Bobby Lutz emerges as a leading candidate for College of Charleston job

   Bobby Lutz, associate head basketball coach at N.C. State and a former coach of the Charlotte 49ers, has emerged as a leading candidate to become the College of Charleston's next coach, the Observer has learned.

   Lutz has been in discussions with the College of Charleston about its vacancy the past several days and formally interviewed for the position a second time on Friday, a source close to the process confirmed. The school fired Doug Wojcik on Aug. 5 after two investigations discovered allegations of verbal and physical abuse against the former head coach.

   Two  other candidates for the position removed their names from consideration on Wednesday.

    Lutz, 56, is set to begin his fourth season on coach Mark Gottfried’s staff at N.C. State and his third year as associate head coach. The Wolfpack advanced to its third straight NCAA tournament and ended the season with a 22-14 record. 

   Sources said the College of Charleston has also spoke to Clemson assistant Earl Grant about the position. The school expects to make a decision by the middle of next week, sources said.

   At N.C. State, Lutz is in charge of the advanced scouting and defensive game-planning. Gottfried also has given Lutz a lot of responsibility with the team’s preparation.

   The College of Charleston competes in the Colonial Athletic Association.

   - Jim Utter

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/26/3735596/sources-lutz-leading-candidate.html#storylink=cpy

Davidson's De'Mon Brooks named SoCon Player of the Year

Davidson senior forward De’Mon Brooks is the SoCon men’s basketball player of the year for the second time in his career.

Brooks leads Davidson with 18.4 points per game and seven rebounds per game. He won the award in 2012 and he becomes in the first player in the history of the award to win it multiple times without winning it in consecutive seasons.

Brooks is third in the conference in scoring and sixth in rebounding. Davidson (19-11) went 15-1 in conference play and earned the No. 1 seed in this week’s conference tournament.

This is the third consecutive year a Davidson player has won the award. Forward Jake Cohen won it last season.

--Jonathan Jones

Boeheim jokes about food in the Carolinas, confirms ACC allegiance

Winston-Salem In his first trip to the Carolinas as a coach of an ACC team, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim just couldn’t help himself.

In 2011, Boeheim made a quip about the conference tournament being held in Greensboro, and last year the coach side-swiped Clemson with a comment about Denny’s restaurants in the town.

Wednesday after the Orange’s 67-57win at Wake Forest, Boeheim made another food comment, and this time he (perhaps jokingly) forgot what North Carolina city he was in.

“It’s amazing, I came here, I had the best Italian dinner last night and I thought during the game that was all I was going to get in Greensboro… Winston-Salem… wherever we are, Winston-Salem,” Boeheim said. “Best Italian dinner I’ve had in a long time and who would have thought it? Winston-Salem. I should name the restaurant but then I’d be in trouble. Simon’s the owner. It’s a little place. I didn’t even get the name of it.

“I tell it like it is. We have good restaurants, and I’ve had good food everywhere I’ve been in the south. I just make a joke and everyone thinks I mean it. You can’t make jokes anymore. At Clemson I had the best meal I’ve ever had on the road and last night was a New York City Italian dinner, it was that good. But really, we don’t go places for the food.”

Boeheim then launched into an unprompted defense of his allegiance to the ACC. Syracuse left the Big East and joined the ACC in 2013, and since then Boeheim has taken a handful of perceived slights at the league.

“I said from the beginning this is a great league, we’re happy to be in it,” he said. “The only thing, the only thing, that we miss would be the tournament being in New York City because that’s where all of our people are and it’s a great venue. But that’s one event. And we’ve lost there in the first round on more than one occasion. So that’s the only thing. This league is a tremendous league. It’s going to only get better and better with time. It’s a tremendous basketball league.”

Asked if he enjoyed coming to the Carolinas, the 38th-year coach gave a thoughtful response.

