Off the cuff: The UNC basketball win against Valpo was a good experience for the Tar Heels. The early nine-point deficit was the largest of the year. In fact, the Heels had not trailed by more than five points all season. Carolina had to deal with a zone defense and some physical play. Eventually everything worked out fine and UNC gained important experience. Had the Heels played a better team, they may have been in trouble. Valpo plays seven freshmen. But now that UNC has had this experience, maybe it will pay off against a better team that employs the same tactics.

Being a native of Rocky Mount, you'd think I might want Phil Ford to remain the all-time scoring leader at UNC. After all, Ford was an icon and so respected at Rocky Mount Senior High. He was humble and respectful and a team player. I remember him strolling into my English class to speak to his former teacher, Ms. Murchisson, and to speak highly of her to us. He was a star player at Carolina then. He was articulate - a real yes sir, yes ma'am kind of guy. Now 30 years later, after seeing a different kind of player emerge in college basketball, another Phil Ford-type person breaks the all-time record. Good for you Tyler Hansbrough. You deserve it.

While Tyler and Ford are physically very different and played different positions, their relentless pursuit of the ball and their work ethic are certainly the same.

As most people know, Phil Ford is an alcoholic, something that hindered his chances of becoming a college head coach. There was once talk of him being the head coach of Carolina. I hope he gets a chance to coach one day.

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