2013–14 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

The 2013–14 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during the 2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach was Roy Williams, who is in his 11th season as UNC's head men's basketball coach. They played their home games at the Dean E. Smith Center as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 24–10, 13–5 in ACC play to finish in a tie for third place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament to Pittsburgh. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Providence in the second round before losing in the third round to Iowa State.

2013–14 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Round of 32
ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 21
APNo. 19
Record24–10 (13–5 ACC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaDean E. Smith Center
Seasons
2013–14 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 Virginia 16 2   .889 30 7   .811
No. 14 Syracuse 14 4   .778 28 6   .824
No. 8 Duke 13 5   .722 26 9   .743
No. 19 North Carolina 13 5   .722 24 10   .706
Pittsburgh 11 7   .611 26 10   .722
Clemson 10 8   .556 23 13   .639
NC State 9 9   .500 22 14   .611
Maryland 9 9   .500 17 15   .531
Florida State 9 9   .500 22 14   .611
Miami (FL) 7 11   .389 17 16   .515
Wake Forest 6 12   .333 17 16   .515
Georgia Tech 6 12   .333 16 17   .485
Notre Dame 6 12   .333 15 17   .469
Boston College 4 14   .222 8 24   .250
Virginia Tech 2 16   .111 9 22   .290
2014 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Pre-season

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The Tar Heels entered the 2013–14 season lost two starters from the previous season as Dexter Strickland graduated and second team All-ACC shooting guard Reggie Bullock declared for the 2013 NBA draft. However, rising juniors and potential draft picks James Michael McAdoo and P. J. Hairston decided to return to Chapel Hill and UNC brought in a strong recruiting class including McDonald's All-Americans Kennedy Meeks and Isaiah Hicks.

Another offseason change involved the coaching staff as long-time Roy Williams assistant Joe Holladay retired. UNC alum Brad Frederick joined the staff as Director of Basketball Operations in June. Frederick came from the coaching staff at Vanderbilt, where he had been for 14 seasons. He is the son of former Kansas Athletic Director Bob Frederick.[1]

However, the optimism of the Spring turned to uncertainty in the Summer as both Hairston and fifth year senior Leslie McDonald were both suspended from the team due to eligibility concerns, leaving only two scholarship guards (sophomore Marcus Paige and freshman Nate Britt) on the roster entering the season. McDonald would be reinstated in the non-conference season, but Hairston's suspension would hold for the entire season.[2][3]

Even with this uncertainty, North Carolina was voted #13 in the AP preseason poll[4] and #11 in the USA Today Coaches' Poll.[5] The ACC media tabbed the Tar Heels third in the conference preseason poll.[6]

Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Reggie Bullock 35 F/G 6'7" 205 Junior Kinston, NC Declared for the NBA draft
Dexter Strickland 1 G 6'3" 180 Senior Rahway, NJ Graduated

Recruits

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Nate Britt
PG
Washington, DC Oak Hill Academy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Nov 29, 2011 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: 86
Isaiah Hicks
F
Oxford, NC J.F. Webb High School 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Aug 8, 2011 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: 91
Kennedy Meeks
C
Charlotte, NC West Charlotte 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 275 lb (125 kg) Nov 16, 2012 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: 86
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

The top-rated recruit in the class scheduled to start college in Fall 2013 is Isaiah Hicks, the eighth ranked power forward and the 18th ranked player in the ESPN 100.[7] Shortly behind him in that ranking is Kennedy Meeks at #59. He is the #6 ranked center in the 2013 high school class. Britt is the 52nd ranked player in the current high school class and 11th point guard. He tore his meniscus in December 2012.[8]

  • Isaiah Hicks: 18th ranked player in ESPN 100, eight-ranked power forward, named to the 2013 McDonald's All-America game[7][9] In his last high school basketball game he had 34 points, 30 rebounds and seven blocks in a win in his division's state championship game.[10]
  • Kennedy Meeks: 59th ranked player in ESPN 100, #6 ranked center, and named to the 2013 McDonald's All-America game
  • Nate Britt: 52nd ranked player, 11th-ranked point guard

