By R.L. Bynum
As if No. 2 Alabama’s visit to No. 9 North Carolina on Dec. 4 for the ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge wasn’t already big enough, it just got bigger when the Tide’s Mark Sears and the Tar Heels’ RJ Davis were named to the AP preseason All-America team.
Davis, the preseason ACC Player of the Year and reigning AP All-American who turned 23 Monday, was picked on 51 of 55 ballots, while Sears got 54 votes.
Davis averaged 21.1 points. 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists for last season’s Sweet 16 team and could challenge Tyler Hansbrough’s all-time ACC scoring record this season.
A 6–1 guard, Sears was second-team AP All-American last season after averaging 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists and scoring 18 points in Alabama’s 89–87 victory in Los Angeles over UNC in the West Regional semifinals.
Carolina will also play two other first-team members: Kansas center Hunter Dickerson and Duke freshman Cooper Flagg. Carolina visits No. 1 Kansas on Nov. 8 and faces the No. 7 Blue Devils on Feb. 1 and March 7.
Joining them on the first team are former UNC guard Caleb Love of No. 10 Arizona, last season’s Pac-12 Player of the Year, and Auburn forward Johni Broome. There are six players because Love and Flagg tied for the final spot.
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| No./ Stars | Class | Player | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 star | Freshman | Maximo Adams | SF | 6–7 | 205 |
| 3 star | Freshman | Malloy Smith | CG | 6–5 | 190 |
| 5 star | Freshman | Sayon Keita | C | 7–0 | 215 |
| 4 star | Freshman | Kevin Thomas | W | 6–7 | 190 |
| Freshman | Alexandros Samodurov | C | 6–11 | 212 | |
| RS freshman | Cade Bennerman — U | C | 7–0 | 205 | |
| Sophomore | Neoklis Avdalas — W | G | 6–9 | 215 | |
| Sophomore | Isaiah Denis | G | 6–4 | 180 | |
| Sophomore | Matt Able — X | G | 6–5 | 196 | |
| 1 | Senior | Terrence Brown — Y | G | 6–3 | 174 |
| 4 | Senior | Jaydon Young | G | 6–4 | 200 |
| 15 | Senior | Jarin Stevenson | F | 6–10 | 215 |
| Graduate | Angelo Brizzi — Z | G | 6–3 | 193 | |
| Graduate | Cameron Fens — V | C | 7–0 | 255 | |
| Walk-ons | |||||
| 25 | Junior | John Holbrook — SA | F | 6–8 | 230 |
| 32 | Senior | Evan Smith | G | 6–1 | 195 |
V — South Dakota transfer; U — Northwestern transfer; W — Virginia Tech transfer; X — N.C. State transfer; Y — Utah transfer; Z — Buffalo transfer; SA — Holbrook is a designated student-athlete, so he doesn’t count against UNC’s 15-player limit.
Michael Malone’s coaching staff: Chuck Martin, Bryan Tibaldi, Sean May and Pat Sullivan; Deon Thompson will be a graduate assistant, and Brandon Robinson will reportedly have a support staff position.
Players who entered transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Wgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luka Bogavac | Senior | W | 6–6 | 215 | Oklahoma State |
| James Brown | Senior | C | 6–10 | 240 | Howard |
| Derek Dixon | Sophomore | G | 6–5 | 200 | Arizona |
| Kyan Evans | Senior | G | 6–2 | 175 | Minnesota |
| Zayden High | Junior | C | 6–10 | 230 | South Florida |
| Jonathan Powell | Junior | G | 6–6 | 190 | Pittsburgh |
| Ivan Matlekovic | Junior | C | 7–0 | 255 | Pacific |
| Seth Trimble | Graduate | G | 6–3 | 200 | Louisville |
Schedule revealed so far
| Date | Month/day | Opponent/event (final ranks) |
|---|---|---|
| October | ||
| 9 | Friday, 7 p.m. | vs. USC in Greensboro (exhibition) |
| 18 | Sunday | vs. Indiana in Indianapolis (exhibition) |
| November | ||
| 2 | Monday | vs. Western Carolina |
| 6 | Friday | vs. Wofford |
| 10 | Tuesday | vs. Wyoming |
| 13 | Friday | vs. Georgia |
| 20 | Friday | vs. Marshall |
| 27 | Friday | vs. West Virginia in Charlotte |
| December | ||
| 1 | Tuesday | ACC/SEC Challenge vs. No. 13 Arkansas |
| 6 | Sunday | vs. Butler |
| 12 | Saturday | at Georgetown |
| 15 | Tuesday (date tentative) | vs. N.C. State in Greensboro |
| 19 | 2:30 Saturday | CBS Sports Classic vs. Kentucky in New York |
| 21 | Monday | vs. The Citadel |
| January | ||
| 30 | Saturday | vs. No. 5 Illinois in Nashville, Tenn. |
ACC games
Home and away: Duke and Louisville
Home only: California, Georgia Tech, Miami, N.C. State, SMU, Stanford and Virginia
Away only: Boston College, Florida State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest
Photo via @UNC_Basketball
