Here’s an interesting history note. The holes will be blaming the whole mess on State if we let them.
in 1952, mcguire left st. john’s to become basketball coach at the university of north carolina. on paper, this was a significant step down from st. john’s, as unc was not reckoned as a national power at the time. however, school officials wanted a big-name coach to counter the rise of rival north carolina state under everett case.
with a roster largely made of players from in and around new york city, mcguire guided north carolina to an undefeated 32-0 season in 1956-57, capped off by winning the ncaa championship game 54-53 in triple overtime against the wilt chamberlain-led kansas jayhawks.
In 1961, UNC was found guilty of major NCAA violations. Combined with rumors of point shaving by some UNC players, this led Chancellor William Aycock to force McGuire’s resignation after the season. The man who replaced him was Dean Smith, his assistant coach whom he recommended for the job.
