Tag: marcus paige

Marcus Paige earns promotion with UNC basketball program

Marcus Paige has earned a promotion with the UNC basketball program.

Former North Carolina Tar Heels’ guard Marcus Paige joined Hubert Davis’ staff last season, working as director of team and player development. He did that after spending four seasons as a player and having a career overseas.

Now, Paige is earning a promotion.

With North Carolina releasing their official roster for the 2024-25 season, they also announced a promotion. Paige has moved from director of team and player development to assistant coach.

With Davis’ staff expanding due to the promotion, all of the assistants are now former UNC players with Brad Frederick, Jeff Lebo, Sean May, and Pat Sullivan.

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Paige spent four seasons at North Carolina, putting together an impressive career. He helped lead the Tar Heels to a spot in the national championship game, tying it up against Villanova in the final seconds.

With Paige on staff, it helps the players relate to being a member of this program as he, along with others have gone through it. It also helps him improve his coaching career, taking steps forward.

We can certainly see Paige getting a head coaching job down the line, working his way up the ladder in this game.

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UNC men’s basketball coaching staff the only Power 5 program to hold which honor?

Hubert Davis is only one of a few former UNC men’s basketball players currently on the coaching staff.

In today’s college basketball world, headlined by transfers and coaching changes, it’s rare to see either stay at a program for several years.

Top transfers are choosing NIL money over a guaranteed starting spot, plus struggling Power 5 programs are hiring successful head coaches at lower levels. These both lead many fans to question loyalty in college hoops, with some even saying it’s turning into a professional sport.

The North Carolina Tar Heels, though, are a rare outlier in this instance. Players might transfer out of Chapel Hill, but simply because they want more playing time elsewhere – not primarily for NIL money. Hubert Davis is only UNC’s fifth coach since 1961, when Dean Smith took over the men’s basketball program.

While Hubert’s loyalty is a highlight at North Carolina, his current coaching staff is also quite the loyal bunch, too.

Marcus Paige, Sean May, Jeff Lebo, Brad Frederick and Pat Sullivan join Hubert on the ONLY Power 5 coaching staff with all former players.

Paige, who most recently played with the Tar Heels (2012-2016), was on the ACC All-Freshman Team in 2013 and First-Team All-ACC in 2014. You might best remember his game-tying shot in the 2016 National Championship Game against Villanova, only for that to be undone by Kris Jenkins’ buzzer-beater.

Sean May was one of the most productive big men in 21st century UNC history, averaging a double-double (17.5 points, 10.7 rebounds per game) during the 2005 National Championship-winning season, in which May earned Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors.

Hubert, who played at North Carolina from 1988-1992, earned Second Team All-ACC Honors in 1992. He averaged a scorching 21.4 points per game during that season, led UNC to the Final Four in 1991, then ended his NBA career second all-time in 3-point percentage (.441).

Lebo played under legendary Tar Heel coach Dean Smith from 1985-1989. Lebo was also teammates with Hubert during the 1988-1989 campaign – years later, they’re coaching together.

Sullivan, now North Carolina’s Director of Recruiting, was part of the 1993 UNC Natty-winning squad. Entering the 2023 season, Sullivan played in and won more NCAA Tournament games than any other Tar Heel.

Frederick, primarily a bench player in Chapel Hill from 1996-1999, played with future NBA stars Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison.

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Sharpshooting RJ Davis one of three Tar Heels to achieve this feat

Current UNC guard RJ Davis is right up there with UNC basketball legends Marcus Paige and Joel Berry in the scoring department.

If RJ Davis decided to leave the UNC men’s basketball program after last year, there’s no doubt North Carolina wouldn’t be nearly as talented this season.

Davis has blossomed from the Tar Heels’ leading scorer into one of the country’s top guards. He anchors the ACC and sits 11th in the nation at 21.4 points per game, while his scorching, 90.8 percent mark from the free throw line also puts him 11th overall.

Every game but one has seen Davis score in double-digits, with the lone exception North Carolina’s 77-52 win over UC-Riverside back in November. Davis has taken his scoring prowess a step further, reaching 20 points in 16 of the Tar Heels’ 25 games, with a pair of 30-point outings.

Davis also joins elite company, as he’s one of three Tar Heels to score 1,800 points, dish out 300 assists and drain 200 3-pointers in his career.

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Marcus Paige and Joel Berry are two of UNC’s all-time great guards, with both nearly winning an NCAA Title.