“You know, I mean, every game we’ve played since I’ve been coaching, before we were in the league and in the league, they’re all tough. It’s all tough basketball. Great crowds,” Boeheim said. “And I’ve played at N.C. State, and I’ve played Duke in Raleigh (as a player in 1966) and we’ve played in the south all my coaching career. There are great venues here and tough places, but it’s about the players and Lou Carnesecca told me those fans, they’re not scoring any points. Of course he had Chris Mullen and Walter Berry then so he wasn’t worried about anybody. Great venues, I think there’s a good side to it. Good teams, they get excited about it and ready to go and the crowd will get a good player going. And if you have bad players it doesn’t matter whether you have a good crowd or not. You got bad players you’re not going to win anyway.”

So far the Carolinas have been good to Boeheim. Of the 12,523 in attendance last night, at least 2,000 were dressed in orange.

“I was shocked,” he said. “In Florida we had about 4,000 but they all live down there, they’re all from Syracuse. I don’t know where these people honestly came from.”

 

--Jonathan Jones

Duke vs. Bowie State: What to watch for in exhibition basketball

Saturday at 1 p.m., while I'm finishing up my drive into the mountains of Southwest Virginia for football, the basketball team will take the floor back in Durham for the season's first exhibition game, vs. Bowie State. Here's a quick list of things to watch for (the final score isn't one of them--exhibition basketball is more about the means than the end)

Pace of play Head coach Mike Krzyzewski has talked about how he wants the Blue Devils to push tempo and get up and down the floor. Tyler Thornton told us scribes at media day that Krzyzewski normally pushes them to double their speed in practice. Last year's Duke team averaged 69.4 possessions per game, which ranked 116th out of 347 Division-I teams. Look for that number to rise.

Now, watching Duke play its first exhibition game won't be the final word on how quick they will go, as much of the second half (if not all of it) will be non-competitive basketball. But it will be interesting to see how many possessions the Blue Devils log in the first half.

Starting five Barring anything totally out of left field, I can tell you which four players are sure bets to start: Quinn Cook, Rodney Hood, Jabari Parker and Amile Jefferson. That leaves one spot for either Rasheed Sulaimon or Andre Dawkins. As hard as it is to believe Sulaimon might not keep his starting spot from last year, all preseason indications point to Dawkins getting that final spot.

Again, another caveat: who starts in exhibition play isn't certain to stick until the season opener on Nov. 8 against Davidson. Alex Murphy started both of last year's exhibition games. Those were his only starts on the year

Off the bench rotation So after the starting five, who else gets in the first half of the game? Kryzewski has said this team could be deeper than typical Duke teams (which I feel like gets said every year). Maybe, though, with the full-court press that will be employed this year, that will come to fruition. It's hard to imagine Thornton, Sulaimon/Dawkins (whoever doesn't start) and Josh Hairston not logging meaningful minutes, since all did last year. And what about newcomers Semi Ojeleye and Matt Jones? It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

Official visits Really, this should be at the top of my list, because make no mistake about it: the most important thing for Duke basketball this weekend is that the visits of PG Tyus Jones, C Jahlil Okafor and SF Justise Winslow go well. All rank in the top 15 of the class of 2014, and Jones and Okafor are rated No. 1 at their respective positions (with Okafor No. 1 overall as well). Jones and Okafor have long insisted they are a package deal ( more on that here), and Winslow has suggested he would like to play with them, too. Should the Blue Devils land their commitments in November, they will be the early frontrunners for the 2014-15 title, regardless of who on the current team stays or goes.

For all the latest Duke news, like Duke NOW on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

-- Laura Keeley

Syracuse's Jim Boeheim: 'Duke is a rival'

CHARLOTTE -- Remember when Jim Boeheim was unhappy Syracuse was leaving the Big East?

That's all in the past now.

It's not that hard of a transition to come here," Boeheim said Wednesday at the ACC's media day in Charlotte. "If we would have left 20 years ago, I would have had trouble with it."

The Orange were founding members of the Big East in 1979, but Boeheim's time in Syracuse stretches back to 1962. There were rivalries before the Big East, and there will certainly be rivalries now, after its demise.

"Before the Big East, St. John's was our rival," Boeheim said. "We got in the Big East, and Georgetown became our rival, and St. John's still, and then Connecticut popped up, and then Pittsburgh popped up and then Louisville popped up. So, it's who is good in those years, that's your rival. It doesn't take 10 years.

