for Minnesota.
NEBRASKA 63, NO. 7 CREIGHTON 53
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Derrick Walker scored a career-high 22 points as Nebraska upset Creighton, the highest-ranked opponent the Cornhuskers have beaten on the road since 1997.
Nebraska (6-3) beat the Bluejays for the first time in 14 regular-season meetings in Omaha since 1995. Creighton (6-3) lost its third straight, with its previous two against ranked opponents.
Sam Griesel scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and Juwan Gary finished with 12 as the Huskers turned back every comeback attempt by the Bluejays.
Francisco Farabello scored 16 points to lead the Bluejays, going 5 for 9 on 3-pointers. Baylor Scheierman and Kalkbrenner had 10 points apiece.
NO. 13 TENNESSEE 94, ALCORN STATE 40
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Olivier Nkamhoua scored 20 points and Tennessee flexed its defensive muscles in a victory over Alcorn State.
The Volunteers (7-1) also got double-digit point production from Julian Phillips (18), Jahmai Mashack (13), Uros Plavsic (12), Tyreke Key (11) and Zakai Zeigler (10).
Dominic Brewton led the Braves (3-6) with 10 points.
NO. 19 KENTUCKY 73, MICHIGAN 69
LONDON (AP) &mdash; Cason Wallace scored 14 points and Oscar Tshiebwe had a double-double to lead Kentucky over Michigan in a London showcase of two marquee American college sports teams.
Wallace was 4 of 4 on 3-point shooting with his most important one giving the Wildcats (6-2) a five-point lead with 1:11 to play.
Tshiebwe, last season&rsquo;s consensus national player of the year, scored 13 points and pulled down 14 rebounds amid foul trouble that kept him on the bench for extended spells.
Hunter Dickinson led Michigan (5-3) with 23 points and nine rebounds. Jett Howard, Michigan&rsquo;s second-leading scorer, was in early foul trouble but had 16 points for the Wolverines.
NORTHWESTERN 70, NO. 20 MICHIGAN STATE 63
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) &mdash; Boo Buie scored 20 points and Northwestern beat Michigan State in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
Chase Audige also added 15 points and Ty Berry had 13 for Northwestern (6-3).
Mady Sossoko and A.J. Hoggard each had 12 points for Michigan State (5-3) and Joey Hauser added 10. The Spartans have lost two in a row, falling to Notre Dame earlier in the week.
NO. 21 UCLA 65, OREGON 56
LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; Jaylen Clark and freshman Amari Bailey scored 14 points each and UCLA rallied in the final four minutes to hold off Oregon for its fourth straight win.
The Bruins (7-2, 2-0 Pac-12) hadn&rsquo;t had a big scoring run all game until they pulled away late.
The Ducks (4-5, 1-1) had won four straight over the Bruins. Guerrier led the Ducks with 15 points and Will Richardson added 13 points.
NO. 23 IOWA STATE 71, ST. JOHN&rsquo;S 60
AMES, Iowa (AP) &mdash; Jaren Holmes scored 14 points and Aljaz Kunc added 12 as Iowa State handed St. John&rsquo;s its first loss of the season.
Kunc also contributed eight rebounds and three assists for the Cyclones (7-1). Robert Jones had 11 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Posh Alexander led St. John&rsquo;s (8-1) with 14 points.

A recap of Sunday's men's college basketball slate includes a handful of top-25 upsets.

Virginia Tech hands No. 18 Tar Heels fourth consecutive loss

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Mark Sears had 24 points, five rebounds and five assists, and No. 18 Alabama sent top-ranked North Carolina to a second straight loss with a 103-101 victory in a quadruple-overtime thriller on Sunday in the third-place game of the Phil Knight Invitational.
Jahvon Quinerly scored 21 points for the Crimson Tide (6-1), who knocked off the top-ranked team for the first time since upsetting Stanford in the 2004 NCAA Tournament. Charles Bediako had 14 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks.
North Carolina (5-2) wasted a big game for Caleb Love, who had 34 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals. Armando Bacot finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds, and R.J. Davis had 19 points and nine rebounds in the second four-overtime game in North Carolina history. The other was a victory over Tulane in 1976.
Alabama forward Noah Clowney took a hard fall on a dunk attempt four minutes into the first half and had to be helped off the court. He did not return.
NO. 6 GONZAGA 88, XAVIER 84
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Julian Strawther scored 23 points, including 10 in the final 4:07, and Gonzaga beat Xavier in the third-place game of the Phil Knight Legacy men&rsquo;s tournament.
Each of Gonzaga&rsquo;s starters scored in double figures. Drew Timme and Anton Watson had 16 points apiece. Nolan Hickman finished with 14, and Rasir Bolton had 13 points and six assists.&nbsp;
Jack Nunge scored a game-high 25 points for Xavier (4-3), and Colby Jones had 22.
Strawther&rsquo;s 3 put Gonzaga (5-2) back in front at 76-75 with 3:18 to go. Watson then converted a floater, and Strawther made another 3 to make it 81-75 with 1:39 left.
NO. 24 PURDUE 75, NO. 8 DUKE 56
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Zach Edey had 21 points and 12 rebounds, helping Purdue beat Duke in the championship game of the Phil Knight Legacy men&rsquo;s tournament.
Fletcher Loyer scored 18 points for Purdue (6-0), and reserve Caleb Furst finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
The 7-foot-4 Edey was 7 for 13 from the field and 7 for 8 at the line. He was named tournament MVP.
Duke (6-2) shot 36.2% (21 for 58) from the field. Tyres Proctor scored 16 points for the Blue Devils. Kyle Filipowski and Jeremy Roach each had 14.
Ethan Morton had a steal and a dunk to help Purdue open a 58-41 lead with 15:37 left in the second half.
NO. 12 MICHIGAN STATE 78, PORTLAND 77
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Tyson Walker scored 15 points, and Michigan State topped Portland in the fifth-place game of the Phil Knight Invitational.
Pierre Brooks made all four of his 3-pointers and scored 15 points for the Spartans (5-2). Joey Hauser added 14 points and seven rebounds. A.J. Hoggard had 12 points and nine assists.
After outscoring Michigan State 13-2 in the last three minutes and getting eight points in less than 30 seconds to make it 78-77 with 40.5 seconds to play, Portland rebounded a Spartans miss with 8.1 seconds to go. The Pilots got the ball inside to Tyler Robertson and his shot rolled off the rim, and a desperation putback by Juan Sebastian Gorosito wasn&rsquo;t close.
Robertson had 16 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals for the Pilots (5-4).
NO. 13 AUBURN 65, SAINT LOUIS 60
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) &mdash; Wendell Green Jr. scored 22 points, and Auburn reeled off 11 straight in the closing minutes.
The Tigers (7-0) rallied from a five-point deficit over the final five minutes, starting with back-to-back drives by K.D. Johnson and ending with Green&rsquo;s scoop shot in traffic.
The Billikens (5-2) missed six straight shots before Yuri Collins&rsquo; drive with 20 seconds left. Then Jaylin Williams turned it over with an errant inbounds pass.
But Gibson Jimerson missed a long jumper for Saint Louis and Green went 1 for 2 at the line.
Auburn closed the game on a 12-2 run.
NO. 19 UCLA 81, BELLARMINE 60
LOS ANGELES (AP) &mdash; Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored a season-high 27 points, and UCLA got the win while playing without leading scorer Jaylen Clark.
Clark sat out for the first time this season because of a non-COVID-19 illness. The junior is averaging 15.7 points and 7.7 rebounds.
Freshman Adem Bona added 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field in his highest scoring game so far.
Bellarmine freshman Ben Johnson led the Knights (2-5) with 20 points. Curt Hopf added 16 points.
The Bruins (5-2) stretched their lead to 20 points in the second half.
NO. 20 UCONN 71, IOWA STATE 53
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) &mdash; Donovan Clingan had 15 points and 10 rebounds, powering UConn to the Phil Knight Invitational championship.
Tristen Newton scored 13 points for the Huskies (8-0), who went 20 for 25 at the free-throw line. Alex Karaban and Andre Jackson, Jr. each had 10 points.
Osun Osunniyi led Iowa State (5-1) with 14 points. Tamin Lipsey had 12 points and Jaren Holmes finished with 11.
Iowa State closed to 53-48 on Holmes&rsquo; 3-pointer midway through the second half. But Karaban made a 3 and a dunk, and Newton&rsquo;s jumper made it 60-48 with 7:13 remaining.

A recap of a busy Sunday for men's college basketball highlights a thriller in Portland for third place in the Phil Knight Invitational.