Roster

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2013–14 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Nate Britt 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Oak Hill (VA) Upper Marlboro, Maryland
G 2 Leslie McDonald 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Sr Briarcrest Christian School Memphis, Tennessee
C 3 Kennedy Meeks 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 290 lb (132 kg) Fr West Charlotte Charlotte, North Carolina
G 4 Luke Davis 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) RS Jr Ravenscroft School Raleigh, North Carolina
G 5 Marcus Paige 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So Linn-Mar Marion, Iowa
F 11 Brice Johnson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Edisto Orangeburg, South Carolina
F 13 J. P. Tokoto 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Menomonee Falls Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin
F 14 Desmond Hubert 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr New Egypt Cream Ridge, New Jersey
G 15 P. J. Hairston (I) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Hargrave Military Academy Greensboro, North Carolina
F 21 Jackson Simmons 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Smoky Mountain Webster, North Carolina
F 22 Isaiah Hicks 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr J.F. Webb Oxford, North Carolina
F 30 James Manor (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Chapel Hill Carrboro, North Carolina
F 34 Denzel Robinson (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina
F 42 Joel James 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 280 lb (127 kg) So Dwyer West Palm Beach, Florida
F 43 James Michael McAdoo 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Norfolk Christian Norfolk, Virginia
G 55 Wade Moody (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr Mount Airy Mount Airy, North Carolina
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 12/08/13

  • Note that the roster is subject to change.

Season

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Non-conference play

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The Tar Heels started the season with uncertainty as Hairston's and McDonald's eligibility cases remained in limbo for the first nine games of the season. After uneventful victories over Oakland and Holy Cross, the Heels were stunned 83–80 at home by Belmont, in part because of a 22–48 performance at the free throw line.[11] However, the team would redeem themselves by beating #3 Louisville in the Hall of Fame Tip Off championship. Marcus Paige led the team with 32 points while post players Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks controlled the paint and the Heels won 93–84. Paige was named ACC Player of the Week for his performance against the Cardinals and the Richmond Spiders in the previous game (26 points).[12]

North Carolina's inconsistency would show itself again as the Heels lost their next game - an 83–86 contest at UAB, coached by former Roy Williams assistant Jerod Haase. But true to form, the Heels bounced back and beat #1 Michigan State on the road in a game they never trailed. Kennedy Meeks led the team in scoring with 15 and was named ACC Rookie of the Week.[13] After an easy home win over UNC Greensboro (coached by Wes Miller, another Williams disciple), the Tar Heels completed a sweep of the top three teams in the preseason polls by upending #11 Kentucky at the Dean Smith Center. Paige and James Michael McAdoo were the stars, scoring 23 and 20 points respectively.[14]

On December 18, the team received the news that Leslie McDonald would be reinstated in time for the Texas game at the Smith Center.[2] However, the Tar Heels lost to the young Longhorns. North Carolina finished their non-conference season with wins over Davidson, Northern Kentucky and UNC Wilmington.