"A rivalry can happen like that," he said, snapping his fingers. "One game, you can have a rivalry, and that's what will happen. Our fans already think Duke's a rival, they sold it out faster than they sold out Georgetown. So they must think that's going to be a rival game. And if it's a good game, then it will be. That's the way those things work. New rivalries will be created instantly. Overnight, there will be rivalries."

Tickets to the Feb. 1 Duke at Syracuse game did sell out in record time, and the Orange have sold about 5,000 more season ticket packages this year compared to years past (about 20,000 this year, Boeheim said). Why?

"The fans are excited about it. They're looking forward to it," he said. "Our fans think they're in a better league. The only thing they're unhappy about is not going to New York City. They're not unhappy about the league at all. They'd just rather go to New York City to play in the tournament. That's all."

And it's certainly a possibility that the ACC Tournament could find its way to the Big Apple in a few years.

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski , who has been at Duke since 1980 (four years fewer than Boeheim has been at the helm of Syracuse) echoed his new rival's excitement.

"We love to play in lively places because that means it means something more," Krzyzewski said about going to the 35,012-seat Carrier Dome. "It will be an honor to play there and have a capacity crowd."

- Laura Keeley

Brooks named preseason SoCon Player of the Year, Davidson picked second

Southern Conference coaches tabbed Davidson senior forward and former Hopewell standout De’Mon Brooks as the preseason SoCon Player of the Year, and coaches and media picked the Wildcats to finish second in the conference.

Brooks averaged 13.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last year after being named the preseason conference player of the year. The honor was eventually awarded to his teammate, Jake Cohen. Brooks won the award after his sophomore campaign in 2012.

The Wildcats have one player on the preseason all-conference team in Brooks.

In a narrow vote by both the coaches and media, Elon was selected to win the SoCon with Davidson, last year's conference champion, coming in second. The Phoenix received seven first-place votes by the coaches for a total of 96 points. Davidson received three first-place votes with a total of 90 points.

In the media poll, Elon finished with 270 points and 14 first-place votes compared to Davidson’s 268 points and 12 first-place votes.

This is the last season in the SoCon for both Elon and Davidson. Elon will move to the Colonial Athletic Association next year while the Wildcats will move to the Atlantic 10.

Appalachian State tied for fourth in the coaches preseason poll and sixth in the media poll.

--Jonathan Jones

 

Williams: P.J. Hairston to miss games but will practice

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina coach Roy Williams on Thursday gave no indication as to when P.J. Hairston might play again for the Tar Heels but, whenever it is, chances are Hairston, the junior guard, will be in good shape. He has spent a lot of time running of late. 

After an off-season of trouble – a speeding ticket in May while driving a rental car tied to a convicted felon, an arrest in June while driving another rental car tied to the same man, a reckless driving charge in July – Hairston will participate when UNC begins practice Friday. Beyond that, though, his status is unclear.

Williams, who for the first time on Thursday spoke at length about Hairston’s issues, said he wasn’t yet sure how many games Hairston would miss. Williams also deflected a question about whether the NCAA would have a say in the length of Hairston’s suspension. 

“I can’t speak to what the NCAA is doing or not doing,” he said. “But I know that Roy Williams has a tremendous voice in what else is going to be done.”

-Andrew Carter

Duke's Rodney Hood recovered from Achilles injury

With the start of college basketball practice merely three weeks away (Sept. 27), the Duke Blue Devils are in near-perfect health.

Rodney Hood, who will play this season after sitting out last year following his transfer from Mississippi State, has completely recovered from the right Achilles injury he suffered at a USA Basketball's camp on June 26th.

"He's great," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said.

Hood, a sophomore, is expected to star on the wing for this year's Duke team. Expectations are high—N.C. State coach Mark Gottfried went as far to say he and teammate Jabari Parker could go No. 2 and 3 in next year's NBA Draft.

Additionally, redshirt sophomore Marshall Plumlee has been doing individual work and will begin full-court work starting Monday, Krzyzewski said. Plumlee had surery on his left foot on April 23rd.