Sears, No. 18 Alabama top No. 1 North Carolina in 4 OTs

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Jeremy Roach scored 16 first-half points to help seventh-ranked Duke open Jon Scheyer&rsquo;s coaching tenure with a 71-44 win over Jacksonville on Monday night.
Freshman Mark Mitchell had a team-high 18 points for the Blue Devils, who used a 25-4 run spanning halftime to blow the game open.
It was a quality start to a season of massive change for the Blue Devils, starting with Scheyer taking over for retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski. Duke has 11 new players, including the nation&rsquo;s No. 1-ranked recruiting class and two power-conference transfers. The Blue Devils didn&rsquo;t have top freshmen Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead for this one as they recover from preseason injuries.
Mike Marsh scored 15 points to lead the Dolphins, who shot 34% and missed 18 of 19 3-pointers before making two meaningless 3s late.
NO. 1 NORTH CAROLINA 69, UNC WILMINGTON 56
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Caleb Love and RJ Davis scored 17 points apiece and North Carolina began a season of grand expectations by pulling away from UNC Wilmington.
Armando Bacot added 16 points and nine rebounds for the Tar Heels, who were perhaps most impressive at the defensive end. UNCW shot 29.8% from the field.
The Tar Heels, who were the NCAA Tournament runner-up in April, began the new season with the top ranking for the first time in seven years. It&rsquo;s a record 10th time that North Carolina has been ranked No. 1 to start a season &mdash; one more than rival Duke.
Trazarien White scored 19 points for UNCW, which faced a top-ranked team for the first time in program history.
NO. 2 GONZAGA 104, NORTH FLORIDA 63
SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) &mdash; Drew Timme scored 22 points, Julian Strawther added 16 and No. 2 Gonzaga used a big first-half run to beat North Florida in both teams&rsquo; opener.
Anton Watson had 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and five steals for Gonzaga, which won its 68th consecutive home game, the nation&rsquo;s longest such streak.
Carter Hendricksen scored 16 points, Jadyn Parker 13 and Jose Placer 12 for North Florida, a veteran-laden team from the Atlantic Sun Conference that returned its top four scorers from last season.
NO. 3 HOUSTON 83, NORTHERN COLORADO 36
HOUSTON (AP) &mdash; Marcus Sasser scored 21 points, J&rsquo;Wan Roberts added 12 points and six rebounds, and Houston opened the season by beating Northern Colorado.
Sasser, a preseason All-American, scored 11 points in the first half. He finished 7 of 14 from the field and made 4 of 8 3-pointers. The senior guard missed the second half of last season and all of Houston&rsquo;s run to the Elite Eight with a toe injury.
Houston coach Kelvin Sampson won his 700th career game and 200th with the Cougars.
Matt Johnson II, Riley Abercrombie and Caleb Shaw each scored eight points for the Bears.
NO. 4 KENTUCKY 95, HOWARD 63
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) &mdash; Antonio Reeves scored 22 points, CJ Fredrick had 20 and Kentucky beat Howard with All-American Oscar Tshiebwe and two other players sidelined.
Tshiebwe had a procedure last month on his right knee. Point guard Sahvir Wheeler (right leg) and sophomore forward Daimion Collins (personal reasons) were also out, but the Wildcats still shot 55% against the overmatched Bison.
Jacob Toppin and freshman Cason Wallace each added 15 points for Kentucky.
Kobe Dickson scored 17 points and Elijah Hawkins had 14 for Howard, which shot 34%.
NO. 5 KANSAS 89, OMAHA 64
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) &mdash; Jalen Wilson had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Gradey Dick added 23 points in his debut, and Kansas began defense of its national championship without suspended coach Bill Self by routing Omaha.
Bobby Pettiford Jr. added 13 points, Dajuan Harris had 11 points and eight assists, and Texas Tech transfer Kevin McCullar Jr. scored 10 for the Jayhawks, who broke open a close game in the second half with two big runs.
Self served the first of a four-game punishment along with assistant Kurtis Townsend as part of the fallout from a 2017 federal investigation into college basketball corruption.
Jaeden Marshall scored 13 points and Luke Jungers had 12 for the Mavericks.
NO. 5 BAYLOR 117, MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE 53
WACO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Adam Flagler scored 21 points to lead six players in double figures as Baylor won the opener of its 20th season with coach Scott Drew.
Flagler, a preseason All-Big 12 pick who also was the Bears&rsquo; leading scorer last season, also had eight assists and one of his four 3-pointers started a 24-0 run midway through the first half.
LJ Cryer had 16 points and Dale Bonner, another returning guard, had 14.
Alvin Stredic scored 14 points and Terry Collins 10 for Mississippi Valley State in its first game for new coach George Ivory.
NO. 9 CREIGHTON 72, ST. THOMAS 60
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) &mdash; Baylor Scheierman made back-to-back 3-pointers midway through the second half to give Creighton the lead for good.
Arthur Kaluma scored 17 points, Trey Alexander had 12 and Scheierman added 11 as the Bluejays won their 25th opener in 26 years.
St. Thomas, a Summit League member beginning its second season in Division I, gave the Bluejays all they could handle until the last few minutes. Andrew Rohde had 15 points to lead the Tommies.
NO. 10 ARKANSAS 76, NORTH DAKOTA STATE 58
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) &mdash; Trevon Brazile had 21 points and 12 rebounds in his debut as Arkansas won its season opener.
Brazile, a sophomore transfer from Missouri, scored six straight points during an 11-0 run early in the second half that gave Arkansas a 16-point lead with 15 minutes left.
Wichita State transfer Ricky Council led the Razorbacks with 22 points on 9-for-14 shooting.
Grant Nelson and Boden Skunberg had 17 points apiece to lead North Dakota State.
NO. 11 TENNESSEE 75, TENNESSEE TECH 43
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) &mdash; Tyreke Key came off the bench to score 17 points and Tennessee beat Tennessee Tech in both teams&rsquo; opener.
Key, an Indiana State transfer, connected on 4 of 8 3-pointers to ignite a sluggish Volunteer offense. Zakai Zeigler scored all but two of his 12 points in the second half.
Brett Thompson led the Golden Eagles with 15 points.
NO. 12 TEXAS 72, UTEP 57
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) &mdash; Tyrese Hunter scored 18 points to lead Texas past UTEP in the debut of its new arena.
Hunter, a transfer from Iowa State, was 6-of-8 shooting and added five rebounds. Ze&rsquo;Ri Onyema led UTEP with 10 points.
Texas this season moved to the $375 million Moody Center on the edge of campus, leaving behind the old Frank Erwin Center after 45 years.
NO. 13 INDIANA 88, MOREHEAD STATE 53
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) &mdash; Preseason All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis and freshman Malik Reneau each scored 15 points, helping Indiana beat Morehead State in the season opener for both teams.
The Hoosiers have won all six matchups in the series and are 26-0 all-time against Ohio Valley Conference foes.
Mark Freeman led the Eagles with 14 points, and Drew Thelwell had 11 for the OVC favorites.
NO. 14 TCU 73, ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF 72
WACO, Texas (AP) &mdash; Mike Miles hit a 3-pointer with 51 seconds remaining to finally put TCU ahead to stay against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, which built an early 20-point lead in the season opener for both teams.
Miles, the preseason Big 12 player of the year, hit from deep beyond the top of the key for a 71-68 lead.
Emanuel Miller had 15 of his 19 points in the second half, and Miles finished with 15 points for the Horned Frogs. They returned all five starters and five other scholarship players after winning their first NCAA Tournament game since 1987.
Shaun Doss had 25 points with four of Arkansas-Pine Bluff&rsquo;s 13 3-pointers.
NO. 15 AUBURN 70, GEORGE MASON 52
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) &mdash; Wendell Green Jr. scored 16 points while K.D. Johnson and Johni Broome each had 12 to lead Auburn to a season-opening win over George Mason.
The Tigers weren&rsquo;t really challenged much in their first game since losing NBA first-round draft picks Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler.
Ronald Polite III led George Mason with 10 points, and Victor Bailey Jr. had nine.
NO. 16 VILLANOVA 81, LA SALLE 68
VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) &mdash; Caleb Daniels scored 24 points to make coach Kyle Neptune a winner in his Villanova debut.
Neptune replaced Hall of Famer Jay Wright, who retired in the offseason. The Wildcats returned three starters (a fourth, Justin Moore, was injured) from the team that lost a national semifinal game to Kansas. Eric Dixon added 20 points for Villanova.
Daniels made his first five 3-pointers and the Wildcats used an early 10-0 run to put away their city rival and spoiled 74-year-old coach Fran Dunphy&rsquo;s return to the bench.
Josh Nickelberry scored 22 points to lead the Explorers.
NO. 17 ARIZONA 117, NICHOLLS STATE 75
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) &mdash; Azuolas Tubelis scored 23 points and Arizona went on a massive opening run to begin its second season under coach Tommy Lloyd with a rout.
Ballo scored 18 points, helping Arizona set a school record with 71.7% shooting from the floor against the reigning Southland Conference regular-season champions. The Wildcats opened the game with a 30-4 run.
Micah Thomas led Nicholls State with 20 points.
NO. 18 VIRGINIA 73, NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL 61
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) &mdash; Kihei Clark and Reece Beekman sparked a 15-2 second-half run, and Virginia beat North Carolina Central after blowing a 16-point first-half lead.
Armaan Franklin led Virginia with 21 points in the season opener for both teams, and Francisco Caffaro had 10.
Justin Wright scored 20 and Eric Boone had 18 for the Eagles, who used a 12-0 run just after halftime to go ahead. But Clark hit a 3 and Beekman followed with a steal and a breakaway.
NO. 19 SAN DIEGO STATE 80, CAL STATE FULLERTON 57
SAN DIEGO (AP) &mdash; Darrion Trammell hit three 3-pointers during a 29-10 run to open the second half and finished with 18 points as San Diego State beat Cal State Fullerton.
Fellow newcomer Jaedon LeDee and Lamont Butler scored 11 points apiece and Nathan Mensah had 10 for the Aztecs, who won their 10th straight season opener and their 17th in 18 seasons.
Vincent Lee scored 11 and Jalen Harris 10 for the Titans, the defending Big West Conference champions.
NO. 20 ALABAMA 75, LONGWOOD 54
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) &mdash; Freshman Brandon Miller had 14 points and 13 rebounds in his debut as Alabama beat Longwood.
Fellow freshman Rylan Griffen also scored 14 for the Crimson Tide, and point guard Mark Sears had 12 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Freshman guard Jaden Bradley added 11 points and six boards.
Alabama held Longwood to 27% shooting and blocked nine shots. Michael Christmas led Longwood with 12 points.
NO. 21 OREGON 80, FLORIDA A&amp;M 45
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) &mdash; N&rsquo;Faly Dante had 16 points and 10 rebounds as Oregon opened with an easy win over Florida A&amp;M.
Keeshawn Barthelemy added 13 points for the Ducks, ranked to start the season for the ninth straight year. Will Richardson scored 11.
Jordan Tillmon and Jordan Chatman had eight points apiece for the Rattlers, who have 11 new players. Florida A&amp;M coach Robert McCullum was on Oregon coach Dana Altman&rsquo;s staff from 2014-17.
NO. 22 MICHIGAN 75, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 56
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) &mdash; Hunter Dickinson had 22 points and 12 rebounds, and freshman Jett Howard added 21 points in Michigan&rsquo;s season-opening win.
After Purdue Fort Wayne opened an 8-4 lead, Michigan went on a 20-0 run to take control.
Quinton Morton-Robertson scored 15 points and Bobby Planutis added 13 for the Mastodons.
NO. 23 ILLINOIS 87, EASTERN ILLINOIS 57
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) &mdash; Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 24 points and Coleman Hawkins had 23 points and 12 rebounds as Illinois cruised past Eastern Illinois.
Dain Dainja added 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Illini, who outrebounded the Panthers 53-30 in the opener for both teams.
Kinyon Hodges scored 14 points and Yaakema Rose added 10 for Eastern Illinois.
NO. 24 DAYTON 73, LINDENWOOD 46
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) &mdash; Mustapha Amzil scored 14 points, DaRon Holmes II and R.J. Blakney each had 13 and Dayton beat Lindenwood in a sluggish opener for both teams.
Dayton was without injured point guard Malachi Smith and didn&rsquo;t play particularly well until late, but it had a large margin for error against Lindenwood, which was playing its first game after moving up to Division I.
Chris Childs had 15 points for the Lions, who shot 33% from the field.
NO. 25 TEXAS TECH 73, NORTHWESTERN STATE 49
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) &mdash; Daniel Batcho had 12 points and 10 rebounds as Texas Tech rolled past Northwestern State in both teams&rsquo; opener.
Texas Tech broke it open late in the first half and led 42-23 at halftime.
Isaac Haney led Northwestern State with 16 points.