Paige averaged 14.7 points across three years, but he was largely the only Tar Heel who could consistently shoot the 3-pointer. His most memorable shot was the final one of his collegiate career, tying the 2016 Title Game against Villanova, only for Kris Jenkins to play villian.

Joel Berry was the next great Tar Heel guard, helping lead North Carolina to the 2017 NCAA Title and capturing tournament MVP honors. Berry played professionally for three seasons, but turned to become an ACC Network analyst in October 2021.

Being up there in company with two UNC legends is pretty sweet, right? Maybe Davis will find his jersey in the rafters someday.

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Elliot Cadeau accomplishes feat in win over Tennessee

UNC basketball freshman Elliot Cadeau accomplished a feat during Wednesday’s win over Tennessee.

Freshman point guard Elliot Cadeau has been the hot topic around the UNC basketball program in their win over Tennessee on Wednesday night.

The Tar Heels jumped all over the Volunteers in the Dean Dome, jumping out to a 61-39 lead at halftime. They did have to hold off a late comeback from Tennessee before eventually putting it away. With the win, they move to 6-1 on the year and the vibes are high going into the game against Florida State.

For Cadeau, while he only scored five points he did impact the game in a big way with 10 assists and 0 turnovers. It was a throwback performance for the point guard and in the process, he accomplished something that hasn’t been done since one of his coaches did it.

Per the Tar Heels’ X account, Caduea became the first Tar Heel to have 10 assists and 0 turnovers since Marcus Paige did it:

Paige was a fantastic four-year player at North Carolina, helping get the Tar Heels to the Final Four in his senior season. He’s now an assistant coach at UNC and is helping Cadeau along the way.

That should mean good things for the freshman’s season ahead.

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Armando Bacot surpasses Marcus Paige on UNC all-time scoring list

Armando Bacot continues to climb the UNC men’s basketball all-time scoring list, jumping Marcus Paige on Sunday afternoon against Lehigh.

While the UNC men’s basketball team is looking to start 2-0 in its 2023-2024 campaign, star center Armando Bacot added another significant milestone to his list on Sunday afternoon.

In the Heels’ home non-conference game against Lehigh on Sunday, Nov, 12, Bacot passed fan favorite Marcus Paige for 11th on the Tar Heels’ all-time scoring list.

Bacot accomplished the feat and, subsequently, recorded his 70th career double-double. He’s been bullying Lehigh all day, despite the Mountain Hawks having a 6’9″ center of their own in Dominic Parolin.

In his last year as a Tar Heel, just how far will Bacot climb the all-time scoring list? He’s probably not going to pass all-time leader Tyler Hansbrough (2,872 points), but could very well pass Phil Ford for second (2,290).

Bacot will likely move into the Top 10 on Friday, Nov. 17, when UNC hosts Cal-Riverside at 8 p.m. ET.

Hubert Davis’ uncle, Walter Davis, currently sits 10th at 1,863 points. Bacot ended the Lehigh victory with 22 points, which gives him 1,856 for his career.

Just how much will Bacot score on Friday night? Stay tuned to the ACC Network for the live game, plus Tar Heels Wire for story updates.

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Armando Bacot passes Joel Berry on all-time UNC scoring list

Armando Bacot recorded his 69th career double-double on Monday night against Radford. He climbed the UNC all-time scoring list in the game.

Does anyone remember former UNC point guard Joel Berry?

He was one of the rare players to make consecutive championship appearances for the Tar Heels – losing in the 2016 finals to Villanova, but rebounding to take down Gonzaga in the 2017 National Championship.

Berry rose to prominence during that first of two title seasons, when UNC decided to shift Marcus Paige over to shooting guard. He increased his scoring output in each season, averaging 17.1 points per game in Senior year, ending up 13th on Carolina’s all-time scoring list.

On Monday, Nov. 6 in the Heels’ season-opener against Radford, a current Tar Heel and all-time great passed Berry for 13th in career UNC points.

That young man is none other than center Armando Bacot, the fifth-year Tar Heel who led all scorers with 25 points in the 86-70, UNC victory.

Bacot now has 1,834 career points at UNC. He only needs three more points to pass Bobby Lewis (1964-1967) and 11 more to pass Paige.

If Bacot plays like he did Monday night, there’s a good chance he’ll pass Paige on Sunday, Nov. 12, when Carolina hosts Lehigh at 2 p.m. ET. The Mountain Hawks are no slouch, though – just see their upset over Duke in the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

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Marcus Paige officially joins UNC basketball staff

Former UNC basketball guard Marcus Paige has joined the staff under Hubert Davis.

