news-record.com

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina's basketball program, going back in time before our very eyes, began to inch forward again Saturday.

On the weekend of the 100-year celebration of the program, the Tar Heels found energy bouncing off the sagging rafters of its celebrated home and took down N.C. State 74-61. On a day when Dean Smith himself walked onto the floor of the arena named in his honor, North Carolina ended a four-game losing streak and, at least for a day, the talk of a looming disaster.

The long weekend began on Wednesday, when Duke came in and throttled the Heels on the night they retired the jersey of Tyler Hansbrough. After a Friday night reunion of former players, coaches and managers, Carolina took it out on State and relieved the pressure on its coach.

"It was a wonderful weekend," Roy Williams said. "I told the kids 'Let's do our part.' So I did feel like that. I didn't feel like it would be a great weekend if we didn't do our part."

The game could've been the breaking point of the season for Carolina. With historic losses mounting and the possibility of a losing season on the brink, the Heels were in a game they simply could not afford to lose. Against a backdrop of injuries and mounting doubt, Carolina found somebody it could beat.

Williams screamed from the sidelines all afternoon, running players in and out from a bench that included three big men in dress clothes and any number of players who'd yet to reach their potential this season. The year had taken its toll on Williams, who'd sat courtside the night before and wept as Smith was introduced on a night in which more than 250 former Tar Heels came to celebrate their past.

Smith shuffled into the arena Friday night before a thundering ovation and was surrounded by his former players. The touching scene was replayed Saturday afternoon, ending only when he shuffled back off the floor with the game being delayed.

The entire program seemed stuck in time this week, a week that came near the end of the long year that seemed so out of place. The previous five years were the most successful run in program history, with three Final Fours and two national titles in a time when the rest of the ACC hadn't even made a region final appearance. Carolina was a preseason favorite atop the conference standings and ranked fourth in the country before things began to go awry.

The weight of that on Williams has been palpable. He looked sunken at times, and he sagged slightly this week with the entire program in town for the reunion, the retiring of jerseys and the honoring of Smith. Then came the home loss to Duke.

"I don't think it made me coach any differently," he said. "But to make it the fantastic weekend we wanted, we had to play."

State needed to play, too, but it's apparent Sidney Lowe has his own problems. This loss won't go over well with the State faithful, though the Wolfpack coach got a vote of confidence from his athletics director this week. Williams got one from 250 players in town and more than 19,000 grumbling fans.

The empty seats Saturday sent a message of their own.

A week in which Carolina went back in time ended with a win over a rival. And for a day, that seemed good enough. The 14-11 Heels came in facing historic losing streaks, ominous records for futility that reminded fans of the 8-20 year and reminded older fans of distant dark years back before time here was kept by clockwork titles and transcendent players.

There aren't any of those here now. They retired the jerseys of Hansbrough along with Wayne Ellington and Ty Lawson this week. They invited players from basketball eras dating back more than 75 years. They opened it all with a loss to Duke and ended it with a win over State. All in all, it wasn't all that great, but it wasn't the disaster it could've been.

North Carolina defeated N.C. State on a good Saturday late in a bad season. After a long weekend that started on a Wednesday, the Heels shuffled out of the past and began to move forward again.

Contact Ed Hardin at 373-7069 or ed.hardin@news-record.com