North Carolina Tar Heels: 2009 National Champions
I can admit I was wrong. My foot is still in mouth, so I’ll write what I have to say.
Yeah, I knew UNC was the best team, but just didn’t want to admit it. Maybe it was that Maize and Blue slip up that will forever horror my soul this time of year. I could care less and neither could you for it’s all immaterial. The North Carolina Tar Heels are the champions of this season’s collegiate scene. Because of work, my view of the game was limited to the first half, but that didn’t matter as well. Carolina shot out the box with disciplined precision, size, power and sauna wet jumpers splashed from the fingertips of hawk eyed Wayne Ellington–the MOP. Dude gave me flashbacks to to the game of Donald Williams’ 1993 dream and hit from anywhere and everywhere.
The partisan Michigan State crowd had to sit through a Ford Field demolition and gave Carolina its 5th championship–tying Indiana for third all time behind UCLA and Kentucky. Roy Williams became the 4th active coach to win multiple championships (Coach K, Calhoun and Donovan) and the 13th overall.
Carolina strong armed the tournament and won every game by double digits–outscoring opponents by a sickdiculous 121 points.
Ellington is from PA and he and also Gerald Henderson from Duke heavily considered Villanova as their college choice, but Tobacco Road won over. This is how Carolina does it, they take away from the best most states have to offer and when they face those teams in the tournament, their absence is glaring.
Can I say something? Can we now access the affect the UConn scandal had on the outcome? Did Jim Calhoun’s outburst have anything to do with their absence in the National Final?
Then the scandal dropped?
Why then?
Just sayin’…
Oh….who the hell is Ed Davis? Dude sparkled didn’t he?
UNC winning it all made President Obama look good huh?
Hansbrough will be remembered by the mainstream (not here) as the catalyst for this team’s success, but the performances of Ellington and Lawson took this team to another level.
Speak on it.
They murdered State’s guards and their defense helped Carolina force 21 turnovers. It seemed like State couldn’t catch a break. Every loose ball fell Carolina’s way. They could get no boards, shot as if they were on a NBA back to back to back and just didn’t show up even though they were a mere 90 minutes from East Lansing.
When I spoke to Ellington as a incoming North Carolina freshman. I saw something in his eyes that gave me stark visions of this moment. I knew at that moment Carolina would win a championship. I asked Wayne that day about the legacy he helped to give more reason:
Michael Tillery: Talk about the Carolina legacy. Michael Jordan, Dean Smith, James Worthy..etc.
Wayne Ellington: “What you just said, you can go on forever. The list goes on an on. The tradition is crazy. When you go into the Dean Center and look up and see all those banners, it gives you chills”
Now when he comes back, probably wearing glasses and hair of gray, his eyes will smile when reminiscing of the banner that is his.
See you in the pros bruh. Get it!
| 1 | 2 | T | ||
| #2 | MSU (31-7) | 34 | 38 | 72 |
| #1 | UNC (34-4) | 55 | 34 | 89 |
| MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS | ||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Raymar Morgan, F | 19 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| Delvon Roe, F | 17 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Goran Suton, C | 31 | 7-10 | 3-4 | 0-0 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 17 |
| Kalin Lucas, G | 35 | 4-12 | 0-1 | 6-8 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 14 |
| Travis Walton, G | 24 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Idong Ibok, C | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Allen, G | 17 | 0-8 | 0-7 | 3-5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Austin Thornton, G | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Durrell Summers, G | 21 | 4-10 | 2-6 | 3-4 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
| Isaiah Dahlman, G | 1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Draymond Green, F | 12 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 3-5 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| Jon Crandell, F | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Korie Lucious, G | 14 | 2-5 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| Tom Herzog, C | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Marquise Gray, F | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |
| 22-55 | 7-23 | 21-29 | 13 | 40 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 21 | 28 | 72 | ||
| 40.0% | 30.4% | 72.4% | ||||||||||
| NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS | ||||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Deon Thompson, F | 23 | 3-8 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 9 |
| Tyler Hansbrough, F | 34 | 6-14 | 0-2 | 6-10 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 18 |
| Ty Lawson, G | 37 | 3-10 | 0-3 | 15-18 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 |
| Danny Green, G-F | 24 | 2-4 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 |
| Wayne Ellington, G | 35 | 7-12 | 3-3 | 2-2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 19 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| Marc Campbell, G | 1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Frasor, G | 23 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Larry Drew II, G | 4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J.B. Tanner, G | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Justin Watts, G | 1 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Ed Davis, F | 14 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 1-4 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 11 |
| Patrick Moody, F | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Copeland, F | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyler Zeller, F | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| TOTALS | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | OREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | |
| 28-61 | 5-12 | 28-40 | 9 | 33 | 13 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 22 | 89 | ||
| 45.9% | 41.7% | 70.0% | ||||||||||
If you want to talk about Dominant Point Guard Performances in a championship game, I doubt you can find a more impressive stat line than 18 free throws attempted combined with 8 steals and just one turnover.
Last night, UNC put on a clinic — and I was asleep by the time they tipped off in the second half.
That free throw stat is amazing. It’s the reason I posted the box score. Leave it to your eyes to find it bruh.
two things
1. Lawson will definitely be remembered as the catalyst for this one – he went for seven steals in the half and was the best player on UNC all season long. Pyscho T was a hell of a college player, but he’s going to be remembered as much for being a black hole in the post as he will his junior year dominance.
2. off that, you okay with Ellington as the MOP? He shot the lights out, no doubt, but Ty Lawson controlled both games on both ends. A tournament performance like that deserves to be remembered in the books as well as our minds.
Damn right. Lawson was the key. If he doesn’t gut out that foot injury, UNC does not win it. That’s why I picked against them. If you read most of the stories, Hansbrough’s name is mentioned first. You and I both know how pieces are constructed. What’s that about? He did have a great college career but what really was the difference from this year to last. Did Ellington and Lawson step up that much or did the coverage greatly subside on Tyler?
I told you all that my Tarheels would bring home the title (better start listening to me). ACC rules!!!!!!!!
In all seriousness though, it was a great performance last night. UNC was just too much for MSU inside, outside, defensively, etc. They wanted it more and they did all the things to secure the victory early. They never gave MSU a chance.
I agree w/ mizz…..if Lawson doesn’t play in the tourney, UNC doesn’t win — plain and simple. But….if Ellington doesn’t shoot lights out in the tourney, we probably don’t win even if Lawson plays. This has to be more of the top back courts ever showcased in the NCAA tourney.
Yup. I hope it goes down that way…as well it should.
Thanks Mizz.
UNC looked great.
UNC was clearly the best team this season. They played a nearly flawless game.