Thanks to NCAA rule changes, Krzyzewski and the rest of the coaches were allowed to spend two hours per week during second summer session working with their players. That extra time has allowed the staff to get to know the incoming players better, Krzyzewski said. The Blue Devils are currently working in small group sessions that will continue until the official start of practice.

"We have a good group," Krzyzewski said. "I'm anxious to get going."

-Laura Keeley

P.J. Hairston tells Daily Tar Heel he will play

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham said recently that P.J. Hairstonwould play this season, but not in every game. And now we have the same from Hairston, the UNC junior guard who told the told the Daily Tar Heel, the UNC campus newspaper, that he will “be on the court” this season.

Great hustle by Aaron Dodson, the DTH reporter who tracked Hairston down on Monday night on some basketball courts near the Smith Center. Hairston on his Twitter account had posted that he would be playing there. After a summer of trouble, Hairston is serving an indefinite suspension. It’s unclear when he’ll play this season.

“I’m not sure how long I’ll have to sit out,” Hairston told the DTH. “I haven’t found out yet, but whatever it is I’m ready for it.”

The length of Hairston’s suspension might not be clear for a while. UNC doesn’t begin the season until Nov. 8, at home against Oakland. The Tar Heels in their seventh game play against Michigan State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. UNC’s ninth game is at home against Kentucky on Dec. 14.

UNC coach Roy Williams suspended Hairston in late July, after he received a reckless driving charge near Salisbury. That followed his early June arrest on misdemeanor charges of marijuana possession and driving without a license.

Hairston also received a speeding ticket in May while driving a rental car that has been tied to Haydn “Fats” Thomas, a Durham resident and convicted felon. At the time of his arrest in June, Hairston was driving a rented 2013 GMC Yukon that Thomas paid for.

- Andrew Carter

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/uncnow/pj-hairston-tells-daily-tar-heel-he-will-play#storylink=cpy

UNC A.D. Bubba Cunningham: P.J. Hairston will play in 2013-14 season

CHAPEL HILL -- P.J. Hairston will play this season, but not in every game. That's what Bubba Cunningham, the North Carolina athletic director, told a group of university faculty members during a question-and-answer session on Thursday.

Cunningham on Thursday spoke at a faculty retreat for the UNC journalism school. Andy Bechtel, an associate professor in the journalism school, posted on his Twitter account Cunningham's answer when asked about Hairston, the Tar Heels' junior guard and leading scorer who has been suspended indefinitely.

"Bubba Cunningham takes a PJ question," Bechtel wrote on his Twitter account. "Will he play? Answer: 'Yes, but not all the games.'"

That was the entirety of Cunningham's answer, Bechtel later said during a phone interview. Cunningham's comments are the closest UNC has come to saying anything about Hairston's playing status for next season.

Hairston was suspended after the North Carolina Highway Patrol charged him with speeding and reckless driving late last month. That followed his arrest in Durham in early June, when he was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession and driving without a license. Those charges were later dropped.

At the time of his arrest, Hairston was driving a rented GMC Yukon that was paid for by Haydn "Fats" Thomas, a Durham resident and convicted felon. Hairston also received a speeding ticket in May while driving another rental vehicle, a 2012 Camaro, that has been linked to Thomas.

After he played in a pro-am at the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, UNC coach Roy Williams on Wednesday declined to comment on Hairston.

"Not talking about P.J.," Williams said. "I've read about it all damn summer, I'm tired of reading about, tired of talking about it. If you want to talk about anything else, I'll talk about anything."

Cunningham, the UNC athletic director, also played in the pro-am with Williams and declined comment about Hairston. Cunningham's brief comment on Thursday was the first time that a UNC official has definitively said that Hairston will play this season.

Hairston is facing a potentially lengthy suspension, depending on whether his use of rental cars is deemed to be an extra benefit. If the use of rental cars were an extra benefit, the NCAA could suspend him from anywhere between three and nine games - or more - depending on the monetary value of the benefit. Williams said in a statement last month that Hairston would face "serious consequences."

- Andrew Carter

UNC coach Roy Williams 'tired' of reading, talking about P.J. Hairston

GREENSBORO -- Even after making five birdie putts during a nice round of golf with Davis Love III, Roy Williams was in no mood to talk about P.J. Hairston today after Williams finished playing in the pro-am of the Wyndham Championship.

