UNC basketball

FORT WORTH, Texas — North Carolina ran away with the victory against Marquette in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, routing the Golden Eagles, 95-63, ...

There's people that don't want to fight, there's people that do want to fight, and there's people that are looking for a fight. “Yeah, I'd just say, you know, you get guys that are threats on the floor and it really spaces out for everybody else,” Manek said. So, you know, as a shooter, and you see your first one go in, you get confident. And I said, I want a bunch of guys, 17 guys in the locker room that are looking for a fight as we go up there and compete. Things got chippy at times between the two teams in the first half — Marquette picked up three technical fouls in a very short stretch — and a physical game was not exactly something that shocked first-year North Carolina head coach Hubert Davis given their opponent. And even with the lopsided score, the contest was not without some fireworks along the way.

While talking to reporters, Baylor head coach Scott Drew announced that LJ Cryer will be unavailable for the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament. The ...

There’s no question that Baylor is a better team when Cryer is on the floor as their lead guard, but don’t sleep on the rest of this unit. However, since his absence, Drew and his team have actually played great basketball, winning five of the six games Cryer missed. Could his absence hinder Baylor’s attempt to make a deep postseason run?

By Adam Lucas 1. Carolina dominated Marquette in a first round NCAA Tournament win, 95-63. Carolina had a remarkable 29 assists on 34 made field goals in an ...

UNC senior Leaky Black has gained a mental guide and spiritual leader in Jackie Manuel. Both have navigated anxiety issues as Tar Heels players.

Black’s 47.9-percent shooting from the field and 88.2-percent shooting on free throws this season mark the best clips of his career in those categories. So the same time he’s going through it, and I’m practicing the same skill sets on my journey.” More mindfulness, focus on your breathing, and get back to the flow of what you’re doing and trying to accomplish. Meanwhile, the defense delivered by Black has been unwavering, with lock-down performances turned in against Georgia Tech’s Michael Devoe, North Carolina State’s Dereon Seabron and Virginia Tech’s Hunter Cattoor, as per the task of guarding the opposing team’s top perimeter threat. All of a sudden, the college and professional playing career that had been dependent on dogged defense behind him, his shots were connecting with precision. “I feel like I’ve been at the bottom of the bottom. “I feel like I just wanted to make everyone proud and having that weight on my shoulders, that’s where it started. The two have found both armor and sword in one another. Black considers the tingling episode, which recurred on occasion, the beginning of a descent. Black and Manuel stayed behind in the empty 21,750-seat arena, the All-ACC defenders talking and sharing stories surrounded by a silent sea of baby blue. He told me how when he was a player he was like the exact same way as me. “I’m like, maybe I can give Leaky some pointers, some tips that can benefit him,” Manuel told the Burlington Times-News. “I was thinking more about the basketball side initially.

UNC basketball made a statement to open up March Madness against Marquette but, as a date with No. 1-seed Baylor looms, is an upset brewing?

And when you have the steady presence of Bacot on the interior to complement that, you’re looking at a complete UNC basketball team. UNC has struggled against the best competition on the schedule this season outside of beating Duke in the regular-season finale. Early in the season, North Carolina struggled to find their way under new head coach Hubert Davis with inconsistent guard play, an unsettled rotation of big men, poor defense, and really just a multitude of problems. From there, the Tar Heels never looked back en route to a 32-point victory that set the tone for their NCAA Tournament. That 8-9 line and those games can be tricky, something that North Carolina can attest to having been on the wrong end of those matchups in recent years. In the win, grad transfer Brady Manek set a career-high with 28 points and 11 rebounds while Caleb Love was impressive with six 3-point makes to end up with 23 points.

North Carolina sent Marquette packing with a lopsided 95-63 win in the first round of the 2022 NCAA men's basketball tournament on Thursday.

North Carolina's reward for Thursday's win is a date with Baylor, the top seed in the East region. Lewis shot 2-of-15 from the floor en route to a six-point effort. That comfortable victory over the Blue Devils was preceded by a 20-point drubbing in Chapel Hill. North Carolina was creating a lot of second chances and denying them for their opponents because of how much they dominated the glass. North Carolina might be hitting its stride at the right time. The eighth-seeded Tar Heels avoided suffering an opening-round exit for the second straight season.

FORT WORTH, Texas – No. 8 seed North Carolina made quick work of No. 9 seed Marquette in the NCAA Tournament's opening round at Dickies Arena, ...

