Banner Day for Past, Present

North Carolina had one of those celebrate-the-past-while-embracing-the-present Saturdays, when it played host to more than 200 former players and team managers who gathered to honor former coaches Dean Smith and Bill Guthridge.

Banners honoring the coaches were unveiled and raised to the rafters in the campus arena that bears Smith’s name in Chapel Hill, N.C.

“The entire atmosphere that I want to have here is, when you’re a Carolina basketball player, you’re a Carolina basketball player for life,” the current coach, Roy Williams, told a Raleigh newspaper earlier in the week.

“And I think having the reunion will be something that will help promote that even more. I think it will help the current players see that even more, it might even make the bond the other players have even stronger. I think that’s what college basketball should be.”

Williams said he had to persuade Smith to allow the ceremony. “It’s the first time I’ve ever gotten Coach Smith to do something he didn’t want to do,” said Williams, who later told reporters he nearly fainted during the game, explaining that he has had bouts of lightheadedness throughout his life.

“I’ve had every kind of test you can have,” he said. “It’s a blood rush. It takes about five seconds then things are fine.”

Although Michael Jordan was out of the country, having so many other former players present, including Mitch Kupchak, Eric Montross and Billy Cunningham, had the desired impact on the current players.

“Everybody, everybody,” junior guard Jackie Manuel said when asked which player he was most looking forward to meeting. “That’s one of the reasons I came here, to be able to experience the opportunity of meeting everyone that came through this university.”

Then the game started, and Florida State played the role of gritty opponent to the hilt in a compelling Atlantic Coast Conference matchup. Unlike the game between the teams Jan. 22, when the Seminoles rallied from a 24-point deficit to win, 16th-ranked North Carolina staved off unranked Florida State down the stretch to win, 78-71.

The Seminoles trimmed an 18-point deficit to one at 65-64 with 4 minutes 1 second remaining, but the Tar Heels made eight of nine free throws to maintain the lead and ensured there would be no repeat of the earlier collapse.

Sean May had 10 points, 10 rebounds and the last word on the Tar Heels’ victory.

“Anytime you get revenge on anybody that has beat you it feels great,” May said.

Memphis Blues No More

No. 23 Memphis surged into the Conference USA lead with a 73-66 victory over Alabama Birmingham, its 10th in succession.

Well, maybe surged isn’t exactly the right word, but some team had to move atop the standings and it happened to be Memphis, 19-4 overall and 10-2 in Conference USA, instead of unranked Birmingham (16-7, 9-3).

The chase pack: North Carolina Charlotte and Cincinnati, with 9-3 conference records , followed by DePaul at 8-4. Louisville is 7-5.

“You saw in the second half there was a five-minute stretch where we just turned it up,” Memphis Coach John Calipari said. “We just went to another level, and that was basically letting them know that we’re in great shape.”

Earlier, on the undercard, No. 17 Cincinnati defeated No. 10 Louisville in overtime, 66-61, forcing the extra period on Field Williams’ fadeaway jump shot with less than a second to play.

“We knew today that if we didn’t win, we were done,” said Tony Bobbitt, who had a three-pointer and two free throws in overtime. “We needed it.”

Louisville had thumped Cincinnati by 27 points Jan. 27.

“After that loss, a lot of players circled this one on their calendars,” Eric Hicks said.

Mr. Warmth Strikes Again

Bob Knight benched his top player, Andre Emmett, for the first time this season for Texas Tech’s game against Texas A&M;, knowing Emmett needed four points to become the all-time leading scorer in the Big 12 Conference (from the inception of its current school membership in 1996-97).

Knight also did not allow an announcement to the crowd at Lubbock when Emmett passed Kansas’ Nick Collison with his 2,098th point on a dunk 7:54 before halftime.

“That’s a neat thing for a kid to have,” Knight said of the record. “But what it means to me is that a lot of kids have worked like hell to get him the ball, screen for him and get him open. You guys get too caught up with individual honors.”

Knight further chided reporters for asking why the record was not announced to the crowd. He said any announcement should include the names of all the teammates who gave Emmett assists or set screens for him.