"Not talking about P.J.," Williams said when I asked him how his conversations have gone recently with Hairston, North Carolina's leading scorer whom Williams suspended indefinitely. "I've read about it all damn summer, I'm tired of reading about, tired of talking about it. If you want to talk about anything else, I'll talk about anything."

Indeed, Hairston has created plenty of reading material this summer. There was his arrest in early June in Durham, where police charged him with misdemeanor marijuana possession and driving without a license. Both charges were later dropped, but Hairston at the time of his arrest was driving a 2013 GMC Yukon that had been rented by Haydn "Fats" Thomas, a Durham resident and convicted felon.

Hairston received a speeding ticket in May while driving another rental vehicle, a 2012 Camaro, that has been linked to Thomas. Then, in late July, Hairston was charged with speeding and reckless driving on his way to Charlotte. After that, Williams promptly suspended Hairston, a rising junior who considered entering the NBA draft before deciding to return to school.

"It's been a little hectic," Williams said of his summer, "and some things that make it not as much fun. But I've still got one of the best jobs in the world."

He later said "it's been a hard summer. No question about that."

During the pro-am, Williams played a foursome that included Love III and Bubba Cunningham, the UNC athletic director. Williams said he has known Love III since the days when he played golf at UNC.

"I was there the day that Michael Jordan broke his driver on the practice range," Williams said. "So we go back a long ways."

Amid all the stress of the summer, Williams appeared at ease on the course. Between shots he chatted with fans, signed autographs and posed for pictures.

The drama surrounding Hairston, though, remains unsettled. Even before his suspension, Williams in a statement said Hairston would face "serious consequences." If the rental cars Hairston drove are deemed to have been an extra benefit, Hairston would face an NCAA-mandated suspension of three to nine games, depending on the monetary value of the rental cars during the time Hairston drove them. In addition, he'd face additional punishment from Williams.

Williams was in no mood to discuss Hairston on Wednesday, though he said he's "anxious" for the start of the practice.

"With the new rules, we can start as early as Sept. 27, which makes the season even longer," Williams said. "I thought it was long enough beforehand. But I'm anxious. I think we've got a great group of young kids that I'm going to enjoy working with.

"This is a good release right here, getting out on the golf course, and I enjoyed the heck out of it today."

- Andrew Carter

Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones to take Oct. 25 official visit to Duke

Jahlil Okafor, the No. 1 overall prospect for the Class of 2014, will take an official visit to Duke on Oct. 25, according to an article by ESPN Chicago's Scott Powers. The Blue Devils will also host top (and only) point guard target Tyus Jones the same weekend.

Okafor and Jones, ranked No. 3 in the class of 2014, have repeatedly expressed a desire to play together in college (more on that here in my story from last month's Nike EYBL Peach Jam tournament), so the Duke staff is likely pleased they were able to schedule both prospects for the same weekend. Duke will be the last school Okafor officially visits, as his schedule looks like this: Baylor on Aug. 30, Kentucky on Sept. 9, Arizona on Oct. 11, Kansas on Oct. 18th and Duke on Oct. 25.

Jones will join him on the visits to Baylor, Kansas and Duke, and Jones's full schedule will be set next week, his mother, Debbie, said in a text message. The pair won't be present for Duke's version of Midnight Madness, Countdown to Craziness, as it's scheduled for Oct. 18th. Kentucky's alumni game is scheduled for the weekend of the duo's visit. But, Duke does have the advantage of falling last in line. And, while everything is always subject to change in recruiting, I'm expecting there to be another visitor that weekend as well. ABC: Always be closing.

Okafor will also take unofficial visits to Illinois, Michigan State and Ohio State, but each of those schools is undoubtedly unhappy they didn't make the cut for his official visit list.

Also notable in the ESPN article is the idea that Okafor and his father, Chuck, are unhappy about the rumors indicating Okafor is leaning toward Duke. It makes sense: I would imagine he doesn't want that perception affecting his experiences at other schools. I wouldn't assume that's a bad sign for Duke.