It was a quality start to a season of massive change for the Blue Devils, starting with Jon Scheyer taking over Duke's program.

Roach leads No. 7 Duke past Jacksonville in Scheyer’s debut

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Caleb Love and RJ Davis scored 17 points apiece and No. 1 North Carolina began a season of grand expectations by pulling away from UNC Wilmington with a 69-56 victory Monday night.
Armando Bacot added 16 points and nine rebounds for the Tar Heels, who were perhaps most impressive at the defensive end. UNCW shot just 29.8 % from the field.
The Tar Heels, who were the NCAA Tournament runner-up in April, began the new season with the top ranking for the first time in seven years. It&rsquo;s a record 10th time that North Carolina has been ranked No. 1 to start a season &ndash; one more than rival Duke.
Trazarien White scored 19 points for UNCW, which faced a top-ranked team for the first time in program history. Skykeim Phillips had 11 points and Donovan Newby added 10. The Seahawks went 4-for-16 on 3-pointers.
North Carolina led 32-21 at halftime behind Davis&rsquo; 11 points, but it wasn&rsquo;t easy.
It was tied 17-17 with six minutes to go in the first half before a 12-2 run for the Tar Heels, who missed 10 of their first 14 shots prior to that spurt.
The Tar Heels have won their first game of a season for 18 years in a row. North Carolina has won 21 consecutive Smith Center openers.
North Carolina reserves managed only six points. UNCW held a 37-32 rebounding edge.
BIG PICTURE
UNCW: The Seahawks were competitive for most of the game and provided a good deal of the physicality in the game. They pulled in 16 offensive rebounds, though they had lots of opportunities for those considering their horrid shooting touch. It was probably a good barometer for the Seahawks while they fell to 0-6 all-time vs. North Carolina.
North Carolina: This wasn&rsquo;t the smoothest performance for the Tar Heels, but they&rsquo;ll have time to address glitches as they&rsquo;ll play their first four games at home. With four starters returning from last season&rsquo;s team, there&rsquo;s plenty of experience in the lineup. Northwestern transfer Pete Nance completed the starting five. This was the 47th straight win against in-state, non-conference competition for the Tar Heels.
UP NEXT
UNCW: Friday at home vs. Allen
North Carolina: Friday at home vs. College of Charleston

Caleb Love and RJ Davis scored 17 points apiece and No. 1 North Carolina began a season of grand expectations.

No. 1 Tar Heels hold down UNCW in opening win

Arguments over conference supremacy have begun well before the start of the college basketball season.
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim offered one of the most quotable remarks of the preseason when he pointed out the Big Ten&rsquo;s failings in the postseason.
&ldquo;At the end of the day, you play for the tournament,&rdquo; Boeheim said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what you play for. It&rsquo;s simple. You can say all you want about the Big Ten. They sucked in the tournament. So to me, that&rsquo;s what they did. I don&rsquo;t care what they did in the regular season.&rdquo;
The Big Ten led all conferences with nine NCAA Tournament bids last season but sent only two teams ( Michigan and Purdue ) to regional semifinals and didn&rsquo;t have anyone last beyond the Sweet 16. Syracuse plays in the Atlantic Coast Conference, which got five bids but sent three teams to the Sweet 16 and had North Carolina and Duke reach the Final Four.
One year earlier, the Big Ten had nine NCAA Tournament bids to again lead all leagues but advanced only Michigan beyond the round of 32.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s what you play for, to get in the tournament and to win in the tournament,&rdquo; Boeheim said. &ldquo;If you don&rsquo;t do that, then you&rsquo;re not good.&rdquo;
As we rank the top six conferences for the upcoming season, we don&rsquo;t give the No. 1 spot to either the Big Ten or the ACC. That honor instead goes to the league that has produced the last two NCAA Tournament champions.
1. BIG 12
The Big 12 kept its hold on the national title when Kansas won last season after Baylor earned the crown a year earlier. The Big 12 nearly had three straight championships by three different schools, as Texas Tech lost the 2019 championship game to Virginia in overtime. The Big 12 has five teams in the preseason Associated Press Top 25. Kansas and Baylor are tied for fifth. The other ranked teams are No. 12 Texas, No. 14 TCU and No. 25 Texas Tech.
2. SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
A look at the preseason Top 25 indicates the SEC could emerge as the best conference of all. The SEC has five ranked teams, all in the top 20: No. 4 Kentucky, No. 10 Arkansas, No. 11 Tennessee, No. 15 Auburn and No. 20 Alabama. Arkansas, Alabama and Kentucky brought in three of the nation&rsquo;s top five freshman classes according to composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports. Kentucky&rsquo;s Oscar Tschiebwe was the consensus national player of the year last season.
3. ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE
The ACC has the nation&rsquo;s top-ranked team in North Carolina, which returns preseason AP All-America selection Armando Bacot from a team that lost to Kansas in last season&rsquo;s championship game. No. 7 Duke begins the post-Mike Krzyzewski era by welcoming in new coach Jon Scheyer and the nation&rsquo;s top-ranked recruiting class. The only other ACC team in the preseason Top 25 is No. 18 Virginia.
4. BIG TEN
The Big Ten figures to take a step back this season after having three players (Iowa&rsquo;s Keegan Murray, Purdue&rsquo;s Jaden Ivey and Wisconsin&rsquo;s Johnny Davis) among the top 10 picks in the NBA draft. No. 13 Indiana is the only Big Ten team ranked higher than 22nd in the preseason Top 25. The league&rsquo;s only other ranked teams are No. 22 Michigan and No. 23 Illinois. Perhaps this is the year the Big Ten gets fewer NCAA Tournament bids but ends up lasting longer in the tournament.
5. PAC-12
The Pac-12 sent just three teams to the NCAA Tournament despite benefiting from the resurgence of Arizona in coach Tommy Lloyd&rsquo;s debut season. The Pac-12 heads into this season with three ranked teams in No. 8 UCLA, No. 17 Arizona and No. 21 Oregon.
6. BIG EAST
The retirement of Villanova coach Jay Wright could shake things up in this league. No. 9 Creighton is the preseason pick to win the Big East by the league&rsquo;s coaches, the first time the Bluejays have had that honor since joining the conference for the 2013-14 season. The only other ranked Big East team is No. 16 Villanova under first-year coach Kyle Neptune. Providence must replace all five starters from the team that won last year&rsquo;s Big East title.

Arguments over conference supremacy have begun well before the start of the college basketball season.

