GAME NOTES: Gardner-Webb Men's Basketball To Face No. 2 Tar Heels On Sunday
November 17, 2006 | Men's Basketball
BOILING SPRINGS - Gardner-Webb will face No. 2 North Carolina on
Sunday in a game set for live television on FSN South (Fox) at 1 pm
ET at the Dean E. Smith Center.
The Tar Heels (2-0) are the highest-ranked team - and only the
second ranked team - that Gardner-Webb has played at the Division I
level. GWU fell at No. 21 Ohio State last December.
GWU (0-2) is coming off a long road trip to Lubbock, Texas, for the
2006 CBE Classic - losing a hard-fought game in the opener to host
Texas Tech (86-74) and falling to preseason MAC favorite Akron -
the 8th-ranked team in the mid-major ranks - 89-61.
North Carolina topped Sacred Heart and Winthrop in the East
Regional of the Preseason NIT, and will host Gardner-Webb for the
second year in a row. Last November 19, GWU stayed close with the
defending national champions for 40 minutes, before a David Noel
three with less than three seconds left lifted the Tar Heels to an
83-80 win.
For Gardner-Webb this season, sophomore Ricky McPhee (Lilburn, Ga.)
is averaging 15.0 ppg through two starts, including a career-high
22 in the opener at Texas Tech. That topped McPhee's previous
career scoring high, which was 21 points in last year's game at
North Carolina.
In addition to McPhee, GWU is getting double figures scoring this
season from Thomas Sanders (11.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg), Jake Sims (11.5
ppg) and Takayo Siddle (10.0 ppg). Senior Chris Gash, the team's
lone returning starter, is averaging 9.0 ppg and had 12 in the loss
to Akron.
North Carolina has been led by preseason National Player of the
Year Tyler Hansbrough, who is shooting nearly 75 percent from the
floor and averaging 24.5 ppg. Hansbrough had 20 points and 10
rebounds in the win over Winthrop Wednesday night - and had 21
points against Gardner-Webb in last year's meeting.
| GAME NOTES: Gardner-Webb (0-2) at #2 North Carolina (2-0) |
