March Madness is here. Get ready for the upsets, the buzzer beaters, the heartbreaks, and the celebrations as 68 teams battle it out in the single elimination NCAA tournament. With the inconsistency of college basketball this year and a lack of a clear favorite, it could be anybody’s year. However, the North Carolina Tar Heels are a team many think have a good shot of making it to the Final Four and winning it all.
North Carolina got off to a rocky start to the regular season, dropping games to Northern Iowa and Texas. However, Marcus Paige was out injured these games, and fans knew that when he got back into the starting lineup, North Carolina would be a different team. The Maryland game was a perfect example of that. Maryland came into the Dean Dome ranked No. 2 in the country but could not hang on against the Tar Heels in Marcus Paige’s first game back. Not only did he have impressive individual stats, he lifted up the other players on the court with him. This looked like the team that could power through the rest of the season and make a deep run in the tournament.
Fast-forward to February, and the Tar Heels lost three in a five-game run, including a loss to Duke where they choked away a lead in the last couple of minutes. Marcus Paige was playing as a shell of his sophomore and junior self, and experts were criticizing the team’s the lack of toughness and fire to win.
Some of that skepticism went in the trash when they came out against Miami and almost won by 30 points, and then won the rematch versus Duke at Cameron Indoor.
While Marcus Paige has not had the senior season most were expecting, Brice Johnson has been the guy all season. He has dominated in the post, scoring when no one else could and grabbing rebounds on both sides of the glass. Joel Berry has stepped up this year and has been contributing the three pointers that Paige has not been able to. Justin Jackson has finally gotten his shot down, and while Theo Pinson does not score much, he has turned into an excellent passer.
While everyone around Paige has stepped up, March Madness is the biggest test of all. In order for North Carolina to make a deep run, Paige has to play better. They can win games without a big showing from him, but they cannot win it all unless he brings his leadership and playmaking ability to full force.
It's called March Madness for a reason. Enjoy the insanity.