Big 12 has upper hand from recent NCAA postseason success

Oscar Tschiebwe was the consensus men&rsquo;s college basketball player of the year last season, an accomplishment usually followed by a jump to the NBA.
Kentucky&rsquo;s big man decided to take a different route. He&rsquo;s coming back &mdash; and he may be even better this season.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a better passer. He&rsquo;s a better dribbler. He has a better feel. He talks,&rdquo; Kentucky coach John Calipari said. &ldquo;Offensively he knows the plays better. And he&rsquo;s authentic.&rdquo;
Tshiebwe was a unanimous selection along with Gonzaga big man Drew Timme in The Associated Press preseason All-America team released Monday. They were joined by North Carolina forward Armando Bacot, Houston guard Marcus Sasser and Indiana forward Trayce Jackson-Davis on the team selected by a 59-person media panel that votes on the weekly AP Top 25.
Tshiebwe is the ninth AP national player of the year &mdash; Bill Walton and Ralph Sampson did it twice &mdash; to return for another season, according to Sportradar, and the first since Tyler Hansbrough came back to lead North Carolina to a national title in 2009.
The fourth-ranked Wildcats are hoping Tshiebwe can do the same for them.
The 6-foot-9, 260-pound forward from the Congo led the nation in rebounding at 15.1 per game while averaging 17.4 points. He shot 60% from the field, had 60 steals and 55 blocks, and finished the season with 16 consecutive double-doubles on the way to a school-record 28.&nbsp;
Instead of taking his game to the NBA, Tshiebwe opted to return when projections had him going in the second round of the 2022 draft.
&ldquo;They (NBA scouts) want my game to expand a little bit,&rdquo; said Tshiebwe, who started his career at West Virginia. &ldquo;They want me to be able to make one or two 3-pointers, They want me to catch the ball, drive and finish, and get better in dribbling.&rdquo;
Timme made a similar decision &mdash; two years in a row. The 6-10 senior was one of the nation&rsquo;s best big men each of the past two seasons, leading the Zags on deep NCAA runs, including a trip to the national title game in 2021. He was a second-team All-American for the second straight season a year ago after averaging 18.4 points and 6.8 rebounds.
Timme still had areas of his game he wanted to work on before heading to the NBA and hoped for one more shot at winning a national title with the second-ranked Zags. The NCAA&rsquo;s name, image and likeness deals made it an easier decision and, besides, college life is a lot of fun.
&ldquo;We have a chance to do something special, I wanted to get my degree, there&rsquo;s things I want to work on, I want to build on,&rdquo; Timme said. &ldquo;It was a culmination of a lot of things, but I really enjoy being a college kid.&rdquo;
Bacot also has a chance to do something special with the Tar Heels.
The 6-11 forward tied the NCAA record with 31 double-doubles last season and became the first to have six in the same NCAA Tournament while leading North Carolina to the national title game. The Tar Heels lost to Kansas, but are No. 1 in the preseason AP Top 25 and among the favorites to win it all with Bacot back.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t go a day where we&rsquo;re not like saying, man, we can&rsquo;t wait to get to that,&rdquo; Bacot said of winning a national title. &ldquo;Maybe that&rsquo;s not the best approach, but I mean, we&rsquo;re human.&rdquo;
Sasser was a key cog two years ago during the Cougars&rsquo; first Final Four run since the Phi Slama Jama days, averaging 13.7 points while playing menacing defense.
The dynamic 6-2 guard got off to a strong start last season, but was limited to 12 games after breaking a bone in his left foot. He was named the American Athletic Conference preseason player of the year and a big reason the Cougars are ranked No. 3 in the AP preseason poll.
&ldquo;It puts a target on your back every night, but it also gives me motivation every day in practice to go out there and work harder,&rdquo; Sasser said.
Jackson-Davis was a preseason All-American last season and led the Hoosiers in scoring (18.3) and rebounding (8.1). The 6-9 forward also helped Indiana reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years, but the run ended with a first round loss to Saint Mary&rsquo;s.
With Jackson-Davis back, the No. 13 Hoosiers are the favorites to win the Big Ten and, they hope, make a deep March run.
&ldquo;I think I have kind of set the stone of my individual legacy, being an All-American and doing all of those things, but those don&rsquo;t really matter if you don&rsquo;t win something here,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Winning is a big thing here, so winning a national championship and also winning a Big Ten title, those are my two main goals this year.&rdquo;

Oscar Tshiebwe's coming back to Kentucky — and he may be even better this season.

Oscar Tshiebwe, Drew Timme top AP preseason All-America team

North Carolina surprised just about everyone last year when a talented team led by first-year coach Hubert Davis parlayed a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament into a run to the national title game.
The Tar Heels won&rsquo;t be sneaking up on anyone this year.
With four starters back from the team that lost to Kansas in New Orleans, the Tar Heels are the runaway pick as the preseason No. 1 in the AP Top 25 released Monday. They earned 47 of 62 first-place votes from a national media panel to easily outdistance Gonzaga, the top preseason team the past two years.
The Bulldogs received 12 first-place votes while No. 3 Houston had one and fourth-ranked Kentucky the other two.
&ldquo;As they opened up their lockers for the first practice of last year, there was a picture of the New Orleans Superdome in there. I wanted them to see where we were headed in April,&rdquo; Davis recalled last week. &ldquo;The hard work and preparation, the practice that had to be put into place to put ourselves in position to do that. t&rsquo;s the same approach this year compared to last year. The only difference this year is the outside noise.
&ldquo;Last year,&rdquo; Davis said, &ldquo;the outside noise didn&rsquo;t think we had a chance. The outside noise this year thinks we do.&rdquo;
It is the 10th time that North Carolina has been preseason No. 1, breaking a tie with Duke for the most in the history of the AP poll. But only twice during those years did the Tar Heels reach the national championship game, and only the 1981-82 team with James Worthy and Michael Jordan ultimately cut down the nets.
&ldquo;Like Coach Davis always preaches, a lot of outside noise, and we don&rsquo;t really worry about any of that,&rdquo; said Caleb Love, one of the four returning starters for North Carolina along with R.J. Davis, Leaky Black and Armando Bacot.
&ldquo;We just focus on our team,&rdquo; Love said, &ldquo;and us getting better each and every day.&rdquo;
The Bulldogs will once again lean on Drew Timme to deliver coach Mark Few his elusive national title. Houston has its highest preseason ranking since 1983, when the third of the Cougars&rsquo; Phi Slama Jama teams reached its second consecutive title game. Kentucky has its best preseason rank since 2019, when the season ended amid the pandemic.
There was a tie at No. 5 between the Jayhawks, who raised their latest national title banner inside Allen Fieldhouse earlier this month, and Big 12 rival Baylor, which raised its own championship banner the previous season.
Duke, where Jon Scheyer replaced Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski, was ranked seventh and UCLA eighth. Creighton has its best preseason ranking at No. 9, followed by Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas, Indiana, TCU and Auburn.
&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t pay a lot attention to it when you&rsquo;re picked ninth,&rdquo; Bluejays coach Greg McDermott said. &ldquo;You go to work every day and try to get better every day. It&rsquo;s important we approach it the same this year.&rdquo;
The No. 13 Hoosiers have their first ranking since January 2019 and highest in the preseason since 2016.
Villanova, where Kyle Neptune is taking over for Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright, is No. 16, the lowest preseason ranking for the Wildcats since 2008. They were followed by Arizona, Virginia, San Diego State and Alabama.
The final five are Oregon, Michigan, Illinois, Dayton and Texas Tech.
&ldquo;When I was in school as a player, I never bought into the rankings, what the media would say about our ball club. You still got to go out and play the game,&rdquo; Hoosiers coach Mike Woodson said. &ldquo;Hell, my senior year we were ranked No. 1 and we didn&rsquo;t get it done. So at the end of the day I guess it&rsquo;s kind of nice for our players who haven&rsquo;t experienced that. Again, you got to go out and play. I mean, you got to prove it on the basketball floor. That&rsquo;s when it counts.&rdquo;
CONFERENCE WATCH
The Big 12 and SEC lead the way with five ranked teams. The Big Ten, Pac 12 and ACC have three apiece and the Big East has two. The West Coast, Atlantic 10, Mountain West and American Athletic conferences each have one team in the poll.
OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
Texas A&amp;M was the first team outside the poll, followed by UConn, which appeared on 24 of 62 ballots. Miami, Purdue and Saint Louis were also eyeing a spot in the Top 25 when the first regular-season poll is released Nov. 14.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
The season begins for most teams Nov. 7, but as usual, the first meeting of heavyweights will be the Champions Classic on Nov. 15 in Indianapolis: No. 4 Kentucky plays Michigan State, unranked in the preseason poll for the second year in a row, before No. 5 Kansas plays No. 7 Duke in the nightcap.

With four starters back from the team that lost to Kansas in New Orleans, the Tar Heels are the runaway pick as the preseason No. 1.

North Carolina No. 1 in preseason AP Top 25 men’s basketball

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Plenty of people have called for NCAA Tournament expansion. Count ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips among them.
Phillips said Wednesday at the ACC Tipoff that &ldquo;it&rsquo;s time to look at&rdquo; expanding the field beyond the 68 teams currently invited to the Big Dance each March.
Phillips believes the NCAA&rsquo;s best tournaments are the ones that feature the most schools. That&rsquo;s part of why he&rsquo;s hopeful of eventual expansion, not just for the men&rsquo;s event but for all NCAA championships.
Increasing the field also brings rewards for those &ldquo;schools that are spending a tremendous amount of resources in sports and not having a chance to access those championships,&rdquo; he said.
Currently, just 68 of 358 men&rsquo;s basketball programs qualify for the men&rsquo;s NCAAs &mdash; 32 conference champions and 36 at-large teams picked by the selection committee. Phillips said the logistics of staging a bigger tournament need to be worked out.
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim has advocated for more teams in the field the past 30 years. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been knocked down every year I&rsquo;ve brought it up,&rdquo; said the 77-year-old Boeheim. &ldquo;I stopped bringing it up. Everybody thought I was an idiot.&rdquo;
Notre Dame coach Mike Brey projects adding three more First Four pods &mdash; one for each region &mdash; could work and take the field up to 80.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s throw three more Daytons in, regionalize it up and play it out, let some more kids get in there,&rdquo; Brey said.
Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton wants to double the field &mdash; and double the experience for athletes who work hard all year for their moment in March. &ldquo;Do you realize how it would be an opportunity for all these youngsters to participate in the NCAA Tournament?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the greatest games in history.&rdquo;
BACOT BACK
North Carolina&rsquo;s Armando Bacot could&rsquo;ve easily jumped to the NBA, especially after leading the Tar Heels to the NCAA championship game last season. Instead, the 6-foot-11 senior wanted another run to finish the job.
Bacot, a likely pick for ACC preseason player of the year, was among four Tar Heels who held off going pro in the wake of their 72-69 title-game loss to Kansas in the NCAA Tournament in April. North Carolina was up 40-25 at halftime before the Jayhawks&rsquo; rallied.
For Bacot, it was a difficult outcome that fueled his decision to return. He doesn&rsquo;t spend much time thinking about the NBA, concentrating on improving his game and helping the Tar Heels win.
&ldquo;Going through last year with our ups and downs,&rdquo; Bacot said. &ldquo;Our ups were really high and a lot of fun. Just being able to experience that for a full year was a no-brainer.&rdquo;
PERFECT YOUNG
Virginia Tech coach Mike Young led his Hokies to a surprise ACC Tournament title last March, defeating second-seeded Notre Dame in the quarterfinals, third-seeded North Carolina in the semis and top-seeded Duke, 82-67, for the school&rsquo;s first-ever tournament crown.
That improved Young&rsquo;s record to 6-0 in tournament finals. Young, beginning his fourth season at Virginia Tech, won all five Southern Conference championship games he reached during 16 seasons leading Wofford.
The secret? Don&rsquo;t change anything. &ldquo;We all know what&rsquo;s at stake,&rdquo; Young said. &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s go have a good time, lay our ears back and let it rip.&rdquo;
DUKE INJURY
Blue Devils coach Jon Scheyer said prize freshman Dariq Whitehead is progressing well about six weeks into recovery from a foot injury.
Whitehead is a 6-foot-7 forward from Newark, New Jersey, who was rated the country&rsquo;s No. 2 prospect by ESPN this past recruiting season.
Whitehead is entering the next phase of his recovery where he&rsquo;s able to get out on the court more, Scheyer said. The first-year coach can&rsquo;t yet say when Whitehead will be ready to play, &ldquo;but he&rsquo;s progressing in a great way and he&rsquo;s working hard, and I know he&rsquo;s anxious to be out here with these guys practicing every day.&rdquo;
PASTNER TIME
Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner is excited about &mdash; well, everything.
He thinks the ACC is deep and great. His players are smart and hardworking. And his school is a leader in the space industry.
&ldquo;They found water on Mars from Georgia Tech,&rdquo; said Pastner, bragging on 14 Tech grads who&rsquo;ve been to space. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s amazing about this school. It&rsquo;s incredible.&rdquo;
Pastner gushed that he thinks North Carolina should be ranked No. 1 nationally to start the season. He also would pick Virginia as the league&rsquo;s best team. &ldquo;I know it sounds crazy when I say this,&rdquo; said Pastner, opening his seventh year with the Yellow Jackets.&nbsp;

