Covering Carolina athletics beyond men’s basketball and football, with dedicated reporting on women’s basketball and baseball, in addition to covering other sports that rarely draw media attention
CHAPEL HILL — During his freshman season at N.C. State, Matt Able never started and was often more of a catch-and-shoot player who defended well but didn’t get a chance to show off his diverse skill set. That was evident during his impressive showing at the NBA Draft Combine, when he showed off playmaking skills that scouts didn’t know about. Those qualities and others will undoubtedly be unlocked in Coach Michael Malone’s system at Carolina.
CHAPEL HILL — Terrence Brown brings a talented skill set to Carolina that many have compared to NBA legend Allen Iverson, and he has the swagger to match. The 6–3, 180-pound senior Utah transfer said that’s more about his mindset and appearance.
The greatest rivalry in sports will get a national network TV audience the day before the biggest game in sports. When Carolina makes the short bus ride to Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, Feb. 13, to face No. 2 Duke at 5:30 p.m. in Coach Michael Malone’s first taste of the rivalry, ABC will air it.
CHAPEL HILL — Playing on the other side of the world from home, Sophie Burrows came to America to advance her basketball career and pursue her goal of playing in the Olympics for Australia. When the versatile 6–2 lead guard entered the transfer portal after three seasons at Syracuse, Burrows looked for a program that would keep her on track to play in 2028 for the Opals, as the Aussies call their women’s national team.
CHAPEL HILL — With his size, court vision and a dazzling flair for playmaking, some have compared Neo Avdalas to a player the Virginia Tech transfer guard looked up to as a kid in Greece: Luka Dončić. One of the first players first-year Carolina coach Michael Malone targeted out of the portal was the 6–9 Avdalas, and he showed flashes of why in his first college season with the Hokies.
Caleb Wilson spent the Chicago Bulls’ media day making it clear he doesn’t plan to ease into his rookie season. Asked about his approach entering a Bulls locker room that includes 23-year-old forward Matas Buzelis and veteran point guard Josh Giddey, Wilson didn’t hedge. “In my opinion, there’s no leadership while blending in, so I’m definitely not going to try to blend in,”
CHAPEL HILL — With one recruiting story, Buffalo transfer Angelo Brizzi offered a reminder about how much experience he brings to Carolina. Among the other recruits on his 2019 unofficial visit to UNC in the fall of his junior year of high school were Caleb Love and Walker Kessler. Love is in his second professional season, now in Australia, and Kessler is with the Los Angeles Lakers and about to start his fifth NBA season.
For the fifth straight game to start the season, North Carolina’s game will start at noon when the Tar Heels visit Pittsburgh on Oct. 10. The game against the Panthers at Acrisure Stadium will air on ESPN or ESPN2.
CHAPEL HILL — It was his energy and tough defense that led Jaydon Young to start five consecutive games in the middle of ACC play last season. Now playing for Coach Michael Malone, who values good defenders to fuel the fast pace he seeks, Young has a chance to play a bigger role in Carolina’s rotation this season if his shooting gets better.
Two Tar Heels enter San Antonio Spurs training camp at opposite ends of their careers. The Spurs released their 21-man training camp roster on Friday ahead of the start of camp on Tuesday. It included Harrison Barnes, a 14-year veteran entering his third season in San Antonio, and RJ Davis, who is fighting for a foothold in the NBA after a standout rookie year in the G League and a solid Summer League performance.
There is a long tradition of Smith Center pickup games involving current and former Carolina players, but few have been as memorable and as intense as one day in 1996. It was before Antawn Jamison’s sophomore season at UNC, and he couldn’t understand why it was taking so long for the games to start.
CHAPEL HILL — The word that kept coming up in describing Michael Malone’s first practices at Carolina was energy. In the first week of official practice, returnees Jarin Stevenson, Isaiah Denis and Jaydon Young described an atmosphere on the practice floor built on pace, structure and an intensity carried over from Malone’s years as an NBA head coach in Denver.
CHAPEL HILL — Jarin Stevenson is a nice, quiet young man with a pleasant personality off the court. That’s just his affable personality. Coach Michael Malone is fine with that off the court. But the first-year Carolina coach’s mission has been to change that demeanor on the court, turning him into a more vocal, assertive senior leader.
Coach Michael Malone’s debut on the Carolina bench will come in a 7 p.m. game Friday, Oct. 9, as UNC announced tip times Thursday for the Tar Heels’ three exhibition contests, spread across 18 October days.
Michael Malone will welcome one of his top remaining 2027 targets to Chapel Hill this weekend, as four-star forward Asa Montgomery is reportedly set to take his official visit to UNC.
