Jimmy V actually had the last TWO baskets in Carmichael Auditorium.
With Sunday’s home game against Wofford moved into refurbished Carmichael Arena, home of the undefeated women’s team of new coach Courtney Banghart, lots of nostalgia stories are showing up by those who actually saw games in the old Blue Heaven or certainly heard or read about them. First, let’s review why Wofford was moved from the Dean Dome.
The Tar Heels play at 6th-ranked Gonzaga Wednesday night, and Roy Williams wanted to leave early Monday and have extra time for the transcontinental trip to Spokane. Except UNC’s winter graduation is scheduled for the Smith Center Sunday afternoon. Not sure why they didn’t just move graduation to Carmichael, which could have accommodated it.
Anyway — Williams said “let’s play Wofford there,” since the old guard had clamored for a retro game over the last 30-plus years, the heck with how much money Carolina would lose in 12,000 fewer tickets sold. They obviously figured that out, perhaps with another loan from the Rams Club.
The last men’s regular-season game played there was on January 4, 1986, a ho-hum win for the No. 1 Tar Heels over unranked N.C. State. Construction delays caused the brand-new Student Activities Center to open in mid-January against Duke, after it had been renamed for UNC’s legendary coach the night before at a black-tie gala in the concourse and on the playing floor.
When the horn sounded, ending UNC’s true last game in Carmichael, State coach Jim Valvano ran out to grab the ball, dribbled down to the home end and sank a layup off the glass. “I wanted to make the last basket in Carmichael,” chortled the funny man who has become much bigger in death with the V Foundation for Cancer Research than he even was in life.
The fans and students were already on the floor celebrating the historic day, and Jimmy V was never one to miss a publicity stunt. He went into the nearby UNC locker room and dragged Dean Smith back onto the court so he could watch him make another Valvano-hyped last basket.
Smith liked the State coach, presumably because he was so entertaining. Smith often laughed that Valvano said his goal was to finish 8-6 in the old 14-game ACC regular season. “Does that mean you want your team to LOSE six conference games,” the Dean smirked, inserting the needle.
We sure miss them both for starkly different reasons.
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