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Where was Coby White with the game on the line at the end? That’s what many on social media wanted to know after his 3-pointer with 3:47 left (shown below) gave the Chicago Bulls a three-point lead. The Miami Heat outscored Chicago 15–1 the rest of the way, going on to a 102–91 victory in a play-in tournament elimination game to end the Bulls’ season.
CHAPEL HILL — No. 13 North Carolina did what few teams in the country can do — overcome fireballing Miami closer Andrew Walters. Walters, rated by D1 Baseball as the top closer in the country, was one strike away from finishing off the Tar Heels in the bottom of the 10th inning. But UNC outfielder Casey Cook hit a 3–2 pitch 359 feet and just over the right field wall for his second home run of the season and the second homer off Walters in 20⅓ innings this season. Hunter Stokely took care of the rest with his first career game-ending hit, a solo shot to right-center field with two outs in the 11th inning, to give the Tar Heels a much-need 9–8 victory Saturday over Miami in the resumption of Friday night’s suspended game.
CHAPEL HILL — Against Miami, the goal is always to keep the Hurricanes from giving the ball to fireballing right-handed closer Andrew Walters with the game on the line. No. 13 Carolina couldn’t avoid that in Thursday night’s series opener, and the inevitable frustration followed in a 5–4 Miami victory.
Coby White scored all nine of his points in the second quarter as the Chicago Bulls became the first No. 10 seed to win a play-in tournament, rallying from a 19-point second-half deficit to win 109–105 Wednesday night in Toronto. The other four UNC alums in the postseason play their playoff openers on Saturday.
CHAPEL HILL — Patrick Alvarez is one of three Carolina outfielders who have caught ESPN’s attention for “SportsCenter” Top 10 plays with home-run stealing defensive gems. That’s a bonus for the redshirt junior having the best offensive season of his career.
CHAPEL HILL — The fan experience at Boshamer Stadium just got better. Carolina’s much-anticipated new videoboard debuted Tuesday at The Bosh, providing a clearer and larger display.
Veteran forward Jae’Lyn Withers is transferring from Louisville to North Carolina. On Tuesday morning, Withers announced his decision on social media with the words, “New beginnings.” Withers, who redshirted in his first season at Louisville in 2019–20, played three seasons for the Cardinals and has two years remaining eligibility.
Dontrez Styles, who decided to leave Carolina after playing sparingly as a sophomore, is transferring to Georgetown, hoping to get more chances to show what he can do. Styles, who also was considering N.C. State, East Carolina and South Carolina, will play for Ed Cooley, who takes over as head coach at Georgetown after Patrick Ewing, who was 75–109 in six seasons as head coach, left the program. Cooley was 242–153 in 12 seasons as the coach at Providence.
Theo Pinson’s career-best triple-double performance was the highlight as the NBA finished its regular season, and only five UNC alums will play in the postseason. Heading to the Eastern Conference play-in tournament are Coby White’s Chicago Bulls. Harrison Barnes’ Sacramento Kings, Cameron Johnson, Day’Ron Sharpe and the Brooklyn Nets, and Danny Green’s Cleveland Cavaliers all secured spots in first-round playoff series.
With the Dallas Mavericks resting all their regulars in their last game of the season, Theo Pinson got his first career start and took full advantage of the opportunity. Pinson produced his first career triple-double with 23 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in 40 minutes, all career-highs, in the Mavericks’ 138–117 home loss to the San Antonio Spurs. Pinson, who also had a steal, is the only active Tar Heel with an NBA triple-double and the first to achieve one since Ty Lawson did it for Sacramento on April 11, 2017.
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