UNC will play at Carmichael in Round 1 of the NIT

2010 NIT

As I turned on the television to see what would happen with North Carolina (16-16) this year as far as the post season was concerned in the back of my mind I had a feeling that maybe I would not hear their name in the National Invitational Tournament Show on ESPNU. But even more I thought that UNC would not get a chance to play in Carmichael Auditorium (no, I am not going to call it arena as I said on twitter) one more time. But both of those bad feelings were laid to rest as Carolina was named a #4 seed and will play versus William & Mary (22-10) on Tuesday night, tip off at 9:30 p.m. EST, with the game being televised on ESPN. So I get my wish of seeing another game in the old basketball venue, but this is definitely no walk in the park for the Heels, as its opponent is no slouch.

W&M beat both Maryland and Wake Forest this season, and while any other year that would not be much of a story, this year reading that should make you think very hard how this game could end up. Put into the mix that William & Mary is coached by a former Tar Heel, Tony Shaver, a walk on for Dean Smith in the 1970′s and this post season gets more and more interesting by the minute. And if North Carolina was to win this game, which is a definite possibility, what would be their next opponent? Most likely a Mississippi State squad who came within second of winning the SEC today, losing 75-74 to Kentucky in OT, and then were overlooked by the NCAA. Just par for the season where my favorite phrase is “it is what it is“!

Joining the Heels in the NIT are N.C. State (a sixth seed) and Virginia Tech (as a top seed). If North Carolina fans want a win in all of this think about this: out of all the sixteen first round games the only one going on ESPN is UNC/W&M. So, while analysts and fans might be down on this team, when it comes to the national scene Carolina will always be a draw!

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