Dick Vitale comes to North Carolina basketball's defense amid Quad 1 debate
Today at 09:35 PM
After a 22-13 season, North Carolina basketball has surprisingly earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels went 1-12 against Quad One opponents, a fact many believed would lead to their exclusion from the tournament. Legendary commentator Dick Vitale came to North Carolina basketball’s defense and pointed out a program he believes was wronged.
“All we hear is talk about the importance of QUAD 1 wins – UNC in Quad 1 tough games was 1-12. Don't you have to win a couple. @UNC_Basketball passes my eye test but I don't want to hear the committee talk about how vital QUAD 1 wins are. Obviously not for all teams I feel @WVUhoops got a raw deal,” Vitale posted to X, formerly Twitter.
The Tar Heels 2024-25 campaign has not gone according to plan as they began the season highly ranked. Early losses did not do them any favors, however. They will be looking to make more March Madness history despite beginning from an unusual spot. Head coach Hubert Davis understands the importance of getting hot.
North Carolina basketball has to win one more game before getting to participate in the official tournament, however. The Tar Heels will take on San Diego State in the First Four on Tuesday night. The winner will be a No. 11 seed and take on No. 6 seed Ole Miss in Milwaukee on Friday.
How did North Carolina basketball make March Madness?
North Carolina basketball got the unexpected nod of a bid to the NCAA Tournament. NCAA Men's Basketball Vice Chair Keith Gill explained the reasoning for the Tar Heels’ inclusion on CBS.
“Saturday night we took our final vote and voted in four teams in the field on Saturday night,” Gill said via USA Today. “And we had a contingency vote on the last team in the field. It was based on Memphis-UAB. If Memphis won that game, then that was going to free up the spot and that team was going to be North Carolina.
“If UAB had won, then Memphis was going to be in the tournament, UAB would have been in the tournament and North Carolina would have been the first team out. That process played out today. Memphis won and that put North Carolina in the field.”
North Carolina athletics director Bubba Cunningham, who is the chair of the NCAA Tournament selection committee, recused himself from voting on the Tar Heels’ inclusion.
“As the vice chair, I managed all the conversations we had about North Carolina, and we had quite a few,” Gill said. “Our policies require the AD of any school to recuse themselves and leave the room for those discussions and do not allow them to participate in any vote as well. We followed those.”
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