[johhnywave]

Quick disclaimer… If you don’t like the Heels or Tyler Hansbrough then feel free to leave as the title says it all. Did this because I was bored and couldn't sleep last night. Might have errors since I typed this in notepad.

Thank you.

March 4, 2006
#15 North Carolina at #1 Duke: -S-e-n-i-o-r- Freshman Night at Cameron

A frosh, Tyler Hansbrough, who quickly became the face of a rebuilding North Carolina team, goes into Cameron Indoor (considered to be one of the best home court advantages in any sport) for the first time in his career. On the night meant to honor one of the most dominant defensive players and the most prolific scorer in ACC history (Sheldon Williams and JJ Reddick), Tyler Hansbrough took the spotlight by man-handling the defending two time ACC defensive player of the year, Sheldon Williams, by going for 27 points and 10 rebounds. The key moment in the game came when Duke was climbing back with 3:17 left in regulation and North Carolina guard, Bobby Frasor, dribbled in to trouble. Frasor passed the ball to an open Tyler Hansbrough about 24 feet out from the basket with 2 seconds remaining on the shot clock and with the Cameron Crazies screaming at the top of their devilish lungs, Tyler knocked down the morale draining three pointer which sucking the energy out of the building and pushed the lead back to double digits. Duke would eventually have one last push, cutting the lead to as close as three points with 23 seconds left, but Tyler once again came through in the clutch with his defensive boards and knocking down all four of his free throws in the final 12 seconds of the game.



March 29, 2008
#3 Seed Louisville against #1 Seed North Carolina: Elite Eight

The Tar Heels were clearly the favorites in all of their games thus far in the tournament. That is until their Elite Eight match-up where they met arguably the hottest team in the nation, Louisville. Although still considered favorites, Louisville had the size, coaching, and talent to out play the number one seeded Heels. The highlighted match-up was between All American, Tyler Hansbrough, and two of the best big men in the Big East, David Padgett and Earl Clark. Out of the gate the Heels were impressive, extending their lead to as many as twelve points which was the margin at halftime. Coming out of the half, Louisville's coaching shined as they climbed back to tie the game at 59 mid way through the half and were down only by 2 points with just under 7 minutes left in the game. After another Heels run, a basket from Clark cut the lead back down to five with 4 minutes on the game clock. In the following possession with the shot clock running down, Hansbrough hit an unbalanced fifteen footer pushing the lead back to 7. Once again in the next Heels possession, after a missed layup on the Cardinals end, 1:57 left on the game clock, 3 seconds on the shot clock, Hansbrough pump faked to get the defenders in the air, took a step inside the three point line, and shot a falling fadeaway over the long stretched arm of Padgett as the shot clock was expiring. The shot, and dagger, would go in and the Heels ended the game 8 for 8 from the line, sealing the victory and a trip to the Final Four for the first time since the 2005 season. Tyler Hansbrough accumulated 27 points and 13 rebounds by the game's end. When asked in an interview about Tyler Hansbrough, opposing head coach, Rick Pitino, only had complements to say about the eventual National Player of the Year. "He made two shots that you prayed they were going to take, Pitino said. Both were that challenging. I was following the flight of the ball. He couldn’t see the basket. That’s what an All-American does."



February 10, 2008
#22 Clemson @ #1 North Carolina: The Steal

Earlier in the season Clemson gave North Carolina all they could take. It was a three pointer from Wayne Ellington with less than a second left to steal a win from Clemson in overtime. However, things are different in the Hill for the same Tigers program. Clemson came in to Chapel Hill on the verge of setting the longest road losing streak against one team in NCAA history, 0 wins and 53 losses. Because of that, or perhaps that it was North Carolina's only second game without starting point guard, Tywon Lawson, in the lineup, Clemson came in on fire and began the game on an 8-0 run. The lead grew to as much as 12 points on several occasions in the half and Clemson went into halftime up 11. For most of the second half the story was the same. Clemson held their biggest lead of the game of 14 points, with 7:33 left and carried a double-digit lead until the final 3 minutes of the game. A couple hustle plays from Hansbrough and a barrage of threes by Danny Green led the furious North Carolina rally. Senior guard, Quentin Thomas, drove into the lane and rolled in a layup capping the 14-3 comeback in the final few minutes to send the game into overtime. The first overtime went back and forth between North Carolina free throws and Clemson three pointers which once again led to tie and a second overtime. With 1:33 left in the second overtime and a 3 point North Carolina lead, Clemson had the ball looking to tie the game. Moving off a screen, Hansbrough was forced to cover a Clemson guard, Potter, 46 feet away from the basket. Potter tried to dribble around using his speed, but Hansbrough knocked the ball loose from the other side. Diving at the basketball rolling down the court at a frantic pace, Hansbrough out hustled the quick footed Potter, and would get fouled on the floor. Both free throws would go through and Clemson would not score a single point from there on. Tyler Hansbrough scored 13 of North Carolina's 21 points in the two overtime periods and finished the game with a season high 39 points to go along with 13 rebounds.