Conference play

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The Tar Heels started 1–4 in conference play, but then, they won twelve straight, including a win over #5 Duke on February 20. With the Duke win, North Carolina became the first team to defeat each of the AP Poll preseason top 4 in the same season in the 53 years that the poll has released preseason rankings.[15] The streak was broken with a loss at Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 1*
7:30 pm, GoHeels TV
No. 12 UNC Pembroke W 82–63 
 19  McAdoo   10  Tied   3  Tied  Dean E. Smith Center (N/A)
Chapel Hill, NC
Non-conference regular season
Nov 8*
9:00 pm, RSN
No. 12 Oakland W 84–61  1–0
 21  McAdoo   9  McAdoo   5  Tied  Dean E. Smith Center (15,102)
Chapel Hill, NC
Nov 15*
8:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 12 Holy Cross
2013 Hall of Fame Tip Off
W 62–54  2–0
 23  Paige   8  Meeks   5  Tokoto  Dean E. Smith Center (15,833)
Chapel Hill, NC
Nov 17*
4:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 12 Belmont
2013 Hall of Fame Tip Off
L 80–83  2–1
 27  McAdoo   13  McAdoo   5  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (15,205)
Chapel Hill, NC
Nov 23*
12:00 pm, ESPN3
No. 24 vs. Richmond
2013 Hall of Fame Tip Off semifinals
W 82–72  3–1
 26  Paige   12  Johnson   3  Paige  Mohegan Sun Arena (8,113)
Uncasville, CT
Nov 24*
1:00 pm, ESPN
No. 24 vs. No. 3 Louisville
2013 Hall of Fame Tip Off championship
W 93–84  4–1
 32  Paige   12  Meeks   7  Meeks  Mohegan Sun Arena (N/A)
Uncasville, CT
Dec 1*
6:00 pm, FS1
No. 16 at UAB L 59–63  4–2
 16  Tokoto   7  Johnson   5  Paige  Bartow Arena (8,313)
Birmingham, AL
Dec 4*
9:00 pm, ESPN
at No. 1 Michigan State
ACC–Big Ten Challenge
W 79–65  5–2
 15  Meeks   10  Tokoto   5  Paige  Breslin Center (14,797)
East Lansing, MI
Dec 7*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
UNC Greensboro W 81–50  6–2
 14  Johnson   8  Meeks   8  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (15,676)
Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 14*
5:15 pm, ESPN
No. 18 No. 11 Kentucky
Rivalry
W 82–77  7–2
 23  Paige   7  Johnson   4  McAdoo  Dean E. Smith Center (21,750)
Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 18*
7:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 14 Texas L 83–86  7–3
 23  Paige   9  Johnson   7  Britt  Dean E. Smith Center (17,143)
Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 21*
5:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 14 Davidson W 97–85 OT 8–3
 22  Tokoto   11  Tokoto   5  Tied  Dean E. Smith Center (18,195)
Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 27*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 19 Northern Kentucky W 75–60  9–3
 14  McAdoo   9  Paige   4  Tokoto  Dean E. Smith Center (18,842)
Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 31*
5:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 19 UNC Wilmington W 84–51  10–3
 23  McAdoo   10  McAdoo   6  Britt  Dean E. Smith Center (16,923)
Chapel Hill, NC
ACC regular season
Jan 5
8:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 19 at Wake Forest L 67–73  10–4 (0–1)
 13  McAdoo   9  3 tied   6  Paige  LJVM Coliseum (12,462)
Winston-Salem, NC
Jan 8
9:00 pm, ESPN2
Miami (FL) L 57–63  10–5 (0–2)
 12  McAdoo   12  McAdoo   8  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (17,569)
Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 11
12:00 pm, ESPN
at No. 2 Syracuse L 45–57  10–6 (0–3)
 15  McAdoo   9  McAdoo   3  Tokoto  Carrier Dome (32,121)
Syracuse, NY
Jan 18
12:00 pm, ESPN
Boston College W 82–71  11–6 (1–3)
 21  Paige   6  Tied   6  Tokoto  Dean E. Smith Center (18,115)
Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 20
7:00 pm, ESPN
at Virginia
Big Monday
L 61–76  11–7 (1–4)
 15  Meeks   9  Meeks   3  Tied  John Paul Jones Arena (13,045)
Charlottesville, VA
Jan 26
6:00 pm, ESPNU
Clemson W 80–61  12–7 (2–4)
 22  McAdoo   8  Meeks   5  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (18,616)
Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 29
7:00 pm, ESPN2
at Georgia Tech W 78–65  13–7 (3–4)
 19  Paige   10  Meeks   7  Paige  McCamish Pavilion (5,124)
Atlanta, GA
Feb 1
1:00 pm, ESPN
NC State W 80–74  14–7 (4–4)
 20  McDonald   13  McAdoo   5  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (21,750)
Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 4
8:00 pm, ACCN
Maryland W 75–63  15–7 (5–4)
 25  Paige   9  Tokoto   7  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (17,225)
Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 8
12:00 pm, ACCN
at Notre Dame W 73–62  16–7 (6–4)
 18  McAdoo   8  McAdoo   9  Paige  Purcell Pavilion (9,149)
South Bend, IN
Feb 15
1:00 pm, CBS
No. 25 Pittsburgh W 75–71  17–7 (7–4)
 24  McAdoo   12  McAdoo   4  Tied  Dean E. Smith Center (20,341)
Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 17
7:00 pm, ESPN
at Florida State
Big Monday
W 81–75  18–7 (8–4)
 23  Meeks   11  Johnson   7  Paige  Donald L. Tucker Center (7,814)
Tallahassee, FL
Feb 20
9:00 pm, ESPN/ACCN
No. 5 Duke
Rivalry/Postponed from 2/12
W 74–66  19–7 (9–4)
 21  McDonald   10  McAdoo   4  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (21,750)
Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 22
12:00 pm, ACCN
Wake Forest W 105–72  20–7 (10–4)
 19  McDonald   5  Johnson   5  Tokoto  Dean E. Smith Center (19,248)
Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 26
8:00 pm, ACCN
No. 19 at NC State W 85–84 OT 21–7 (11–4)
 35  Paige   10  Tied   5  Tied  PNC Arena (19,500)
Raleigh, NC
Mar 1
2:30 pm, ACCN
No. 19 at Virginia Tech W 60–56  22–7 (12–4)
 15  McAdoo   7  Tied   3  Tied  Cassell Coliseum (6,546)
Blacksburg, VA
Mar 3
7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 14 Notre Dame
Big Monday
W 63–61  23–7 (13–4)
 14  McAdoo   9  McAdoo   6  Paige  Dean E. Smith Center (15,175)
Chapel Hill, NC
Mar 8
9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 14 at No. 4 Duke
ESPN College GameDay
L 81–93  23–8 (13–5)
 24  Paige   5  Tokoto   4  Britt  Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314)
Durham, NC
ACC Tournament
Mar 14
2:00 pm, ESPN2/ACCN
No. 15 vs. Pittsburgh
Quarterfinals
L 75–80  23–9
 27  Paige   7  Tied   5  Britt  Greensboro Coliseum (21,533)
Greensboro, NC
NCAA tournament
Mar 21*
7:20 pm, TNT
No. 19 (6 E) vs. (11 E) Providence
Second round
W 79–77  24–9
 19  Paige   10  McAdoo   6  Tokoto  AT&T Center (11,690)
San Antonio, TX
Mar 23*
5:15 pm, CBS
No. 19 (6 E) vs. No. 9 (3 E) Iowa State
Third round
L 83–85  24–10
 19  Paige   13  Meeks   3  Britt  AT&T Center (13,431)
San Antonio, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll, (#) denotes seed within region E=East. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Team players drafted into the NBA

