North Carolina forward John Henson will play in UNC’s third-round matchup against Creighton but may not start, team sources confirmed Sunday.
Henson sprained his left wrist in the first half of UNC’s ACC tournament-opener against Maryland and missed three games since then. North Carolina coach Roy Williams said Friday that Henson didn’t look ready to return after feeding the 6-foot-11 forward passes in a shoot-around before UNC’s win against Vermont.
“Got him into the post and said, ‘all right, let me see you make a ball fake drop step where you have to take a two hand power dribble and then lay it up,’” Williams said. “And he was able to do it and catch it, but it didn’t look like he was very comfortable with it.”
The Tar Heels have managed without the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, especially with the help of freshman James Michael McAdoo. McAdoo has filled in nicely for Henson in his absence, finishing with 17 points, six rebounds and four steals in UNC’s recent win against Vermont.
“He’s really maturing quite well, handling things,” Williams said of the freshman.
Despite McAdoo’s play, Henson’s return will likely give the Tar Heels a boost.
UNC’s players said as much Saturday.
“John will help us out a lot,” UNC point guard Kendall Marshall said. “He brings another dimension on both sides of the court. I think that to be able to throw him at (Creighton star) Doug (McDermott) with his length, it will make it a lot harder.”
McDermott, a 6-foot-7 forward is averaging 23 points and 8.2 rebounds this season.
