In some ways, the four-team men’s basketball “jamboree” held at the Dean Smith Center on Sunday afternoon was like a friendly family reunion.

Hosted by UNC, the event was designed to raise money for the NC Disaster Relief Fund in wake of the damage done to the state by Hurricane Matthew in October of 2016.

Joining the Tar Heels at the Dean Dome were the teams from East Carolina, UNC-Wilmington and UNC-Greensboro–each of which have a head coach with strong ties to both Roy Williams and UNC.

Cam Johnson shoots against East Carolina during Sunday’s NC Disaster Relief Jamboree. (Todd Melet)

East Carolina head coach Jeff Lebo was a standout guard in Chapel Hill from 1985-89.  Wes Miller, who now leads UNC-Greensboro, played for Williams from 2004-07.  C.B. McGrath, in his first season as head coach at UNC-Wilmington, played for Williams at Kansas and then served as an assistant under him at UNC  each year since 2003.

The teams played a series of round-robin scrimmages lasting approximately 13 minutes apiece.

UNC and UNC-Wilmington each posted 2-1 records on the day, with the results not doing much in terms of projecting future success.

The Tar Heels lost their second scrimmage to UNC-Greensboro 32-24, as the Spartans hit seven three-pointers in the 13-minute game. Meanwhile, UNC gave significant playing time to a number of young players–including unheralded freshman forward Walker Miller, the brother of Wes Miller.

Prior to the loss, UNC held off East Carolina 21-20 behind five points apiece from graduate transfer Cam Johnson and freshman guard Andrew Platek.

Williams then defeated his former assistant, McGrath, when the Tar Heels ran off with a 38-22 victory over UNC-Wilmington–sinking five of six three-pointers in the process.

Roughly 4,000 fans turned out for the jamboree, including North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper.

Cooper, who previously said the damages from Hurricane Matthew totaled around $4.8 billion and included 100,000 homes damaged or destroyed, watched from behind the UNC bench next to former Tar Heel legend Phil Ford.

A final tally of funds raised won’t be available until later this week, according to UNC spokesman Steve Kirschner.

 

 

 

 

Cover photo via Todd Melet

Related Stories
‹
UNC to Host Four-School Men's Basketball Exhibition for Disaster Relief Fund
In an effort to raise money for the governor’s North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund, UNC announced Monday it will host a four-school men’s basketball exhibition at the Dean E. Smith Center on Sunday, Nov. 5. East Carolina, UNC-Greensboro and UNC-Wilmington will all make the trip to Chapel Hill for the event, which is scheduled to […]
Cincinnati Hires Wes Miller as New Head Men's Basketball Coach
After being passed over in favor of Hubert Davis for the men’s basketball head coaching job at UNC, former Tar Heel Wes Miller was hired Wednesday as the head coach at Cincinnati. The 38-year-old Miller was previously the head coach at UNC-Greensboro for the last 10 seasons–compiling a record of 185-135 while taking the Spartans […]
UNC-Wilmington to Open Basketball Practice in Chapel Hill This Week
In the wake of Hurricane Florence, which flooded a great deal of the North Carolina coast, the UNC-Wilmington men’s and women’s basketball teams announced Saturday that they will travel to Chapel Hill this week to begin practice for the upcoming season. The Seahawk men are in their second season under head coach C.B. McGrath, who […]
Former Tar Heel Jackie Manuel Joins C.B. McGrath's Staff at UNC-Wilmington
As former UNC assistant coach C.B. McGrath fills out his new staff at UNC-Wilmington, the Tar Heel connections continue to grow. On Friday it was announced Jackie Manuel–a captain on UNC’s 2005 national championship team–will head to Wilmington to serve as an assistant under McGrath. The 34-year-old held a similar position at Valparaiso last season, […]
UNC Assistant C.B. McGrath Likely to Become New Head Coach at UNC-Wilmington
A longtime assistant coach under Roy Williams–both at Kansas and UNC–C.B. McGrath is expected to leave his position on the Tar Heel bench in order to take the head coach job at UNC-Wilmington. The 41-year-old played guard for four years under Williams at Kansas, before spending another four years there as an assistant. He has been […]
UNC Gets Back On Winning Track With Dominant Display
The North Carolina men's basketball team used Kennedy Meeks' team-leading 18 points to down UNC-Greensboro Tuesday night inside the Greensboro Coliseum and improve to 7-3 on the season.
Tar Heels Look To Stop Spartans Tuesday Night
The No. 24 North Carolina men’s basketball team, 6-3 on the season, will look to recover from a difficult loss at top-ranked Kentucky with a comfortable victory at UNC-Greensboro Tuesday night at 7 p.m.
Hubert Davis Named to Coaching Staff for USA Basketball U19 Camp
UNC men’s basketball head coach Hubert Davis was named to the coaching staff for the 2025 USA Basketball Men’s U19 National Team training camp in Colorado next month. The camp will begin June 14 in preparation for the 2025 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Switzerland later in the summer. USA Basketball Men's U19 National […]
Chansky's Notebook: The Straw
UNC's Larry Miller was the dream All-American, a 6-foot-4 gunslinging southpaw who was handsome as a devil and a ferocious competitor.
UNC Men's Basketball Star Larry Miller, 2-Time ACC Player of the Year, Dies at 79
Larry Miller, who starred for the UNC men’s basketball team under head coach Dean Smith in the 1960s, died Sunday in Pennsylvania, the program announced Monday afternoon. Miller was 79. Rest in peace, Larry Miller. A Tar Heel forever 🩵 🔗: https://t.co/ngLUgPrBx6 pic.twitter.com/jCpzOFicOR — Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) May 12, 2025 Miller helped the Tar Heels […]
›