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Year Round Pick Player NBA club
2015 2 58 J. P. Tokoto Philadelphia 76ers
2016 1 25 Brice Johnson Los Angeles Clippers
2016 2 55 Marcus Paige Brooklyn Nets

References

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  1. ^ Carter, Andrew (June 3, 2013). "Brad Frederick named UNC director of basketball operations". Raleigh News and Observer. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Auerbach, Nicole (December 18, 2013). "NCAA clears UNC's Leslie McDonald but P.J. Hairston could sit season". USA Today. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  3. ^ Brown, C. L. (December 20, 2013). "Tar Heels won't seek reinstatement". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  4. ^ Norlander, Matt (October 31, 2013). "AP preseason poll released: UK at top; MSU, 'Ville, Duke, KU follow". CBSSports.com. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  5. ^ Auerbach, Nicole (October 18, 2013). "Analysis: A look at every top 25 team in the college hoops coaches poll". USA Today. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  6. ^ "Media Picks Tar Heels Third In ACC". North Carolina Tar Heels. October 16, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  7. ^ a b "ESPN Basketball Recruiting - Player Rankings".
  8. ^ "Blogs - Fayobserver.com - Nate Britt, a North Carolina signee, is currently sidelined with a torn meniscus". Archived from the original on April 6, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2013.
  9. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "UNC commit Isaiah Hicks has himself a championship game - USA TODAY High School Sports". Archived from the original on March 24, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2013.
  11. ^ "Belmont stuns No. 12 North Carolina with late 3-pointer". ESPN.com. November 17, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  12. ^ "UNC's Marcus Paige Named ACC Hoops Player Of The Week". WFMY News. November 25, 2013. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  13. ^ Friedlander, Brett (December 9, 2013). "UNC's Kennedy Meeks named ACC Rookie of the Week". Wilmington Star News. Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  14. ^ "Marcus Paige scores 21 in 2nd half as UNC upends Kentucky". ESPN.com. December 14, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  15. ^ "Unranked North Carolina rallies to topple No. 5 Duke, win 8th straight". ESPN. February 20, 2014. Retrieved February 25, 2014.