How far did UNC make it in March Madness 2023: Revisiting Tar Heels' NCAA tournament run
The North Carolina Tar Heels (UNC) are one of the most prestigious basketball programs in the United States. Their most famous alumnus, Michael Jordan, also donned the UNC blue jersey for three years before making it to the NBA.
The team from Chapel Hill has made the NCAA tournament 52 times, making 21 trips to the Final Four, and winning six national championships. Despite the Tar Heel's rich history and success, there are a few frustrating seasons in their 114 years of existence, one of them being the 2022-2033 college basketball season.
What happened to UNC in the 2022-2023 NCAA season?
North Carolina was ranked No. 1 in the preseason, and they were the first first-seeded team in the off-season since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams to miss March Madness.
It was a year after the Tar Heels went all the way to the National Championship game losing to Kansas, 72-69, at the 73,432 seater Louisiana Superdome. They couldn't replicate the same success the next season. The team just wasn't good enough. So what went wrong with North Carolina?
A lot of fans placed their wages for the team to make it back-to-back in the National Championship, but the team suffered four-straight losses in the early part of the 2023 season that pushed them out of contention. The Tar Heels were able to come back in December in the AP Top 25, but their poor standing in conference play eventually led them to be kicked out of the national rankings.
They had one more chance to make the Big Dance in the ACC tournament, but they got bounced by Virginia in the quarter-finals. North Carolina was in the tournament bubble after a 20-13 win-loss season, this time luck wasn't on their side. After missing the NCAA tournament, they declined to even play in the NIT.
6'11" big man, Armando Bacot had some words after being eliminated 68-59 by Virginia in their conference tournament.
“The story of this year, was talking about last year.”
To end his fourth season in Chapel Hill, Bacot described the end to their season.
“It’s unfortunate, but it’s something I have to live with.”, said Armando Bacot
UNC Head Coach, Hubert Davis pointed out their team's outside shooting inconsistencies.
“It’s always one of the things that has gone back to us,” Davis said. “Our inconsistencies and our inability to shoot the ball from the outside.”
They are expected to make the NCAA tournament this season and are currently sitting at No. 9 in the AP Top 25.