February 15, 2006
Georgia Tech @ # 23 North Carolina: Glimpse of Greatness

Late in the ACC season a rising, young, North Carolina squad welcomed a Georgia Tech team that broke their 8 game losing streak just a few days earlier. Georgia Tech caught fire early in and led by as much as 20 points. North Carolina found themselves down 13 at halftime and it could have been much more if it were not for the freshman, Tyler Hansbrough, who was the only bright spot of the team with his 23 point first half. North Carolina started the second half on a 16-6 run and lead shrunk from 20 to a mere 3 points. Hansbrough would give North Carolina their first lead, since the 15:09 mark in the first half, with a pair of free throws. The rest of the game continued that way as Carolina outscored Georgia Tech 20-40 in the second half and they would sail to an 82-75 win. Tyler Hansbrough finished the game with a Dean Dome and ACC freshman record, 40 points, and became only the eighth player in Carolina history to reach the 40 point mark.

Alright so I couldn't find a video on Tyler's performance so here's a play that I found from the game:
- Got to love Noel

March 15, 2008
Virginia Tech @ #1 North Carolina: The Naismith Pose?

Virginia Tech came into the ACC Tournament knowing that they would, at the very least, need get to the tournament championship game to make the field of 65. Even then it was uncertain if they would make it, unless, of course, they were to win the ACC Tournament. North Carolina, on the other hand, knew that they would only have to win one game to seal a number one seed in the NCAA tournament, which they already had over Florida State. However, the mindset of the Heels was to defend their ACC Tournament crown and thus an epic match-up was set in the tournament semi-finals between a group of championship hungry players and a team struggling for dear life. The first half started close and competitive for the opening ten minutes of the game. Then the Hokies would have a run middle way through the half, followed by a Heels run of their own to tie it up at 38 by halftime. In the second half it was as close as a game can be without ever changing the lead. Virginia Tech's A.D. Vassallo scored the opening basket and they would hold that lead, yet never extending it past 6 points, until 1:28 seconds left in the game. Virginia Tech was given the opportunity to take back the lead with 30 seconds left, but the shot was missed giving the Heels a chance to win it. Dribbling out the clock was point guard, Tywon Lawson as the play was set up for Tywon to drive strong to the rim, either drawing a foul or getting a lay up. 8 seconds left in the game, Lawson drives to the hole puts up an off balanced shot off the glass, and misses everything. At the time the shot went up, Tyler was the furthest man away from the basket. The rebound was tipped and by the time the ball hit the floor, it bounced back into Tyler's hands where he hit a fadeaway shot from the left corner with 2 seconds left to win it. After the shot went in, Tyler sprinted down the court in excitement, flailing his arms in a punching manner, was often compared to the same manner as a jesus lizard running across water. Virginia tech would not get their hail mary and North Carolina went on to win the game and would eventually win the ACC Tournament Championship for the second year in the roll. Many people believe that in what was a close Naismith race between Tyler Hansbrough and Michael Beasley, that shot was the deciding factor.

[worldwideballa12]

I remember that GT game his Freshman year. It was the first time I saw him play, and I came away from the game thinking that is the hardest working motherf*cker I've ever seen on a basketball court. I have a ton of respect for Hans and the way he plays the game. I was bitter last year when he won the NPOY award over Beasley but Hansbrough definately deserved it.

[dawg5]

Great article bro nice to see the people who contribute in the NCAA section have a great insight into their teams and players whereas the NBA section peeps should look and learn. Hans at the end of this season is going to arguably be one of the best players the NCAA has seen for the full 4 yrs of eligability as long as he wins a chip this yr. Its a shame but I dont really think he will make it to superstar status in the NBA much like a sean may and many others.

will dawg

[worldwideballa12]

Originally Posted by dawg5

Great article bro nice to see the people who contribute in the NCAA section have a great insight into their teams and players whereas the NBA section peeps should look and learn. Hans at the end of this season is going to arguably be one of the best players the NCAA has seen for the full 4 yrs of eligability as long as he wins a chip this yr. Its a shame but I dont really think he will make it to superstar status in the NBA much like a sean may and many others.

will dawg

totally agree...I think best case scenario for him in the NBA is he ends up a stellar 6th man.

[arlubas]

Dude you deserve respect for this article even if one isn't a UNC fan. Haven't read it yet but I could see it was a great piece of work. Props, will comment on it fully when I have the time.