Phillips believes the NCAA’s best tournaments are the ones that feature the most schools.

ACC Commisioner Phillips: Time to expand NCAA’s Big Dance

Instant. Classic.
In a game of runs, and with huge swings of momentum, the No. 1 seed Kansas Jayhawks pulled off the largest comeback in NCAA Championship history, beating the eighth-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels, 72-69. The Jayhawks trailed by 16 points in the first half and fought back to enter the record books.
Jalen Wilson and David McCormack led them in scoring with 15 points each. Arizona State transfer Remy Martin scored his 2,000th point in this one and provided 14 huge points for Kansas off the bench, including multiple threes in the second half.
Armando Bacot and RJ Davis each posted 15 points for the Tar Heels, while Caleb Love and Brady Manek each scored 13 points.
Kansas' Ochai Agbaji opened this one the same way he started the win against Villanova &mdash; with a three. He took the dribble handoff and drained a deep three from the wing as the Jayhawks jumped out to a 7-0 lead.&nbsp;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Ochai for THREEE 🎯 Agbaji picks up where he left off<a href="https://twitter.com/KUHoops?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KUHoops</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NationalChampionship?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NationalChampionship</a> <a href="https://t.co/u2K3lKN86U">pic.twitter.com/u2K3lKN86U</a>
&mdash; NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1511152456771768324?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2022</a></blockquote>
Manek answered with a triple of his own to get the Tar Heels on the board. Carolina battled back to take a 12-11 lead and would extend it to 29-22, which was Kansas&rsquo; largest deficit of the entire tournament at 7 points. After a 14-0 run late in the first half, the Tar Heels led 40-25 at the break, leaving Kansas with its lowest first-half point total in the tourney.&nbsp;
Kansas was 6 of 21 in the paint in the first half, as the team simply could not convert at the rim. McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot were both in foul trouble early as well, which forced Kansas to go with smaller lineups and allowed the Tar Heels' Armando Bacot to impose his will inside.
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Bacot posted 12 points and 10 rebounds in the first half, giving him 31 double-doubles on the season. That extended his own ACC record and tied the NCAA record set by Navy&rsquo;s David Robinson in 1985-86. Going into halftime, Davis had 11 points for Carolina, while Agbaji had 8 points for Kansas.
McCormack got the second half started with a powerful alley-oop in hopes of setting the tone for the Jayhawks. Christian Braun would follow with a bucket of his own, but Love had an answer. Wilson connected on a transition and-one to make it 45-38, and you could start to feel the momentum shift.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_18021882_lg.jpg" alt="" width="555" height="370" />&nbsp;
Tar Heels forward Leaky Black picked up his fourth foul with 13:52 to play in the second, which was big, as he&rsquo;s one of the team&rsquo;s best defenders with his size and length. Braun immediately followed with a transition layup to make it 46-45 to make it a whole new ballgame. Agbaji then converted an and-one of his own to tie things up at 50.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
OCHAI AND-ONE WE ARE ALL TIED UP 😱<a href="https://twitter.com/KUHoops?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KUHoops</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MarchMadness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MarchMadness</a> <a href="https://t.co/gtjx8p7Vbp">pic.twitter.com/gtjx8p7Vbp</a>
&mdash; NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1511178765463810051?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2022</a></blockquote>
Carolina's Puff Johnson hit a big corner three with just over eight minutes to play to knot things up at 57, providing huge minutes off the bench. After some more back-and-forth action, Manek &mdash; the Oklahoma transfer &mdash; knocked down two free throws for the Tar Heels to tie it up again at 65 with three minutes to play.&nbsp;
The Jayhawks led 70-69 with a minute left in regulation, when McCormack was simply not going to be denied in the paint for another basket. Bacot then rolled his right ankle again after injuring it in the Final Four game against Duke, and your stomach just sank for the young man, who provided an amazing, gutsy performance on the big stage.
With 4.2 seconds to play, Carolina turned the ball over after a couple of game-tying attempts from deep, but Kansas guard Dajuan Harris Jr. stepped out of bounds on the ensuing pass, giving the ball back to the Tar Heels. Love was unable to hit the pull-up three as time expired, leading the Rock Chalk Nation to a celebration.&nbsp;&nbsp;
McCormack said postgame, "Coach lost his father so we played for him. This was about more than just us, it's about Coach and all that Kansas stands for."
Bill Self and the Jayhawks hoist the trophy in New Orleans.&nbsp;
What a night.&nbsp;
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In a game of runs and with huge swings of momentum, Kansas pulled off the largest comeback in NCAA Championship history.

Kansas wins NCAA Championship, defeats North Carolina 72-69

The NCAA Championship tickets have been punched. Here's a look into how Saturday night's Final Four matchups played out:
North Carolina defeats Duke 81-77
In an instant classic that will live in the hearts and minds of college basketball fans forever, Coach K&rsquo;s career comes to an end. This one was tied 67-67 with 3:32 to play in regulation and had everyone on the edge of their seats. Caleb Love connected on a big layup to take the lead late, but Trevor Keels answered with a triple to take a one-point lead with 2:00 left.
After multiple lead changes and a massive Love three-pointer that may be one of the biggest shots in Tar Heel history, North Carolina was able to hold on down the stretch and advance to the NCAA Championship. Paolo Banchero had a strong outing for the Duke Blue Devils, but Love and Armando Bacot were too much to handle. Bacot had an incredible 21 rebounds and overcame a late-game injury before fouling out. It was quite a game &mdash; one that lived up to all the hype one would expect from the first-ever Final Four matchup between two of the greatest college basketball programs in history.&nbsp;
Notable Stats: Caleb Love - 28 points, 9 rebounds Paolo Banchero - 20 points, 10 rebounds Armando Bacot - 11 points, 21 rebounds RJ Davis - 18 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists Trevor Keels - 19 points Brady Manek - 14 points
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Kansas defeats Villanova 81-65
The Jayhawks opened the game with a barrage of three-pointers and jumped out to a 16-5 lead. At one point, Kansas led 36-18, but the Villanova Wildcats cut into the deficit a bit and trailed 40-29 at the half. Nevertheless, this game was a wire-to-wire victory for Kansas, who never trailed. The story of the game was Ochai Agbaji&rsquo;s shooting, as he hit six of his seven attempts from behind the arc. As a team, Kansas connected on 13-of-24 from deep, which allowed them to keep their breathing room for the entirety of the contest. Christian Braun hit a dagger three late in the contest to make it 75-59. After the game, Bruan said, "I had hit one before that, so I had nothing to lose. Honestly, just threw one up there, and it went in."
The Wildcats <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/how-villanova-will-have-to-survive-without-justin-moore" target="_blank" rel="noopener">missed Justin Moore badly</a> after he suffered an injury in the Elite Eight, but Saturday's loss doesn&rsquo;t take away from the tremendous performance by Bill Self and Co. The Jayhawks will move onto the NCAA Championship.&nbsp;
Notable stats: David McCormack - 25 points, 9 rebounds Ochai Agbaji - 21 points Jalen Wilson - 11 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists Collin Gillespie - 17 points Brandon Slater - 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists Caleb Daniels - 13 points, 5 rebounds
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North Carolina and Kansas advanced to the NCAA Championship with Final Four wins Saturday night.

