Men's Basketball Takes On Sixth-Ranked North Carolina

Dec. 3, 2000

Chapel Hill, NC – The University of Miami men’s basketball team (3-1) will face sixth-ranked North Carolina (3-2) on Monday, December 4 beginning at 7 p.m. at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN2.

Both North Carolina and Miami enter the game looking to regroup after suffering recent losses. The Hurricanes look to get back on the winning track after suffering its first loss of the season, a 95-63 defeat at North Carolina Charlotte, on November 28. The Tar Heels have lost two straight games including a 93-76 loss to Kentucky at the Dean Smith Center on Saturday.

Miami has been led this season by freshman forward Darius Rice and junior guard John Salmons. Rice leads the team in both scoring (13.5) and rebounding (6.5) while Salmons ranks second in scoring (13.3) and rebounding (5.8), and leads the Hurricanes in assists (3.5).

All-America candidate Joseph Forte has led North Carolina, the second winningest college basketball program in NCAA history with 1,758 wins, this season. Forte is averaging a team best 19.6 points per game while pulling down 5.6 rebounds.

Forte along with center Brendan Haywood and forward Jason Capel are all preseason candidates for the Wooden Award given annually to college basketball’s best player.