- Laura Keeley

UNC's Dean Smith to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom

President Obama will announce on Thursday that Dean Smith will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, according to an ESPN.com report.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor, according to the White House, and is “presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.”

In addition to Smith, ESPN.com reported that Ernie Banks, known with affection as “Mr. Cub” for his Major League Baseball Hall of Fame career with the Chicago Cubs, will also receive the Medal of Freedom.

Smith coached at UNC from 1961 through 1997, retiring after 36 seasons, 879 victories and two national championships, which the Tar Heels won in 1982 and 1993. He guided the Tar Heels to the ACC tournament championship 13 times, and he led UNC to 11 Final Fours. At the time of his retirement, Smith was the most victorious coach in college basketball history.

In addition to what his teams accomplished on the court, Smith is remembered for the connection he shared with his players off of it. More than 95 percent of Smith’s lettermen graduated, and he fostered an atmosphere that kept players returning to campus years after they’d left school.

Smith in recent years has been suffering from a neurological disorder that has greatly diminished his memory.

Smith’s family in 2010 released a letter about his condition that read, in part: “Our dad has a progressive neurocognitive disorder that affects his memory.

“So now, he may not immediately recall the name of every former player from his many years in coaching, but that does not diminish what those players meant to him or how much he cares about them.”

Pat Summitt, the former Tennessee women’s basketball coach who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, received the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year. Other recipients who made their name in sports include: Stan Musial, Bill Russell, Billie Jean King, Muhammad Ali, Buck O’Neil, Frank Robinson, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Hank Aaron.

-Andrew Carter

ACC basketball: Duke gets two games on Big Monday on ESPN

The ACC will be part of ESPN's Big Monday basketball doubleheader this coming season (RIP, old Big East), with Duke drawing two of the prime-time match-ups.

The Blue Devils will host Virginia on Jan. 13th at 7 p.m. and make their inaugural ACC trip to Pittsburgh for a 7 p.m. tip on Jan. 27th.

Duke and Pitt have actually split their 12 past meetings, the most recent of which was Pitt’s 65-64 win in overtime on Dec. 20, 2007 in Madison Square Garden. The Blue Devils will be making their fifth trip to Pittsburgh and their first since a 78-69 win on Jan. 26, 1980.

Those will be the only conference games against the Cavaliers and the Panthers.

Here's a refresher on the other Duke basketball dates that have been announced:

Nov. 12: Kansas vs. Duke (Champions Classic)
Nov. 15: FAU at Duke
Nov. 17: Norfolk State at Duke (NIT Season Tip-Off)
Nov. 27: NIT Season Tip-Off semifinals (Madison Square Garden)*
Nov. 29: NIT Season Tip-Off finals (Madison Square Garden)*
Dec. 3: Michigan at Duke (ACC-Big 10 challenge)
Dec. 19: Duke vs. UCLA (Madison Square Garden)
Jan. 13: vs. Virginia, 7 p.m.
Jan. 27: at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.

2013-14 Duke basketball ACC home games:
North Carolina
Wake Forest
Georgia Tech
Syracuse
Virginia Tech
Maryland
N.C. State
Virginia
Florida State

2013-14 Duke basketball ACC away games:
North Carolina
Wake Forest
Georgia Tech
Syracuse
Pittsburgh
Notre Dame
Boston College
Clemson
Miami

The full Duke schedule will be announced later this fall.

Here is the full Big Monday schedule:

January 13
7 p.m. Virginia at Duke
9 p.m. Kansas at Iowa State

January 20
7 p.m. North Carolina at Virginia
9 p.m. Baylor at Kansas

January 27
7 p.m. Duke at Pitt
9 p.m. Oklahoma State at Oklahoma

February 3
7 p.m. Notre Dame at Syracuse
9 p.m. Iowa State at Oklahoma State

February 10
7 p.m. Maryland at Virginia
9 p.m. Kansas at Kansas State

February 17
7 p.m. North Carolina at Florida State
9 p.m. Oklahoma State at Baylor

February 24
7 p.m. Syracuse at Maryland
9 p.m. Oklahoma at Kansas

March 3
7 p.m. Notre Dame at North Carolina
9 p.m. Kansas State at Oklahoma State

- Laura Keeley

UNC, ACC basketball to be featured on Big Monday on ESPN

CHAPEL HILL -- ACC basketball is moving to Monday night on ESPN. And North Carolina, as you'd expect, will be a part of it.