Tar Heels and Jayhawks punch NCAA Championship tickets

Duke and North Carolina are taking their much talked about and often debated men&rsquo;s basketball rivalry on the road to a place its never been.
The neighboring schools are preparing for another first in a series filled with big-name players and intense finishes: playing each other in the NCAA Tournament. It seems fitting the matchup comes in the Final Four, with a berth in the championship game on the line.
It&rsquo;s an intriguing script for Saturday night&rsquo;s showdown in New Orleans.
Duke ran North Carolina off its own court in the teams&rsquo; first meeting this season. The Tar Heels exacted revenge by spoiling retiring Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski&rsquo;s final home game in what appeared to be their last battle with Coach K.
A third meeting wasn&rsquo;t something either wanted to talk about to start the week, not when Krzyzewski&rsquo;s Blue Devils were first to earn their spot to the Big Easy and not when Hubert Davis&rsquo; Tar Heels followed a day later.
They have to now.
&ldquo;To me, the thing is, I think we&rsquo;re going to have two really good teams play against one another,&rdquo; Krzyzewski said Tuesday, three days after beating Arkansas to claim the West Region title. &ldquo;Whereas, the last two games we were better than them at that point and they were better than us at the other point. And now we&rsquo;ll see what happens.&rdquo;
The Tar Heels continued their second-half surge by beating underdog Saint Peter&rsquo;s on Sunday to win the East Region crown and reach an NCAA-record 21st Final Four despite being a No. 8 seed.
While Davis is surprised the teams have somehow never run into each other in the NCAAs, he shrugged off questions about the significance of the meeting beyond the chance to play for a national title.
&ldquo;Duke-Carolina, the significance, Coach K&rsquo;s last season &mdash; those things, even though that it is a story, and that&rsquo;s relevant, it doesn&rsquo;t help us on the floor,&rdquo; Davis said. &ldquo;So our focus is on what helps us on the floor, and it&rsquo;s our preparation, our practice and our play.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve told the guys, &lsquo;You&rsquo;ve got to turn down or turn off the noise from the phone, the family, the friends and the fans. And focus on what&rsquo;s ahead of us.&rsquo;&rdquo;
The fierce rivalry between programs with a combined 11 NCAA championships has long been an annual must-watch event. It&rsquo;s a series featuring names like Jordan, Laettner, Hill and Jamison, among them. It also has had star power on the sideline, with Krzyzewski battling Hall of Famers like the late Dean Smith and Roy Williams before now facing a first-year coach in former UNC and NBA player Davis.
The teams had come close to this moment only once before, in 1991. That&rsquo;s when both the Blue Devils and Tar Heels reached the Final Four in Indianapolis.
But the Tar Heels, with Davis as a player and Smith the coach, lost the first semifinal to a Kansas team coached by Williams. Then Duke stunned everyone by beating undefeated and reigning national champion UNLV in the second game, creating a what-could&rsquo;ve-been scenario as the Blue Devils went on to beat Williams&rsquo; Jayhawks for Krzyzewski&rsquo;s first of five NCAA championships.
Now it&rsquo;s finally happening, but the script for Round 3 is unclear considering how wildly different the teams&rsquo; two regular-season meetings ended.
The Blue Devils won the first by 20 points in February, dominating behind a star-level performance from freshman A.J. Griffin in particular. Duke looked sharp from the outset, rolling to a 31-8 lead while looking completely unbothered by a crowd booing relentlessly in its own farewell to Krzyzewski in his final trip to Chapel Hill.
By the end, they were celebrating 3-pointers and dunks in a preening performance on the Tar Heels&rsquo; homecourt, sending fans fleeing for the exits with five minutes left. It was a performance that led junior Wendell Moore Jr. said afterward illustrated how his team loves big games and &ldquo;being the villain.&rdquo;
The performance only further heightened questions about the Tar Heels&rsquo; toughness and their lack of a competitive response in lopsided losses to Tennessee, Kentucky, Miami and Wake Forest earlier in the season.
Yet their trajectory changed in the rematch to close the regular season, turning an improving team into one determined to prove its mettle in one of the game&rsquo;s toughest environments. And it came amid the pomp and heightened emotion with Krzyzewski&rsquo;s final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium that made it feel more like a spectacle than ever, starting with a pregame ceremony and photo with more than 90 of his former players.
The Tar Heels ignored all of it, playing instead with a fearless fire and confidence lacking in that first meeting.
Davis stuck with his five starters in a substitution-free second half that saw the Tar Heels shoot 59% and score 55 points. And by the end, the Tar Heels were celebrating a double-digit victory on &ldquo;Coach K Court&rdquo; and had Krzyzewski apologizing to the crowd in an awkward warm-up to the postgame ceremony in his honor.
&ldquo;And I&rsquo;ll tell you,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;this season isn&rsquo;t over, all right?&rdquo;
It seems he was talking about this year&rsquo;s rivalry, too.
&ldquo;Just us meeting at this time, especially after beating them in Cameron, it just makes for the perfect story,&rdquo; UNC junior big man Armando Bacot said. &ldquo;And I think it&rsquo;ll definitely be one of the biggest college games of all time.&rdquo;

Duke and North Carolina are taking their much talked about men’s basketball rivalry on the road to a place its never been.

Round 3: UNC, Duke set for first NCAA meeting in Final Four

Coach K&rsquo;s final chapter will have a distinctly blue tint.
Two weeks of upsets and underdogs in the books, the Final Four is down to four blue blood programs: Kansas, Duke, North Carolina and Villanova.
Kansas faces Villanova, then it&rsquo;s Duke-Carolina for the first time in the NCAA Tournament in New Orleans.
This is going to be good, so here&rsquo;s a quick rundown of the last four teams left standing:
KANSAS
Final Four road: The Jayhawks (32-6) looked vulnerable after consecutive late-season losses, but rounded into form at just the right time. While the other No. 1 seeds dropped off in the NCAA Tournament, the Big 12 champions beat Texas Southern, Creighton and Providence to reach the Elite Eight. Kansas rolled into its 16th Final Four by crushing Miami 76-50 to win the Midwest Region.
Strengths: Ochai Agbaji and Christian Braun can both score in bunches, shoot from the perimeter and beat defenders off the dribble. Remy Martin is an immediate adrenaline boost off the bench.
Weaknesses: The Jayhawks overwhelmed Miami in the paint in the Elite Eight, but have been mediocre in the post at times.
Star: Agbaji. The 6-foot-5 senior is explosive and coming off his best game of the NCAA Tournament, scoring 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting against Miami.
Key contributor: Martin. The Arizona State transfer enters the game like he&rsquo;s shot off a launching pad, changing the complexion with his quickness and fearlessness.
VILLANOVA
Final Four road: The Wildcats (30-7) had some shaky stretches earlier in the season, but have won 14 of 15, including the Big East Tournament. Villanova has been its efficient best at both ends in the NCAA Tournament, beating Delaware, Ohio State and Michigan to reach the Elite Eight. The Wildcats smothered Houston in San Antonio, winning 50-44 to reach the Final Four for the third time in six seasons.
Strengths: The buffed-up Wildcats often bully teams around the floor on offense and defense. Villanova also shoots 83% from the free-throw line, on pace to break Harvard&rsquo;s NCAA record of 82.2% set in 1994.
Weaknesses: The Wildcats were already thin and lost second-leading scorer Justin Moore to a torn Achilles tendon against Houston in the Elite Eight.
Star: Collin Gillespie. The senior guard tore his ACL late last season, but has been a huge reason Villanova is back in the Final Four with his steady leadership and clutch shooting.
Key contributor: Jermaine Samuels. The 6-7 senior plays bigger than his size and is a difference maker at both ends of the court
DUKE
Final Four road: Coach Mike Krzyzewski&rsquo;s final of 42 seasons in Durham suffered a few bumps in the road, including a blowout to North Carolina in his final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils (32-6) have seemed determined to send Coach K out on top since the NCAA bracket began, blowing out Cal State Fullerton, then grinding out wins over Michigan State, Texas Tech and Arkansas to reach the Final Four for a record 13th time under Krzyzewski.
Strengths: The Blue Devils have multiple scoring options and are No. 1 in KenPom&rsquo;s offensive efficiency ratings. Krzyzewski has shown the game hasn&rsquo;t left him behind as he heads for the exit, making key adjustments that propelled Duke to the Final Four.
Weaknesses: Duke has been good on the defensive end lately, but had some rough moments earlier in the season, particularly in the loss to North Carolina. The Blue Devils have good 3-point shooters in A.J. Griffin and Wendell Moore, but have been inconsistent from the arc.
Star: Paolo Banchero. A likely top-3 pick in this year&rsquo;s NBA draft, the 6-10 freshman is a matchup nightmare for opponents. Banchero has the size to post up smaller players, can shoot from the perimeter and beat defenders off the dribble.
Key contributor: Mark Williams. Duke&rsquo;s 7-1 sophomore center is a dominating force on the defensive end, blocking and altering shots. He&rsquo;s also got a good post game and finishes with authority.
NORTH CAROLINA
Final Four road: The Tar Heels (28-9) got their first season under Hubert Davis off to a shaky start, looking like they&rsquo;d miss the NCAA Tournament. Davis has since pulled the right strings, leading North Carolina to wins over Marquette, No. 1 seed Baylor and UCLA to reach the Elite Eight. The Tar Heels ensured a blue blood Final Four by crushing upstart Saint Peter&rsquo;s 69-49.
Strengths: Armando Bacot is one of the best big men in the country, freshman Caleb Love is a dynamic scorer and R.J. Davis a steady floor leader who also can score in bunches.
Weaknesses: Davis&rsquo; rotation doesn&rsquo;t go much beyond the starting five, which nearly cost the Tar Heels against Baylor. North Carolina has been better defensively late in the season, but had some real clunkers on that end earlier.
Star: Bacot. North Carolina&rsquo;s big man can be dominating, as he was with 20 points and 22 rebounds against Saint Peter&rsquo;s.
Key contributor: Brady Manek. The Oklahoma transfer proved to be the piece North Carolina was missing, providing perimeter shooting and scoring while doing all the little things the Tar Heels need.

Two weeks of upsets and underdogs in the books, the Final Four is down to four blue bloods: Kansas, Duke, UNC and Villanova.