The final stats don’t tell the whole story on the glass, which is typically the case in blowouts of this magnitude. The junior center pulled down 10 against the Golden Eagles to give him 422 through 34 games. Caleb Love entered the NCAA Tournament struggling at the wrong time, shooting 24.7% from the floor and 26.2% from the 3-point line in his last five games. The Tar Heels heeded their head coach’s advice and refused to back down when the Golden Eagles increased the physicality as their deficit grew in the first half. Manek provided the only points inside the arc during the run with a dunk in transition. Last but certainly not least, R. J. Davis dished out 12 assists, which are the most by a Tar Heel this season and the second-most by a Tar Heel in NCAA Tournament history (14 by Kendall Marshall, 2011). UNC’s game-deciding 20-2 run midway through the first half – turning an 8-7 deficit into a 27-10 lead -- was fueled by the 3-point shot. The sophomore guard was elite from long range, knocking down 6-of-11 3-pointers in the first half alone. Armando Bacot’s maniacal rebounding efforts this season culminated on Thursday in breaking Brice Johnson’s single-season school record of 416 rebounds. The Tar Heels (25-9) led by 10 points eight minutes into the game and had doubled that margin six minutes later. Love made a trio of his 3-pointers and R. J. Davis added another, while Brady Manek knocked down a three from the left wing and converted three free throws after being fouled attempting a 3-point shot. Brady Manek led all scorers with a season-high 28 points (10-of-15, 5-of-10 3FG) while grabbing 11 rebounds.

SportsLine's model revealed its college basketball picks for Marquette vs. UNC during March Madness 2022.

Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has crushed its college basketball picks, and find out. Marquette? And which side of the spread hits well over 50 percent of the time? The model also says one side of the spread hits well over 50 percent of the time. SportsLine's model is leaning under on the point total, projecting the teams to combine for 147 points. Marquette and revealed its coveted picks and predictions for the NCAA Tournament 2022. On March 2 against DePaul, he dropped 26 points, 10 rebounds and went 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. You can head to SportsLine to see all of the model's college basketball picks. The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Marquette picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's proven computer model. Marquette, the No. 9 seed, lost to Creighton in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of almost $1,500 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. UNC, the No. 8 seed, fell to Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

The North Carolina Tar Heels are taking on the Marquette Golden Eagles later today in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels are coming off ...

Marquette is going to play the Tar Heels physical, which means that Bacot is going to have to be able to bang around in the paint, fight for rebounds, and send Shaka Smart’s guys to the line as much as possible. As for Marquette, they are coming off of a 74-63 loss to Creighton in the quarterfinal round of the Big East Tournament. For the Heels to win this game, things have to start and end with feeding Armando Bacot as much as possible.

Here are three keys that could help the Tar Heels fend off the Lumberjacks' upset bid in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

For this game, she’ll likely defend Visscher, who may struggle to get her potent 3-point shot past the taller and stronger Ustby. Standing at 6 feet tall, the senior guard uses her tall stature to shoot over opposing teams' guards. And, in games where Kelly’s seen her struggles heightened, it hasn’t been a product of poor shot selection, but shot location. Ustby, a 6-foot-1-inch guard, tends to be on the opposing team’s best player. There’s no denying Kelly is one of UNC’s most gifted players on the offensive end, as she possesses the ability to beat you off the dribble and has one of the most lethal mid-range games in the country. After almost every made basket for Lumberjacks, they align into their 2-2-1 full-court press.

North Carolina Tar Heels, in NCAA tournament 2022, beat Marquette Golden Eagles in opening round March Madness game. UNC basketball faces Baylor Bears ...

... I think he would be noticed more as one of the best defenders, if not the best defender, in the country.” Lewis finished 2-for-15 from the floor, which was his worst shooting performance of the season and just the third time he was held to single digits scoring. “He’s a big boy, usually big guards don’t like people crowding them and getting under their space and not being able to put the ball on the ground and get easy shots,” Black said. With a lead that reached 35, Love only had one 3-point attempt in the second half and he missed it. “I knew we had a huge size advantage in the lane and, obviously, just based on their statistics from the year, they weren’t a great rebounding team,” Bacot said. “If you took the time to look at Leaky’s defensive stats towards the opposing player. It was the first time UNC had two players with at least five 3s in the same NCAA tournament game. “And I’m fortunate enough to be able to play with guards that like throwing me the ball. And, obviously, the addition of (Brady) Manek and the element that he gives to their team is really — makes them a dangerous, dangerous team.” That showed against Marquette in the way they passed the ball. So just finding the open spots and getting me those open looks, it really gets my confidence going.” Carolina used a 20-2 haymaker midway through the first half to take a 27-10 lead and it only ballooned from there.