Obama wants us to win. We’re never going to fail.

Welcome back, UNC! The sun is shining slightly more than it was last week, midterms are behind us and we are in the thick of March Madness. 

If you, like us here at Swerve, are well-meaning but slightly clueless about basketball, don’t worry: we’ve got you with a comprehensive guide of all the non-athletic important basketball stuff that’s happened since you stepped off campus.

1. Thanks, Obama — seriously.

While the current administration has maintained radio silence on its March Madness picks, former President Barack Obama is still coming in clutch. During his time in office, Obama picked UNC to win the National Championship in 2009 and 2012 — one out of two isn’t that bad, honestly. Thankfully, he’s continued the tradition this year and has picked UNC to cut down the nets in April. Take that, Krzyzewski.

Anyway, it’s nice to know that at least one politician is on our side. North Carolina governor (and UNC graduate) Roy Cooper picked Kentucky to win it all. He didn’t even send UNC to the Final Four, but he sent Duke. Shameful.

2. Roy Williams has accepted your friend request

A former president isn’t the only one rooting for North Carolina basketball. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg stopped by Chapel Hill last Monday to talk to the team and shoot some hoops ahead of the NCAA tournament — you know, casual.

And yes, we know that Zuckerberg stopped at Duke as well. But we think the Carolina Way really won him over — in a Facebook post about the day, he gave “a special thanks” to the UNC team, who took the court with him and gave him the nickname “Zuckerbuckets.” It’s a good thing Facebook has those heart reactions now.

3. Wot in Tar (Heel) Nation

On March 15, pictures of the team travelling for the tournament gained national attention, and not just because they’re the Southern No. 1 seed.

Roy and his boys were all decked out in cowboy hats, looking like they should be travelling by horses instead of planes.

Because the team vaguely looked like those “wot in tarnation” memes, the pictures sparked confusion — until people found out where the hats came from. First-year player Shea Rush custom designed a hat for each of his teammates and coaches, letting them all pick their own colors and designs.

It’s good to see that this team truly has their head in the game.

swerve@dailytarheel.com