Deon Thompson has played more games in a North Carolina uniform than any player in the history of the program. He’s hit the floor 150 times in his career.
He remembers game No. 4, a 82-74 loss to Gonzaga in Madison Square Garden.
He remembers game No. 120, and so do all of his teammates. That was this season’s 87-71 beating at the hands of Syracuse, also at Madison Square Garden.
Those two losses don’t sit well with Thompson and the rest of his teammates, and Tuesday night’s NIT semifinal game offers a chance for some redemption, especially for Thompson and fellow senior Marcus Ginyard.
“I definitely think there’s unfinished business for us there,” Thompson said after UNC’s win at UAB last Tuesday.
In fact, the trip to New York holds more than just redemption for previous losses in MSG. For a team that finished one game above .500 in the regular season and lost in the ACC Tournament’s first round, there was doubt that the Tar Heels would even make the NIT. Ginyard himself said that he didn’t think UNC would make the field.
The Tar Heels talk now like they’re out to prove how good they are, that they’re the same team that at one point was ranked No. 6 in the nation.
Coach Roy Williams repeatedly states that his team is playing only for the next game. But an NIT championship could give an element of closure to UNC, and, as Ginyard said, leave the team with “a better taste in our mouths” after a season where UNC struggled with injuries and offensive production.
UNC’s highly touted rookie class struggled like the rest of the team through much of the season, but in the NIT, freshmen John Henson and Dexter Strickland have looked more comfortable. In the NIT, Strickland is averaging 7.7 points per game, and has turned the ball over only three times. Henson is averaging almost 12 points and seven rebounds in NIT play.
“‘Personally, I don’t care anything about Madison Square Garden,” Williams said. “I want us to go in with motivation and play better because of the whole season, not just because of what happened up there in November.”
Williams also emphasizes that he’s coaching for the moment and trying to give Ginyard and Thompson the best ending for their careers that he can.
“I’m trying to focus on getting the bad taste out of our mouth of 16 losses,” Williams said.
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
Deon Thompson wants NYC redemption
Looks to wrap up ‘un?nished business’
North Carolina senior forward Deon Thompson has suffered two losses in Madison Square Garden. DTH/ Phong Dinh
