Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 10, 1990 TAG: 9003102289
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: bill brill
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
This is the same Smith, the North Carolina coach, who disapproves of newspapers publishing point spreads. However, everything about what happened Friday afternoon in the ACC Tournament was out of character, including the Tar Heels losing to Virginia.
UVa prevailed 92-85 in overtime. The Cavaliers certainly have no fear in the extra period. They have won eight straight, dating to an 84-82 double-overtime loss against these same Heels in the ACC semifinals in 1986-87, a game in which an official's call helped determine the outcome.
It almost happened again. Gerry Donaghy, already a target of Smith's wrath, called a charge against Bryant Stith with 34 seconds left in regulation and UVa ahead by two.
The play happened right in front of the approving Smith and, when Scott Williams made a tap-in with five seconds left, the game went to overtime.
What did UVa coach Terry Holland say to his troops? "The overtime is ours. The first 40 minutes is just for show," he told them.
He was right, too. Carolina led once, 85-84, its only advantage since early in the second half. But Oliver's jumper 39 seconds later regained the lead for the Cavs, who scored the game's final eight points.
When it ended, Holland headed for a television interview, looked at a sportswriter and said, "Whew."
Holland's gritty team, playing most of the way with nobody taller than 6 feet 6, had held off a Carolina squad that, Smith said, "played as well in the second half as we've played all year."
It was the second straight win for Holland against Smith, and they will not meet again unless it is in the Final Four. Holland will return to nearby Davidson College as the athletic director as soon as this season is over.
The way the Cavs played against Carolina was a reminder of their surprising advance to the final eight in the 1989 NCAA Tournament.
In the second half Friday, despite terrific shooting by the Tar Heels (16-of-24 at one point), UVa held strong until that questionable whistle and Williams' tip.
Against the taller Heels, Holland used a six-man rotation that included two football players and a 6-4 guy who can barely dunk (Anthony Oliver).
But if UVa was short on size, it wasn't small of heart.
There was Terry Kirby, the tailback, who blocked a King Rice layup after a turnover that would have cut the Cavaliers' lead to one point. Laughing, Holland said of Kirby, who made the turnover, "He knew he better block it."
Only a great athlete could have done that, and the 6-2 Kirby, his eyes zeroed in on his target, timed the play perfectly.
Inside, 6-6 Matt Blundin, the erstwhile quarterback, was doing what Smith admiringly called "all the little things."
Like shoving and pushing and rebounding, and, oh yes, making the two clinching free throws with 34 seconds left.
The Cavs don't look much like a basketball team, but they played like one that is headed to the NCAA Tournament again.
"The lineup we used, no player is within an inch as tall as I am," said Holland, who is 6-7. "While you like your team to look up to you, you don't mean that literally."
Holland had his team practice at Davidson - he does, after all, have some pull at his alma mater - instead of the traditional workout at the game site.
"We felt we needed a work day," he said after deciding to go back to the basics after the Cavs lost their final two regular-season games.
One of the obvious keys was the sensational shooting of Oliver, who missed just one of 11 attempts from the field. He had a chance to dunk on a breakaway, but barely scooped in a layup.
What pleased Holland was the way Oliver squared up and took his time, shooting mostly from 15-16 feet along the baseline.
"He didn't take the shot too quickly. We've really worked with him to get the ball to the rim. The players know how much I hate it when the shots come up short.
"Never up, never in," Holland said, using a phrase associated with a golfer's putt.
Holland doesn't play golf. Then, Dean Smith usually doesn't offer the odds, either.
by CNB