“You announce it,” Knight said. “That’s what you guys get paid for. He didn’t set a record in the 100-yard dash.”

Texas Tech senior guard Michael Marshall didn’t buy that explanation. “It might be in the papers, but still they could have announced it,” he said. “I really wasn’t sure the fans knew. Our teammates knew, and it was just kind of weird to us.”

Mid-Major Mania

Given a rare chance at cable TV exposure to showcase their games, 10 teams from the so-called mid-majors played in made-for-TV nonconference games designed to impress NCAA selection officials.

Kent State, which defeated Creighton, 70-55; Manhattan, which downed Wisconsin Milwaukee, 83-76; and Northern Iowa, which beat Wisconsin Green Bay, 82-75, were among the big winners.

Kent State’s Jason Edwin, who had 25 points and Manhattan’s Luis Flores, who had 27 points, were the best and brightest individuals, with Northern Iowa’s taut victory over Green Bay a hit for ESPN.

“I think ESPN knew exactly what they were doing when they made this matchup,” Green Bay Coach Tod Kowalczyk said. “That to me was about as evenly a matched game as we’ve probably had all year. That’s a good basketball team that beat us.”

Becoming a Force

Air Force continued its march toward its first conference title since the Wright Brothers invented their flying contraption.

OK, not really.

But the Falcons’ 59-57 victory over Utah was their first at Salt Lake City since Jan. 26, 1989. They also had never swept the Utes in a season series.

“We probably were the only ones that believed we could do it,” Coach Joe Scott said. “To come in here and knock these guys off I think says a lot about our team and how good we are.”

Air Force’s Joel Gerlach made two free throws with 1.4 seconds remaining to end a 57-57 tie and cap a comeback from an eight-point halftime deficit. Gerlach picked up a loose ball at midcourt and drove toward the basket. His layup missed, but he was fouled..

Air Force (19-4, 9-1) leads the Mountain West Conference and has clinched its first winning season since 1977-78.

Compiled by Elliott Teaford

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Dean of Success

Former North Carolina Coach Dean Smith was honored before the Tar Heels’ game with Florida State on Saturday at the arena named for him. Smith’s 36-season coaching career (1962-1997) by the numbers:

*--* 879 Victories, the most among NCAA coaches 776 Winning percentage in 1,133 games 17 Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season championships 13 ACC tournament championships 27 NCAA tournament appearances 11 NCAA Final Four appearances 2 NCAA championships (1982 and 1993) 22 Seasons with at least 25 victories (NCAA record) 8 Times selected ACC coach of the year 65 NCAA tournament victories, a record. (Mike Krzyzewski is second with 60, John Wooden third with 47) 96 Percent of his players that graduated

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First and Foremost

North Carolina players that Smith coached who were Associated Press first-team All-Americans (* player of the year):

*--* Player, Position Seasons Larry Miller, forward 1967-68 Phil Ford, guard 1976-77, 1977-78 Michael Jordan, guard 1982-83, 1983-84* Sam Perkins, forward 1984 Kenny Smith, guard 1986-87 J.R. Reid, forward 1987-88 Jerry Stackhouse, forward 1994-95 Antawn Jamison, forward 1997-98* Joseph Forte, guard 2000-01

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Prominent Professionals

More than 50 North Carolina players that Smith coached went on to play in the NBA or ABA. The following are players who were all-stars in those leagues, with their positions and seasons at North Carolina:

*--* Player, Position Seasons *Larry Brown, guard 1960-63 **Billy Cunningham, forward 1962-65 **Charlie Scott, guard-forward 1967-70 **Bobby Jones, forward 1971-74 Bob McAdoo, forward-center 1971-72 Walter Davis, forward 1973-77 James Worthy, forward 1979-82 Michael Jordan, guard 1981-84 Brad Daugherty, center 1982-86 Rasheed Wallace, forward-center 1993-95 Jerry Stackhouse, forward 1993-95 Vince Carter, forward 1995-98 * ABA All-Star ** NBA and ABA All-Star

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