NEW YORK -- Roy Williams worked Madison Square Garden with an uncontrollable grin Sunday.
Williams, the Hall of Fame coach from the University of North Carolina, had a secret but wouldn't share it.
He left that part up to Dexter Strickland.
Strickland, a flashy 6-3 junior point guard from nationally ranked St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.), announced after his Nike Super Six Invitational game against No. 3 St. Raymond (Bronx, N.Y.) that he'll play his college ball for Williams and the Tar Heels.
Strickland, surrounded by family and friends and coach Kevin Boyle, said he picked North Carolina over defending national champion Florida and Michigan State.
"It felt right," Strickland said of his college decision. "The players, the coaches and the North Carolina history are reasons; that's why."
Strickland, playing in front of his future coach seated at courtside, contributed 11 points and seven assists in the No. 5 Celtics' 64-56 victory.
Strickland says he called Williams a week ago to inform him but waited until Sunday after his game at Madison Square Garden to make the announcement.
Strickland's decision comes less than two weeks after highly touted 6-10 juniors Travis and David Wear of No. 2 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.); junior John Henson (Round Rock, Texas); and Class of 2010 WF Reggie Bullock (Kinston, N.C.) chose North Carolina.
Under NCAA guidelines, Williams could not comment on bagging his latest recruits.
Strickland is expected to sign a national letter of intent during the early signing period in November.
"This is a great situation for Dexter," coach Boyle said. "That means we touch all three of the [present] top-3 college teams in the nation."
St. Patrick already has freshman Jeff Robinson at Memphis, and senior power forward Quintrell Thomas has signed with Kansas.
Christopher Lawlor has covered high school sports for more than 20 years, most recently with USA Today, where he was the head preps writer responsible for national high school rankings in football, baseball, and boys and girls basketball. He also has worked for Scholastic Coach magazine, where he ran the Gatorade national player of the year program for nine years. Lawlor, a New Jersey resident, grew up in Rochester, N.Y., and is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University.