March Madness: Final Four has a blue tint with power programs

For the first time in history, we will have a Duke vs. North Carolina meeting in the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels defeated Saint Peter&rsquo;s in the Elite Eight behind a dominant performance from Armando Bacot, who posted 20 points and 22 rebounds.
The Tar Heels (No. 8 seed) were red hot the second half of the season, winning huge games including Coach K&rsquo;s final home game at Duke, and the team also defeated No. 1 seed Baylor in the round of 32. Armando Bacot leads them in scoring with 16.4 points per game, while Caleb Love has had a great tournament and continues to make a case for himself in the 2022 NBA draft.
The Peacocks (No. 15 Seed) are the first 15 seed to ever make it to the Elite Eight, as well as the first MAAC Conference team to do so. Shaheen Holloway and co. are 22-11 on the season and are led by Daryl Banks III, who averaged 11.5 points per game. KC Ndefo scored 10.5 points per game and is a three-time winner of MAAC Defensive Player of the Year Award.
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_17976589_lg.jpg" alt="" width="363" height="251" />
Carolina got started early in this one, jumping out to a 7-0 lead which was the largest deficit Saint Peter&rsquo;s had faced in the tournament. Hassane Drame connected on a corner three which got the Peacocks on the board at 9-3. The size of Bacot and Brady Manek proved to be a lot to handle in the first half, as the Tar Heels took a 38-19 lead into the break.&nbsp;
Caleb Love led all players with 12 points at the half, while Drame led the Peacocks in scoring with 5. Manek connected on two triples in the first period and scored 10 points, and Bacot posted 8 points and a whopping 15 rebounds.&nbsp;
By the 13:30 mark in the second half, North Carolina held a 51-26 lead thanks to another Manek triple. Love would add a huge transition dunk to make it 61-38, and that would all but do it. Manek ended with 19 points and 8 rebounds, while the Tar Heel starters scored all but 2 of the team&rsquo;s points on the night. Fousseyni Drame led Saint Peter&rsquo;s in scoring with 12 points off the bench.
Though the Tar Heels brought it to an end, this historic run by Shaheen Holloway and Saint Peter&rsquo;s will be remembered forever. What an incredible, incredible season.&nbsp;
The Final Four is set for New Orleans, Louisiana, where North Carolina will meet Duke on Friday night. Get your popcorn ready.
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The Tar Heels defeated Saint Peter’s in the Elite Eight behind a dominant Armando Bacot performance. It'll be Duke vs. UNC next.

North Carolina defeats Saint Peter’s 69-49, heads to the Final Four

The Elite Eight is set! After two more days of madness, nail-biters, and upsets, eight programs will meet this weekend to earn trips to the Final Four. Here's the breakdown of Thursday and Friday's results:
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Saint Peter&rsquo;s def. Purdue 67-64, will face North Carolina Happy National Peacock Day! Shaheen Holloway and the Saint Peter's Peacocks have stunned another powerhouse, defeating the No. 3 seed Purdue Boilermakers 67-64 to advance to the Elite Eight. They have now beaten Kentucky, Murray State and Purdue en route to becoming the very first No. 15 seed to make the Elite Eight in NCAA Tournament history. Daryl Banks III led them in scoring with 14 points, while Doug Edert provided 10 huge ones off the bench.
Arkansas def. Gonzaga 74-68, will face Duke In a fast-paced game for most of the night, JD Notae, Jaylin Williams and Trey Wade knocked off the No. 1 overall seed. Williams said after the game, "We've been disrespected the whole year, so it's just another thing for us.&rdquo; Notae led the way with 21 points on 9 of 29 shooting from the floor, while Drew Timme posted 25 points in (potentially) his final game for the Zags. This one had the internet buzzing - what a win for Eric Musselman and co.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_17962576_lg.jpg" alt="" width="425" height="283" />
Duke def. Texas Tech 78-73, will face Arkansas This game was a heavyweight fight from start to finish. Texas Tech held a four-point lead at the half, but Paolo Banchero took over down the stretch, finishing with 22 points in the win. Jeremy Roach also played a huge role in this one with 15 points and 5 assists. Coach K and his Blue Devils survive and advance to a meeting with Arkansas. Must-see television ahead.&nbsp;
Houston def. Arizona 72-60, will face Villanova Kelvin Sampson is having, arguably, the best coaching season in America. He and the Cougars led wire-to-wire in this one to defeat the Wildcats, whom many had as their championship pick. Jamal Shead led the way with 21 points while Kyler Edwards posted 19. Another &lsquo;Culture Win&rsquo; for the Cougars as they will meet Collin Gillespie and Villanova in the Elite Eight.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_17961508_lg.jpg" alt="" width="386" height="257" />
Villanova def. Michigan 63-55, will face Houston The Wildcats took the lead with 3:42 to go in the first half and never looked back. They remained in control the rest of the way behind 22 points from Jermaine Samuels and 15 from Justin Moore. This ends the Wolverines' run, which has been nothing short of impressive. Villanova will now meet Houston in the Elite Eight in a matchup of two of the most disciplined, well-coached teams in the country.
Kansas def. Providence 66-61, will face Miami (FL) The Jayhawks advance to their first Elite Eight since 2017 behind Remy Martin&rsquo;s 23 points, a season-high for him. They only got 19 combined points from Ochai Agbaji, Christian Braun and David McCormack, but were able to hold on down the stretch. The Jayhawks are the only No. 1 seed remaining in the NCAA Tournament, and they are currently the betting favorites to win it all.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.basketballnews.com/images/story/body/usatsi_17968121_lg.jpg" alt="" width="405" height="270" />
North Carolina def. UCLA 73-66, will face Saint Peter&rsquo;s UCLA led 64-61 with 2:08 to play, but Caleb Love had other plans. He would catch fire from deep and hit two huge shots with just under a minute to play, giving his team the 67-64 lead. Armando Bacot would add a putback with 0:15 to play to make it a five-point game. That would be enough to hold off the Bruins. Love led the way with 30 points in an incredible performance, propelling the Tar Heels into a meeting with Cinderella, the Peacocks from Saint Peter&rsquo;s.&nbsp;
Miami (FL) def. Iowa State 70-56, will face Kansas The Hurricanes have advanced to the first Elite Eight in their program's history. Senior guard Kameron McGusty led all players with 27 points in this one, something he&rsquo;s accustomed to. A Sam Waardenburg three and Jordan Miller alley-oop extended Miami's the lead to 13 points with under 2:00 to play, which sealed the deal. Jim Larranaga and co. will play the final No. 1 seed in the field, Kansas, for a spot in the Final Four.
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Eight programs will meet this weekend to decide the Final Four. Here's Derek Murray breaking down how everyone got where they are.

March Madness: Sweet 16 recap, looking ahead to the Elite Eight

With the 2022 NCAA Tournament right around the corner, it's time for conference tournaments to begin so teams can begin punching their ticket to The Big Dance in March.
Mid-major tournaments have already gotten underway, on Wednesday, five Power Five tournaments will have begun theirs to join the club.
(Editor's note: Check out our breakdowns of the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-big-ten-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Big Ten</a>, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-big-12-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Big 12</a>, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-pac12-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pac-12</a> and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/top-2022-nba-draft-prospects-sec-tournament" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SEC</a>.)
Since everyone will have their eyes on the best players in these conferences over the next few weeks, BasketballNews.com has highlighted each Power Five and its top 2022 NBA Draft prospects.
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Here are the names to look out for in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/paolo-banchero" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paolo Banchero</a>
Forward | Duke
Height: 6-10 Weight: 250 Wingspan: 7-1
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 19.6 Nationality: Italy, USA
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At 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds, Paolo Banchero is incredibly versatile. He excels in the post, can create off the dribble and continues to improve as a face-up shooter from deep. He lacks elite athleticism on the defensive end, but has flashed a great feel and discipline to counter that. Players with his build and skill set don't come around very often. Banchero is widely considered as a top-four pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/aj-griffin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AJ Griffin</a>
Guard-Forward | Duke
Height: 6-6 Weight: 221 Wingspan: 7-0
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 18.8 Nationality: USA
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AJ Griffin is 6-foot-6 and possesses a 7-foot wingspan. He is a powerful and versatile wing with a tremendous physical profile and promising skill set. Griffin has also shown the ability to create for both himself and others. After missing the early part of this season due to injury, he has solidified himself as one of the best shooters in the country. AJ is the son of former NBA player and current Toronto Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin, and has made his case as a top-10 pick.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/mark-williams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mark Williams</a>
Center | Duke
Height: 7-0 Weight: 242 Wingspan: 7-7
Class: Sophomore Draft Day Age: 20.5 Nationality: USA
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Mark Williams is one of the best shot-blockers and inside scorers in the country. Utilizing his size, length and interior presence, Williams shows flashes of dominance on both ends. This season, he has been solid for Mike Krzyzewski and the Duke Blue Devils, which could lead to him to first-round pick status in the 2022 NBA Draft.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/wendell-moore-jr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wendell Moore Jr.</a>
Guard-Forward | Duke
Height: 6-5 Weight: 213 Wingspan: 6-11
Class: Junior Draft Day Age: 20.8 Nationality: USA
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Wendell Moore Jr. is having a breakout season, finally coming into his own as a junior. At 6-foot-5, he has good positional size, strength and athleticism at guard. While Moore remains streaky as a three-point shooter, he has proven to be a reliable three-level scorer this year for the Blue Devils. He will still be 20 years old on draft night with more room to develop, making him a solid option this June.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/blake-wesley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blake Wesley</a>
Guard | Notre Dame
Height: 6-5 Weight: 185 Wingspan: 6-11
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 19.3 Nationality: USA
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Blake Wesley came to Notre Dame as the No. 100 RSCI high school recruit,, but has quickly cemented himself as one of the more productive freshmen in the country. He has positional size and excellent length with a knack for scoring at all three levels. He'll need to improve his overall efficiency before unlocking his full potential, but he has the tools and skill set to develop into a capable NBA player.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/trevor-keels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trevor Keels</a>
Guard | Duke
Height: 6-4 Weight: 221 Wingspan: 6-7
Class: Freshman Draft Day Age: 18.8 Nationality: USA
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A physical and slashing guard capable of shooting the ball from outside, Trevor Keels came to Duke after being a consensus five-star high school recruit. His physicality and natural ability to score the ball should generate interest from NBA teams. Although he can be streaky as a shooter, he has a beautiful release, and has proven to be a tough shot-maker. With positional size and a knack for scoring, Keels is one to follow.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/alondes-williams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alondes Williams</a>
Guard-Forward | Wake Forest
Height: 6-5 Weight: 210 Wingspan: N/A
Class: Senior Draft Day Age: 23 Nationality: USA
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After two seasons at both Triton College (NJCAA DII) and Oklahoma, Alondes Williams transferred to Wake Forest and truly came into his own. Leading the team in points, rebounds and assists, he is versatile and reliable in all facets of the game. His shooting has been inconsistent, but he makes a strong case for this June's NBA Draft. He is one of the older players in the class, but projects as a player worthy of an opportunity at the next level.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/caleb-love" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Caleb Love</a>
Guard | North Carolina
Height: 6-4 Weight: 195 Wingspan: 6-9
Class: Sophomore Draft Day Age: 20.7 Nationality: USA
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After being a highly-touted recruit out of high school, Caleb Love had a somewhat underwhelming freshman season for the North Carolina Tar Heels. However, this season, he is scoring well from deep and the free-throw line, promising a scoring punch at the next level. Love is a solid athlete with a quick first step and knack for playmaking, and has taken a step forward this season. Love could be a viable option in the 2022 NBA Draft if he can continue trending in the right direction.
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft/2022-big-board/players/dereon-seabron" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dereon Seabron</a>
Guard-Forward | NC State
Height: 6-7 Weight: 180 Wingspan: 6-11
Class: Sophomore Draft Day Age: 22.1 Nationality: USA
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After redshirting in 2019 and only playing 17 minutes in 2020, Dereon Seabron has exploded onto the scene as a sophomore. Leading NC State in multiple statistical categories, he excels in attacking and finishing in the lane with his long wingspan. He isn't much of a floor stretcher at this point in his career, but adds significant value in other areas such as rebounding and facilitating. He is older for a sophomore (22.1 on Draft Day) but continues to make a strong case for himself in this June.
Others worth noting:
Armando Bacot | North Carolina
Buddy Boeheim | Syracuse
Matthew Cleveland | Florida State
Kameron McGusty | Miami
Jake LaRavia | Wake Forest
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Matt Babcock highlights the top 2022 NBA Draft prospects in the ACC Tournament.