Given the implosion of the Big East, ESPN was apparently looking for a replacement for its Monday night college basketball programming. And ESPN apparently found that replacement in the ACC.

Eight ACC games will be featured on "Big Monday," as they call it, on consecutive Mondays between Jan. 13 and March 3.

UNC will be featured three times on Big Monday - more than any other ACC team. The Tar Heels' Big Monday games are:

• at Virginia on Jan. 20
• at Florida State on Feb. 17
• vs. Notre Dame on March 3

All the games will be at 7 p.m.

The ACC's full schedule is expected to be released later this month.

- Andrew Carter

ACC hoops recruiting: Robert Johnson gets offer from UNC

CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina made a play to bolster its already-strong 2014 recruiting class on Tuesday when it offered a scholarship to shooting guard Robert Johnson, according to Inside Carolina and other reports.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Johnson, who plays at Benedictine College Prep in Richmond, Va., is a four-star prospect, according to ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com.

Johnson is outside of the ESPN top 100, but Rivals ranks him the 84th-best prospect in his class. He played well in various AAU events this summer – apparently well enough to earn a scholarship offer from UNC – and, as you can see from his stats right here, Johnson is a shooter.

The Tar Heels are likely to need one of those. Regardless of when – or even if – P.J. Hairston plays for UNC this season, it’s probably not too far-fetched to believe that he won't be around beyond the 2013-14 season. His departure would leave UNC with no proven outside shooting presence. So Johnson would fit well into UNC’s plans.

The Tar Heels already have commitments from three players ESPN.com ranks among the top 14 in the class of 2014. The 6-foot-7 Justin Jackson and the 6-foot-6 Theo Pinson are lean, talented wing players. Then there’s Joel Berry, the 6-foot point guard.

UNC also has an offer out to Rashad Vaughn, who’s the No. 11 overall prospect in the nation, according to ESPN, and the top shooting guard in the class.

- Andrew Carter

Roy Williams on P.J. Hairston situation: There will be consequences

 North Carolina coach Roy Williams on Monday broke his silence on the controversy surrounding P.J. Hairston, the Tar Heels’ leading scorer who was arrested last month and charged with marijuana possession and driving without a license.

At the time of his arrest in Durham, Hairston was driving a rented vehicle that was paid for by Haydn “Fats” Thomas, a convicted felon with a long rap sheet. Hairston received a speeding ticket while driving another rented vehicle linked to Thomas.

Williams had declined comment on Hairston’s troubles but the silence ended on Monday.

“P.J. and I have had several discussions already and he knows he has made serious mistakes and there will be serious consequences as a result,” Williams said in a statement.

Williams added:“Other issues have been written about recently that are disturbing and bother me deeply. Our basketball program is based on great ideals and these issues are embarrassing. These are not common in my 10 years as head coach at UNC and they will all be dealt with harshly and appropriately at the correct time to ensure that our program will not be compromised.”

Here is his statement in full:

“I initially decided not to make a statement about PJ (Hairston) until the legal process had been finalized. I believe that is the fair way that everyone should be treated and is the way of our country.

PJ and I have had several discussions already and he knows he has made serious mistakes and there will be serious consequences as a result. Certainly the idea of suspending PJ has been discussed. However, he is not currently enrolled in summer school, is not practicing with the team and we have no games until November. There are several options available in terms of discipline but we are going to wait until the process is complete to decide on those options.

Other issues have been written about recently that are disturbing and bother me deeply. Our basketball program is based on great ideals and these issues are embarrassing. These are not common in my 10 years as head coach at UNC and they will all be dealt with harshly and appropriately at the correct time to ensure that our program will not be compromised.

We will care about each individual but there will be serious actions taken that will fix these issues. I take pride in our values and how we have conducted ourselves for a long time here at Carolina and this time will pass but it will be dealt with strongly.

