Sylvia Hatchell and Kennedy Meeks stole the show at Late Night with Roy

Two moments in Friday Late Night With Roy had fans in the Smith Center emotional, but for two starkly different reasons.

The first occurred early in the night when women’s basketball head coach Sylvia Hatchell took the court. Hatchell, who missed all of last season battling Leukemia was brought to tears by a standing ovation and cheers that rivaled that of a Duke game.

Last year, Hatchell made an appearance via the Smith Center video board, from her bed in the Lineberger Cancer Center.

This year, when the applause finally died down, Hatchell to spoke from the floor.

“I just wanted to say thanks for all your support last year,” she said. “We take for granted UNC. There’s not another place in the world like this.”

Hatchell also expressed her excitement for being able to be back on the sideline this season.

"I told the ACC office I might get a technical every single game, I'm so fired up,” she said. “I'm fired up about this team."

But nobody in the building was as fired up as Kennedy Meeks.

The sophomore debuted a slimmer form Friday — down 20 pounds from last year’s 290 — but that wasn’t all he showcased in the spotlight.

For a lip-syncing battle inspired by Jimmy Fallon, Meeks was anything but meek with his rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.”

When the team finally got around to playing basketball, the results were equally as impressive.

In their first time playing together in front of fans, the touted trio of freshmen Joel Berry, Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson was remarkable.

Aside from showing their comfort in the spotlight via various sketches and dances, the three had a banner night on the court.

Jackson led all scorers with a hard-fought 17 points. Most of his baskets came from hustle plays under the rim and his ability to use his length for floaters in the paint.

Pinson debuted a high-flying dunk reminiscent of J.P. Tokoto on a swift drive to the rim and showcased stellar passing as well while Berry was calm and poised as the point guard for the Blue team.

Though the Blue-White scrimmage is hardly an indicator of how well the team will fare in actual competition, the rookies’ performance was definitely reassuring.

“All three freshmen did good,” Meeks said. “They might not have scored as much (as Jackson) but they did the things that we need to win games.”

sports@dailytarheel.com