Category Archives: UNC Basketball

Newcomers Wilson and Bogavac power No. 25 North Carolina to a 94-54 rout of Central Arkansas

Newcomers Wilson and Bogavac power No. 25 North Carolina to a 94-54 rout of Central Arkansas

By BOB SUTTON Associated Press

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Caleb Wilson scored 22 points and Luka Bogavac added 10 points and five assists in their North Carolina debuts as the No. 25 Tar Heels beat Central Arkansas 94-54 in the teams’ season opener on Monday night.

Kyan Evans hit four 3-pointers and scored 15 points, Henri Veesaar added 14 points and 10 rebounds and Seth Trimble scored 12 points as the Tar Heels won their opener for the 21st consecutive season.

Cole McCormick led Central Arkansas with nine points, though he went to the bench with his fourth foul early in the second half and fouled out with 4:56 left.

The 22-year-old Bogavac, a 6-goot-6 guard from Montenegro whose eligibility clearance was announced by the university about 30 minutes before tipoff, entered as the game’s first substitute and piled up eight points and three assists by halftime.

Wilson shot 8 for 10 from the field with a variety of dunks and made his only 3-point attempt. Wilson and Evans had 12 points apiece in the first half, which ended with North Carolina holding a 51-23 lead.

North Carolina’s 18-0 first-half run stretched the margin to 39-13 as the Bears went almost eight minutes without a point. The Tar Heels grabbed 10 offensive rebounds before the break and outscored Central Arkansas 11-0 on free throws.

Central Arkansas, playing the first of four nonconference matchups against power-conference opponents in the first two months of the season, shot 31.3% from the field. Eight of the Bears’ 20 field goals were 3-pointers.

Up Next

Central Arkansas: At home against Champion Christian on Saturday.

North Carolina: Hosts No. 19 Kansas on Friday.

ESPN icon Dick Vitale is back for start of another college basketball season after cancer fight

ESPN icon Dick Vitale is back for start of another college basketball season after cancer fight

ESPN broadcasting icon Dick Vitale is back for another season opener after his long fight to return from cancer. Vitale will call Tuesday’s game between No. 6 Duke and Texas in an event named in his honor. ESPN Events had announced the creation of the Dick Vitale Invitational over the summer. A lengthy cancer fight kept Vitale off the airwaves for two years until he returned late last season. In an AP interview, Vitale says he feels “lucky” to be able to keep working at 86 years old after that lengthy fight.… Continue Reading

No. 6 Duke keeps its frequent perch as favorite in ACC race featuring No. 11 Louisville, No. 25 UNC

No. 6 Duke keeps its frequent perch as favorite in ACC race featuring No. 11 Louisville, No. 25 UNC

Sixth-ranked Duke is the preseason favorite to win the Atlantic Coast Conference men’s basketball race. The Blue Devils open Jon Scheyer’s fourth season after a Final Four run. The 38-year-old Scheyer also became the first coach to twice win the ACC Tournament in his first three seasons. Duke lost all five starters but adds the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class. No. 11 Louisville is the top challenger in its rapid rise under Pat Kelsey. The ACC has four new coaches in Florida State’s Luke Loucks, Miami’s Jai Lucas, N.C. State’s Will Wade and Virginia’s Ryan Odom.… Continue Reading

March Madness in October? Top programs using exhibitions to cash in and check team chemistry

March Madness in October? Top programs using exhibitions to cash in and check team chemistry

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The last weekend of October now looks like the second week of March Madness even though the games don’t count. The NCAA recently changed rules to allow more exhibitions without requiring proceeds to go to charity. This has led to more high-profile matchups between top programs before the season officially starts. The games provide a chance to test chemistry with rosters being overhauled every season because of transfers. They also provide a new revenue source for cash-hungry schools sharing revenue with athletes.… Continue Reading

No. 6 Duke picked to win ACC again; NC State’s Darrion Williams named Preseason Player of the Year