Former North Carolina star Marcus Paige is officially back in Chapel Hill as a member of the Tar Heels’ coaching staff. After a report surfaced that Paige would be hired onto the staff under Hubert Davis, the program made it official on Friday.

Paige has been hired as Director of Team and Player Development beginning this season. He makes his return to the program after playing professional basketball for the past seven seasons.

The former guard released a statement via GoHeels.com about being added to Davis’s staff:

“I am thankful and honored to be a part of UNC Basketball with Coach Davis and his staff,” says Paige. “I’ve always wanted the opportunity to make the same positive impact on players that my former coaches, including Coach Williams and Coach Davis, made on me. Basketball has taken me around the world, and Taylor and I couldn’t be happier than to take this next step here with my Carolina family.”

A five-star guard out of Iowa, Paige committed to North Carolina and played four seasons there from 2012-2016. He helped lead the Tar Heels to the title game in 2016 and hit one of the more iconic shots to tie the game late against Villanova.

He left the program with 1,844 points which is 11th all-time and 299 made three-pointers, the most in program history.

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Marcus Paige finds new home overseas

Former UNC Basketball Guard Marcus Paige has signed on to play professional basketball in Spain.

Former UNC basketball guard [autotag]Marcus Paige[/autotag] has signed the dotted line to play professionally in Spain.

Paige, a UNC fan-favorite, played for the Heels from 2012-2016, with his performance in the 2016 National Championship game being his most memorable. Fans will never forget his attempted three in the last seconds of the game.

After those four years at UNC,  Paige cemented his Tar Heel legacy and went on to play in five games for the Charlotte Hornets and spent two seasons in the NBA G-League before heading overseas.

The 28-year-old has bounced around the oversea market playing most recently for the Orléans Loiret basketball club in France. Paige appeared in 27 games for the club averaging 9.9 points, 3.4 assists, and 1.1 steals on the season.

Paige will be joining the Monbus Obradorio of the Liga Endesa league, finding a place in the second biggest basketball league in the world. Obradorio finished with an 12-22 record last season.

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Caleb Love’s Final Four shot vs Duke earns place in UNC museum

UNC guard Caleb Love will have his dagger-three against Duke in the Final Four added to the UNC Basketball museum.

The UNC basketball Final Four run was a memorable one but there is one moment that will never be forgotten for every North Carolina fan, or college basketball fan.

That moment comes when the Tar Heels knocked off Duke in the Final Four, in Mike Krzyzewski’s final game as the head coach of the Blue Devils.

Now, UNC fans can relive that moment at the UNC Basketball museum in Chapel Hill as the footsteps and details of [autotag]Caleb Love[/autotag]’s three over Mark Williams with 28 seconds left will be added to the floor.

The made three extended UNC’s lead to 78-74 and eventually gave the Tar Heels the win.

Love finished with 28 points in that game, including 22 points in the second half.

Despite falling in the National Championship game to Kansas, the magnitude of Love’s shot will go down as one of the biggest in North Carolina tournament history and even all of college basketball tournament history.

It will now be remembered with the likes of Michael Jordan’s game-winner in the 1982 National Championship game and the Marcus Paige double-clutch shot from nearly half court to tie the game in the 2016 National Championship game.

Love announced earlier this offseason that he would be returning for his junior season at UNC. He averaged 15.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game this past year and was part of the NCAA All-Tournament team.

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UNC Basketball’s NCAA Tournament history as a No. 8 seed

We take a look at the UNC basketball program’s history as a number eight seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The UNC basketball program sat on the bubble as early as three weeks ago with their NCAA Tournament hopes potentially fading. But a string of wins and an upset over Duke helped propel the Tar Heels into the field where they earned a No. 8 seed in the East Region.

UNC matches up against No. 9 Marquette on Thursday with the winner likely getting No. 1 Baylor in the round of 32. For the Tar Heels, they have a history with the No. 8 seed, including some big ups and some downs in the tournament.

This will be the fifth time North Carolina will be a No. 8 seed going back to 1990, 2000, 2013, 2021, and now 2022. They are 7-4 overall as a No. 8 seed and have reached the Final Four once, the Elite 8 once, and the Sweet 16 twice.

Let’s take a look UNC’s history as a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament as they get set to take on the Golden Eagles.