NCAA Tournament 2000 - Tar Heels weather storm of criticism

Tar Heels weather storm of criticism
Associated Press

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- North Carolina seemed to forget how to play defense in December.

Coach Bill Guthridge's plan to return to more ball pressure was scrapped after road losses against Indiana and Louisville. Those games on Dec. 21 and 23 proved the Tar Heels were too slow to play in a system that was so successful under Dean Smith for close to three decades.

"It was almost like we had failed coach and ourselves," Kris Lang said Monday.

The switch to a more sagging man-to-man and a variety of zones in the middle of the season didn't come without a learning curve -- four straight defeats in mid-January in which North Carolina allowed an average of 75 points a game.

With the losses, criticism mounted of a team that looked spiritless on defense. Guthridge defended his club almost on a weekly basis, saying the lack of ball pressure made it appear the Tar Heels weren't intense.

Ed Cota, the senior point guard, caught a lot of heat from fans and media. Some of his teammates took offense.

"For people who never played basketball, who can't guard a trash can, to say he can't guard anybody is a bogus thing to say," forward Jason Capel said. "The guy is out there playing 38 or 39 minutes, it's tough. That (criticism) should come from somebody who has actually guarded somebody."

Three months later, the Tar Heels (22-13) don't have to be defensive about their defense any more. Defense was key to beating Tennessee and Tulsa over the weekend to reach the Final Four for the 15th time.

North Carolina held the Volunteers to 36 percent shooting in a five-point victory. Tulsa managed just 37 percent and a season-low point total in a 59-55 loss in the South Regional title game Sunday.

A week before, the Tar Heels knocked off No. 1 seed Stanford by allowing the Cardinal only 53 points and 35 percent shooting.

"I said all along that if we played great defense most of the games that we lost we would have won," Cota said. "We definitely polished up our offense too by getting good shots and executing our plays."

Guthridge said North Carolina's defensive turnaround actually started in a 58-52 loss to Wake Forest in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. In that game, the Tar Heels were booed as they left the Charlotte Coliseum floor.

The coach then cracked the whip before an NCAA Tournament some believed the Tar Heels shouldn't have even been in.

"We did change up practice after we lost to Wake Forest and worked a little harder and longer than we would have worked normally this time of year," Guthridge said.

North Carolina's defense will have another challenge Saturday against Florida. The Gators (28-7) spread the floor, with a variety of players able to shoot from outside or drive.

The Gators compare favorably to ACC champion Duke, a team the Tar Heels lost to twice during the regular season, allowing 90 points each time.

"Coming into the tournament you know anything can happen," Cota said. "You never think all the top teams are going to be there at the end, really. You know there are going to be upsets down the line. We're just happy that we're in the position we're in right now."

Guthridge flew from Austin, Texas, to Kansas on Monday to attend the funeral of his mother, giving the team the day off.

"This gives us time to sit back and realize that we're in the Final Four," said Lang, who has a sprained right ankle and arrived at Smith Center on crutches. "No one believed we would be here. No one even thought we would get by the first round."


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