No. 6 Duke picked to win ACC again; NC State’s Darrion Williams named Preseason Player of the Year

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The No. 6 ranked Duke Blue Devils have been picked to repeat as Atlantic Coast Conference champions, despite losing Cooper Flagg and four other players to the NBA draft. Duke received 34 of 49 first-place votes from the media panel. Louisville, which lost to Duke in last season’s ACC championship game, received the other 15 first-place votes and was selected to finish second. N.C. State’s Darrion Williams has been named the conference’s Preseason Player of the Year. Williams was also named first-team All-ACC, along with Duke’s Cameron Boozer, who was named Preseason Rookie of the Year.… Continue Reading

The ACC has been going through a sideline overhaul. This year that includes 4 new head coaches

The ACC has been going through a sideline overhaul. This year that includes 4 new head coaches

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Atlantic Coast Conference’s multiyear coaching overhaul will include four new head coaches for the 2025-26 season. Those are Florida State’s Luke Loucks, Miami’s Jai Lucas, N.C. State’s Will Wade and Virginia’s Ryan Odom. The league has seen 14 of its 18 programs change coaches at least once going back to the 2020-21 season. Those losses include retiring Hall of Famers in North Carolina’s Roy Williams, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim. Loucks said during the ACC’s preseason media days that there’s “a new wave of youthfulness” among the new coaches coming into the league.… Continue Reading

UNC announces AD transition plan from Bubba Cunningham to RFK Racing president Steve Newmark in 2026

UNC announces AD transition plan from Bubba Cunningham to RFK Racing president Steve Newmark in 2026

North Carolina has announced its transition plan at athletic director from Bubba Cunningham to RFK Racing team president Steve Newmark for next summer. The school said Tuesday that Cunningham received a two-year contract extension and will serve as AD for the 2025-26 sports season. Newmark will report to him through the year as an executive associate AD working on “revenue-driving initiatives,” particularly related to the school’s football and men’s basketball programs. Then Newmark would take over as AD next summer. Cunningham has been the Tar Heels’ athletic director since 2011.… Continue Reading

Larry Miller, star on North Carolina’s ACC championship teams in 1967-68, dies at age 79

Larry Miller, star on North Carolina’s ACC championship teams in 1967-68, dies at age 79

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Larry Miller, a two-time ACC player of the year for North Carolina and 2022 inductee in the College Basketball Hall of Fame, has died. He was 79. The UNC athletic department says Miller died Sunday in Pennsylvania. No cause of death was given. An athletic department spokesman says Miller was in hospice care and had been dealing with medical issues for some time. Miller was a star forward on coach Dean Smith’s first two ACC championship and Final Four teams in 1967 and 1968. Miller played seven years in the ABA and set the league’s single-game record with 67 points.… Continue Reading

ACC cuts 20-game men’s basketball slate to make room for nonconference games in bid to boost sport

ACC cuts 20-game men’s basketball slate to make room for nonconference games in bid to boost sport

The Atlantic Coast Conference is reducing its 20-game men’s basketball schedule to 18. That will give teams two more spots for marquee nonconference games in a bid to boost a league getting a dwindling haul of NCAA Tournament bids. That’s according to a person familiar with the decision. That person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the league hasn’t formally announced the move. It comes after the league has spent the past two seasons examining how to improve its bid chances. The league had four this season for its lowest haul since 2013.… Continue Reading

Hearing begins for $2.8 billion NCAA settlement, could lock in seismic changes for college sports

Hearing begins for $2.8 billion NCAA settlement, could lock in seismic changes for college sports

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — A federal judge has opened the final hearing for a landmark $2.8 billion settlement that will impact every corner of college athletics by saying she will not be granting formal approval on Monday. The settlement calls for paying more than $2.7 billion in damages to athletes who say the NCAA and five biggest conferences prevented them from earning money off their celebrity status. It also would clear the way for each schools to begin sharing up to $20.5 million with their athletes.… Continue Reading

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