2022 NBA Draft: Top prospects in the ACC Tournament

In a game where emotions were high and tickets were going for just shy of $80,000, the North Carolina Tar Heels were able to walk in and come away the victors over their rival Duke Blue Devils, 94-81.
Behind a strong team effort on the offensive end, UNC's starters scored 92 of their 94 points, and Armando Bacot led the way with 23 of them.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Armando Bacot 23 Pts (10-11 FG) 7 Rebs vs DUKE!!! Quick playing with bro and put him in the Lottery&hellip; ACC Player of the year!!! <a href="https://t.co/P1yNPVAQru">pic.twitter.com/P1yNPVAQru</a>
&mdash; Frankie Vision (@Frankie_Vision) <a href="https://twitter.com/Frankie_Vision/status/1500288472329949194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Trevor Keels got the scoring started for Duke (26-5, 16-4 ACC), but the Tar Heels (23-8, 15-5 ACC) jumped out to an 11-4 lead. Bacot picked up a quick foul and was put on the bench, and Paolo Banchero responded by leading Duke on a 10-2 run. Jeremy Roach would contribute 6 quick points off the bench, as Duke took the 16-15 lead. UNC's Brady Manek answered with his second triple to make it 26-23.&nbsp;
The Blue Devils were up 41-39 heading into halftime, with Banchero leading the way with 15 points. RJ Davis led Carolina with 11, and Manek was 3 for 6 from deep with 9 points.
Duke extended the lead to 50-44 just minutes into the second half, but Bacot went on a run and cut the Tar Heels' deficit back to two. By the under-12 TV timeout, Duke held a 56-54 advantage.&nbsp;
The Tar Heels went on top 65-61 at the 8-minute mark in part to Bacot really getting things going, plus a tough bucket from Caleb Love. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski called a timeout at 2:58 after a Wendell Moore Jr. three cut the Blue Devils' deficit to 79-74.&nbsp;
Manek would connect on another triple following the timeout to make it 82-74 in favor of UNC, and things started to get tense. Leaky Black and Bacot quickly scored baskets of their own, and that about did it. The Tar Heels came into Cameron Indoor and spoiled Coach K&rsquo;s finale.
Love scored 22 for the visitors, while Manek hit 5 of 10 from deep for 20 points of his own. Davis had a great game for the Tar Heels with 21 points.&nbsp;
Banchero led Duke with 23 points. Blue Devils center Mark Williams posted 16 points and 13 rebounds. Roach had a strong showing, too, with 15 points off the bench.&nbsp;
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The Blue Devils rank No. 6 in the NET and No. 5 in Adjusted Efficiency, making them one of the favorites to win the National Championship. Banchero, the potential No. 1 overall pick in this coming NBA Draft, continues to play well with 16.9 points per game. AJ Griffin, Williams, Keels, and Moore also have strong cases as first-round picks.
The Tar Heels entered this one as winners of four straight, and have moved up to No. 8 in the NET Rankings. They have the No. 25 ranked offense in the nation behind Bacot (16.4 PPG), Love (15.5 PPG) and the Oklahoma transfer, Manek (14.2 PPG). They will need a positive showing in the ACC Tournament to ensure a visit to the Big Dance.
Next up for Coach K and the Blue Devils? It's time to refocus and gear up for the ACC Tournament, where Duke will enter as the top seed. In March Madness, the Blue Devils currently project as a No. 2 seed.
North Carolina sits on the &ldquo;Last Four Byes&rdquo; line and is considered a Bubble Team &mdash; although this win will play huge with the committee.&nbsp;
Pregame Celebration
While he ends his Duke career at home on a sad note, Mike Krzyzewski will be remembered for the game of basketball and his accolades, yes, but also for how he left his mark on people.&nbsp;
Krzyzewski entered this one with a career record of 1,196-365 (.766). His list of accolades includes:
<ul>
<li>35 NCAA Tournament appearances</li>
<li>12 Final Four appearances</li>
<li>5 NCAA Championships</li>
<li>Three-time Naismith College Coach of the Year</li>
<li>Five-time ACC Coach of the Year</li>
<li>An induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame</li>
</ul>
Before the game, there was a beautiful ceremony from over 80 former Duke players who made the trip to honor Coach K.
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Some of those former players spoke to our BasketballNews.com staff.
A couple of weeks ago, Luke Kennard <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/luke-kennard-letting-it-fly-with-a-quicker-trigger-for-game-clippers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told our Spencer Davies</a>:
<blockquote>
He meant a lot [to my career]. Coach, he gave me an opportunity to play at the best university in the world, play for the best coach to ever coach the game," Kennard said. "It was a lot of fun. I mean without going there, [there's] no way I would be where I am today. He's great. He's such a family guy. Anytime I have a big game, he's always texting me like after the game. He keeps in touch with a lot of his players. I'm happy for him. He's done everything he's wanted to do while coaching the game. There's no better guy or coach for everything that's happened to him &mdash; he deserved it all. Happy retirement to him. He's gonna enjoy it now, he's gonna enjoy his family and grandkids. I'm happy for him though. I keep in touch with him all the time, and hopefully they can go out with a bang and try to get him a national championship this year. It's been fun to watch.
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Nolan Smith <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/duke-assistant-nolan-smith-on-coach-ks-retirement-jon-scheyer-more" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told our Chief Content Officer Alex Kennedy</a>:
<blockquote>
When a legend says "It&rsquo;s time," then it&rsquo;s time&hellip; His legacy comes down to winning. He consistently won in four different decades; that right there is unheard of. There are so many big-time coaches that have been in this game, but a lot of them most likely [won] in one or two decades. Not many have gotten to four decades and had the continued success that he&rsquo;s had. I think another part of that legacy is that he&rsquo;s created these relationships with players over and over again, so players continually wanted to play with Coach K. A lot of coaches get old; he never got old, he&rsquo;s still not old. Even heading into his last season, he stays up-to-date, he&rsquo;s adjusted to the times and he&rsquo;s adjusted to the game. I think that right there is part of his legacy, the fact that he&rsquo;s been able to change with the times of this game and not let it pass him up.
He&rsquo;s helped me tremendously in so many different ways. First, I&rsquo;ll start with basketball; he helped me be the best basketball player that I could be. The way he challenged me every day, the way he taught me to prepare every single day, how to approach the game every single day -- those were all lessons that helped me as a player. A lot of those lessons ended up helping me when I transitioned into my coaching career, too. All of those lessons that he was teaching are things that he does as a coach: he prepares better than anybody, he puts the time in, he watches film and he dedicates himself fully to his craft as a coach. That&rsquo;s probably something that a lot of people don&rsquo;t know about coaches: you put that same time in. And Coach puts in more time than anybody when it comes to his craft. Just being able to watch him and take notes... I&rsquo;ve made sure to have a notepad and a pen in every single meeting with him because he&rsquo;s always going to give you some kind of gem, some kind of lesson, that I can take with me and use in my coaching career when I deal with my players and, one day, have my own program.
</blockquote>
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In a game where emotions were high and tickets were going for just shy of $80,000, UNC was able to beat its rival Duke on the road.