Here's our seats - mid-court, upper level, three rows from the top, last three seats on the row closest to the isle -
(photo - N. Phillips)
Due to the wording on the NCAA's handout, which stated no cameras or video cameracorders, the three of us decided against trying to take in a camera and have to walk all the way back to the car to put it back.
Thus, I have no picture evidence showing that I was in the building when Tyler Hansbourgh broke the ACC's all-time scoring record with a made free throw against Radford on Thursday. But I have the ticket and the picture in my mind and the sound of the moment in my ears.
In other Thursday action, LSU vs. Butler, the #8 vs. #9 matchup, proved to be the closest, with LSU icing the game with free throws with under 10 seconds remaining.
Carolina had no trouble disposing of #16 seeded Radford, without Ty Lawson. I will say one thing about Radford. Their fans traveled and showed great support to a team that had slim odds of pulling an upset. Fans dressed in red filled the team's designated section in the lower level, while the section directly above them in the upper level was filled with red shirts as well.
Texas and Minnesota played a close game to the half, but Texas pulled away in the second half to set up a second round matchup with Duke.
Duke had little trouble disposing of Binghamton, where the most fun might have come from watching the Binghamton band leader's antics as he fired up the Bearcats faithful and let the band. Chuckles come to me as I write this.
Saturday brought the Carolina-LSU matchup, followed by Texas-Duke.
Ty Lawson played for Carolina, as seen here -
(photo - N. Phillips)
UNC's Ty Lawson shots a free throw against LSU in 2nd Round action.
Carolina pulled away from a scrappy Tiger team that didn't go down without a fight, but the Heels moved on with a 84-70 win.
In the nightcap, Texas gained several new fans, most if not all of them wearing Carolina blue, for their game against Duke.
Here's a picture of the Carolina band, who stuck around to watch the game, holding up the Hook 'em Horns sign as the Texas cheerleaders pump up the crowd -
(photo - N. Phillips)
What? you didn't think the Heels would cheer for their ACC counterparts, did you? Rivalries run deep, regardless if your team is playing your rival or not. In Carolina's case, they are all for whoever plays Duke, and I'm sure it's vice-versa for Duke fans regarding Carolina.
Texas's AJ Abrams is a player. People from these parts are in deep with the ACC, and we don't always see players across the country as often. But I will attest that Abrams is good, and he kept the Longhorns in the game against Duke in the second half.
A Texas 3-point attempt went seemingly all the way through the basket and back out, breaking the hearts of Texas (and Carolina) fans as the Devils iced the game in the final seconds with free throws.
All in all, a great two days of basketball, complete with a Carolina t-shirt free thanks to my friend as a form of payment for driving to Greensboro.
Hopefully, the tourny will be back in Raleigh, Greensboro, or Charlotte in the coming years, as I would love to be able to become a part of March Madness again.
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