Tar Heels in NBA: Bullock is +44, advances to first conference finals but Johnson’s season ends

For the first time in his career, Reggie Bullock will play in a conference finals series, which means that Cameron Johnson will be denied a second consecutive trip to the Western Conference finals. In one of the most improbable beatdowns in the history of NBA Game 7s, the visiting Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 123–90 victory over the Phoenix Suns, who had the best regular-season record in the league, to win the series 4–3.More

Top-ranked UNC dominates Virginia in record-setting NCAA women’s lacrosse victory

CHAPEL HILL — What does domination look like? That was on display as North Carolina’s top-ranked and No. 1-seed women’s lacrosse team overwhelmed No. 15-ranked Virginia in the second round of the NCAA tournament. After falling behind in their last two ACC Tournament games, the unbeaten Tar Heels, who got a first-round bye, took charge early Sunday and left little doubt. Carolina scored the game’s first 13 goals and the last 11, dominating draws early in a 24–2 victory at Dorrance Field behind senior attacker Jamie Ortega’s four goals and five assists. That was the most goals in an NCAA tournament game in program history.More

Tar Heels in NBA: Bullock’s career-best playoff game, tough defense help Mavs force Game 7; Green suffers severe knee injury, his 76ers ousted

Danny Green’s season came to a painful end early in the Philadelphia 76ers’ season-ending loss Thursday but Reggie Bullock made sure to extend his Dallas Mavericks’ season with his best career playoff game. After going scoreless on five shots in Tuesday’s 110–80 Dallas Game 5 loss at Phoenix, Bullock collected 19 points, five 3-pointers, seven rebounds and two steals in Thursday’s 113–86 home victory to force a Game 7 on Sunday in Phoenix.More

Veteran UNC women’s lacrosse team hungry for Final Four success

North Carolina’s pursuit of the program’s third women’s lacrosse national title begins Sunday with a hungry team intent on getting past the national semifinals. The No. 1-ranked and top-seeded Tar Heels, the only undefeated team in the country at 18–0, play at Dorrance Field on Sunday at noon (ESPN+) against the winner of Friday’s 5 p.m. first-round game in Chapel Hill between Virginia (9–9) and Southern Cal (13–4). UNC beat the Cavaliers 17–7 on the road on April 14.More

Manek headed to G League Elite Camp

Brady Manek, who was a big reason that North Carolina made a run to the Final Four, is one of 44 NBA Draft prospects who will attend the NBA G League Elite Camp on May 16 and 17 in Chicago. Manek, a 6–0, 230-pound forward, will get the chance to show off his skills in front of NBA and G League scouts, coaches and front-office executives through five-on-five games and strength and agility drills.More

Tar Heels in NBA: Hot-shooting Green helps 76ers tie series (can Hubert Davis visit wait?); Bullocks’ Mavs tie series with Johnson’s Suns

Danny Green has found his shooting stroke in the last two games. With his Philadelphia 76ers now tied with the Miami Heat at 2 in their Eastern Conference semifinal series, Green assured Hubert Davis that there’s no reason to rush to get to one of his games this round. Green battled foul trouble but still had 11 points, three 3-pointers, two rebounds, two steals and a block as the Sixers earned a 116–108 Game 4 victory Sunday.More

UNC rallies with 11 straight goals for sixth consecutive ACC women’s lacrosse title

CHAPEL HILL — Winning ACC women’s lacrosse titles has become routine for powerhouse North Carolina but the No. 1-ranked Tar Heels’ route to their sixth consecutive league title on a soggy Dorrance Field was anything but routine. Perennial nemesis and No. 2-ranked Boston College had a lot to do with that for one half with the unyielding play of Eagles goalkeeper Rachel Hall, who held UNC to a season-low four first-half goals. She was no match for the Tar Heels’ incredible third-quarter offensive assault as they rallied from a three-goal deficit with 11 consecutive goals for 16–9 victory Saturday night and their 28th consecutive ACC tournament win.More

Tar Heels in NBA: Green, Bullock have huge nights in crucial home wins

Thanks to some career-best playoff numbers, Danny Green and Reggie Bullock helped their teams get badly needed conference semifinal home wins Friday to trim their series deficits to 2–1. Green scored a team-high-tying 21 points and tied his career playoff-high with seven 3-pointers, his most in the postseason in eight years, in the Philadelphia 76ers’ 99–79 win over the Miami Heat. Bullock led the Dallas Mavericks on defense and put up a career playoff-high 14.5 game score with 15 points, four 3-pointers, four rebounds, two assists and three steals in their 103–94 victory over Cameron Johnson’s Phoenix Suns.More

Fan excitement for UNC’s women’s season should be same as for men’s team

It’s been 13 seasons since the combined anticipation of Carolina’s men’s and women’s basketball seasons has been this high, with both Final Four contenders. The AP Top 25 poll before the 2009–10 season was the last preseason list that ranked both teams in the top 10. The last time both made a preseason AP Top 25 was with the women No. 13 and men No. 6 before the 2014–15 season. If casual women’s basketball followers were ever going to increase their support to help fill Carmichael Arena, now would be the time.More

Bacot in season 3 of ‘Outer Banks’

Will we soon see Armando Bacot take the ferry from the Outer Banks to Chapel Hill? The popular Netflix series “Outer Banks” notably had an illogical storyline in episode 4 of season 1 in which protagonist John B Routledge and girlfriend Sarah Cameron took the ferry to Chapel Hill. But it appears that Bacot could be along for the ride if that fictitious ferry ride happens again in season three.More

UNC atop two updated way-too-early men’s basketball Top 25 lists

The level of respect for the Carolina men’s basketball program soared after the Tar Heels’ run to the national championship game. It’s still rising. When ESPN came out with its first way-too-early preseason men’s basketball Top 25 in early April, Carolina checked in at an impressive No. 5. But after an April full of good news for Coach Hubert Davis, ESPN’s latest list released Tuesday, put together by Jeff Borzello, joins Gary Parrish’s CBS Sports list in putting the Tar Heels No. 1.More