We are talking about a program that has been a model of success on and off the court and it will be again. I want to thank our fans for their patience, understanding and support.”

--Andrew Carter

UNC AD Bubba Cunningham on P.J. Hairston case: UNC still gathering information

CHAPEL HILL — Amid the ongoing turmoil surrounding P.J. Hairston, the rising junior guard who was North Carolina’s leading scorer last season, university athletic director Bubba Cunningham earlier today said UNC was still gathering information and that it wouldn’t comment further until it had “sufficient understanding of the facts involved.”

Hairston has been embroiled in controversy for more than a month, since being arrested in Durham on misdemeanor marijuana possession charges. On the night of his arrest, Hairston was driving a rental car that had been rented by Haydn “Fats” Thomas, a convicted felon with a lengthy criminal record.

Here is Cunningham’s statement:

“The athletic department compliance staff and I are fully aware of recent media accounts related to our men’s basketball team. We take these matters very seriously and are looking into these reports and the inferences they contain with all due diligence.

“It is my practice not to comment on the individuals involved or the details surrounding these reports until we have sufficient understanding of the facts involved. We are still gathering information, learning information from other sources, and we will not comment until we have a strong grasp of each individual situation.

“Where the facts show mistakes in judgment and/or actions, Coach (Roy) Williams will take and I will support the appropriate disciplinary measures. The integrity of the University of North Carolina is of paramount concern to all of us and is the principle on which Coach Williams and the athletic department operate each and every day.

“The most responsible course of action, however, is to withhold judgment and comment until we are confident we have the facts to do so. I appreciate everyone’s understanding of that and we will bring these matters to resolution as soon as possible.”

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/uncnow/unc-ad-bubba-cunningham-on-pj-hairston-case-unc-still-gathering-information#storylink=cpy

-Andrew Carter

UNC finishes eighth in Directors' Cup, leads ACC

CHAPEL HILL -- North Carolina finished eighth in the Directors' Cup, which measures a school's performance in all sports in NCAA postseason competition. The UNC women's soccer and women's lacrosse teams won national championships, which bolstered the Tar Heels to another top-10 finish in the Directors' Cup standings.

UNC finished first among ACC schools, followed by Florida State (11th), Duke (12th) and Virginia (20th). N.C. State (34th), Virginia Tech (36th) and Maryland (44th) also finished among the top 50 nationally. This is the fifth consecutive year that UNC has finished in the top 10 nationally.

In addition to the women's soccer and lacrosse teams, five other UNC teams also finished among the top 10 in their sports: field hockey (second), baseball (third), men's soccer (fifth), women's tennis (fifth) and men's lacrosse (fifth). UNC women's swimming (12th), fencing (13th), men's basketball (17th), women's basketball (17th) and volleyball (17th) also finished among the top 20 nationally.

UNC finished in eighth place for the second consecutive year. In the 20-year history of the Directors' Cup, UNC has finished 17 times among the top 10. Stanford, Florida and UCLA are the only schools with more top-10 finishes than UNC.

UNC's 17 top-10 finishes are five more than the rest of the ACC combined. Here are the final Directors' Cup standings.

- Andrew Carter

2013 NBA draft: Duke's Mason Plumlee a solid bet for middle of the 1st round

With the June 27 NBA draft fast approaching, Mason Plumlee looks to be a solid bet to go in the middle of the first round, according to the mock drafts:

Draft Express: No. 14 to the Utah Jazz

Sports Illustrated: No. 16 to Boston the Boston Celtics

ESPN: No. 17 to the Atlanta Hawks

NBA Draft Net: No. 19 to the Cleveland Cavaliers

Yahoo!: No. 22 to the Brooklyn Nets

CBS Sports: No. 22 to the Brooklyn Nets

Of course, it only takes one team to pull a surprise that sends everyone's mock drafts up in flames. Keep in mind that, at this time last year, no one was projecting Miles Plumlee to go in the first round.

Between preparing for the draft and criss-crossing the country for workouts, Plumlee say down with Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose as part of their NBA job interview series. The trio have a candid conversation and review a little bit of film. Check out the above video -- it's definitely worth a watch.

- Laura Keeley

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