Tar Heels poised for championship run in 2012

With John Henson, Tyler Zeller, Harrison Barnes, Kendall Marshall and Justin Watt returning for the Tar Heels, UNC has an opportunity to make a run at the national championship in 2012.

North Carolina doesn't need a whole lot of motivation to chase its dream of winning a national championship this basketball season.

The Tar Heels will open Nov. 11 versus Michigan State as the unanimous No. 1 team in the nation and are loaded to make a run at the program's third crown in seven years. They lost in the East Regional final to Kentucky a year ago, and know that, had they advanced to the Final Four, they, not eventual champion Connecticut, would have been the heavy favorites to win it all.

So UNC's players look at this year as their title to win. But this isn't something that simply comes from within.

With the NBA on lockout, plenty of wealthy former Tar Heels have been hanging around campus playing pickup games like they do every summer, but their stay has been longer. And the talk among the formers and the currents has been about titles, hanging another banner in the Dean Smith Center.

"They let you know you have to play and that you're going to have a slump where you're not playing your best, but you have to just fight through that," said junior forward John Henson on Thursday during UNC's basketball media day.

"Jackie Manuel (2005 NCAA title team) is always around us, and he gives us advice about the things that he did and they did. They had some tough times like we did and they ended up winning it all."

The regular-season ACC champion last season, Carolina returns its entire starting lineup, sort of like it did in 2009, though Marcus Ginyard's injury opened the door for sixth man Danny Green to start. Green didn't start the previous season but often got starter's minutes.

The Tar Heels are aware of what the preseason magazines are saying and the pressure that comes with being the favorite. How could they escape it, given the parade of back-slapping going on as the players walk in between classes on campus? The Heels understand, however, there's a danger in thinking too much about early April when it's still six months away.

"I don't think it's good for us to focus on that," said junior guard Dexter Strickland. "I think we should play each and every game like it's our last and give it our all."

Wearing the nation's largest target is a reality, though. Having future NBA first-round picks such as Harrison Barnes, Tyler Zeller and Henson doing their thing, along with sophomore point guard Kendall Marshall, a possible future first-round pick, and a talented bench that also include some eventual NBAers lends reason for a great deal of optimism. So much that the former players have been calling out the current ones, telling them to go get their own, make their own history.

The result of playing extra pickup games against the vets and just hanging around them, talking about what it takes to cut down the nets has added a layer of maturity to a group that grew up exponentially over the course of last season.

"That just comes from playing together all the time and constantly hanging out with the team," Strickland said about increased maturity that was quite evident Thursday. "We're not just teammates, we're brothers… And we are playing for something special.

"The guys that come back challenge us, we learn from them because they've done it before. And I just think that knowledge helps mature us, too."

Two current Carolina players can identify with Tyler Hansbrough, Raymond Felton and other Heels with rings. Senior forward Justin Watts and senior center Zeller were on the 2009 title team and are looking to become the first UNC players in the program's fabled history to win two national championship rings.

"That would be very, very rewarding," Zeller said. "But at the same time, I was a very small part of the one my freshman year and it's one of those thing where I want to get my own and be a larger part of a national championship team."

That's the attitude of the Tar Heels.

They are confident but not cocky. They strongly believe, but aren't arrogant. And they know they have the pieces to make it happen, but aren't flaunting it. They also know none of that means anything unless they take care of business.

Midnight Madness signals return of ACC glory

Roy Williams' Tar Heels are poised for a championship run

To many along Tobacco Road, Friday is like a holiday, as ACC basketball gets under way with various forms of midnight madness celebrations around the league.

It signals that hoops is back, and in less than a month Tar Heels, Blue Devils, Terrapins, Cavaliers and the rest of the conference will get rolling on the hardwood. But while the anticipation for ACC hoops never wanes, the league underwent several changes again in the offseason.

New coaches at N.C. State, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Miami give the conference seven new coaches since the 2010 ACC Tournament. Virginia’s Tony Bennett is in his third season, but has the fifth longest tenure among the 12 head men.

Mark Gottfried takes over for Sidney Lowe at N.C. State. Where Lowe promised his teams would play an up-tempo style, Gottfried’s are certain to run a lot more. Gottfried had a solid run for a decade at Alabama and is regarded as a considerable upgrade over Lowe.

“We can’t do anything about last year, we have to concentrate on this year, right now,” the new Wolfpack coach said. “And it’s just part of what we do every day. We want our guys to learn to be unselfish, to really care about somebody else on the team as much as they care about themselves. . . . That’s a point of emphasis for us every day.”

Mark Turgeon left a successful gig at Texas A&M for the challenge of replacing should-be Hall of Fame coach Gary Williams, who surprised a lot of people by retiring from Maryland last spring. Brian Gregory replaces Paul Hewitt at Georgia Tech, and the new life in the program should be enough to push it in the right direction, even though the talent pool is in short supply at The Flats.

And 62-year-old Jim Larranaga takes over at Miami after a very successful run at George Mason. Larranaga led the Patriots to five NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 2006 Final Four. He, too, is an upgrade over former coach Frank Haith, and his team is talented enough to reach the NCAAs.

Like is usually the case, the ACC has at least one obvious national championship contender, and this season it’s North Carolina. The Tar Heels return all five starters from a club that won the ACC regular season title and narrowly lost to Kentucky in the East Regional finals.

Duke must replace its top three players, but Mike Krzyzewski’s team is loaded with talent inside and on the perimeter, and should be a balanced club that improves throughout the season. Florida State has Final Four potential in the eyes of some pundits.

“Florida State has a lot of guys back that have been really successful for them,” UNC coach Roy Williams said. “There’s been some changes in the coaching in the league. And just about every one of the coaching changes has four or five, at least, really good players. . . . I don’t think there’s any question we’re still one of the strongest leagues in the country.”

Virginia gets Mike Scott back and could challenge for an NCAA invitation. Virginia Tech will be young, but talented. Clemson is a bit in flux, but has enough players to make a push for the NCAAs.

Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Boston College are in the midst of major rebuilding projects and are a year or more away from climbing the league ladder.