# 1997–98 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

The 1997–98 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach was Bill Guthridge, who was in his first season as UNC's head men's basketball coach. The Tar Heels played their home games at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

## Schedule and results

This season was Guthridge's first year as head coach, after the unexpected retirement of Dean Smith two months before the start of the season.
Guthridge instituted a "six starters" system, whereby the team's top six players, Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Ed Cota, Shammond Williams, Ademola Okulaja and Makhtar N'Diaye rotated positions in the starting five.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 14, 1997* | No. 4 | Middle Tennessee | W 84–56 | 1–0 | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Nov 19, 1997* | No. 4 | at Richmond | W 84–65 | 2–0 | Robins Center Richmond, VA |
| Nov 22, 1997* | No. 4 | California | W 71–47 | 3–0 | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Nov 27, 1997* | No. 4 | vs. No. 7 UCLA Great Alaska Shootout | W 109–68 | 4-0 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, AK |
| Nov 28, 1997* | No. 4 | vs. Seton Hall Great Alaska Shootout | W 95–65 | 5-0 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, AK |
| Nov 29, 1997* | No. 4 | vs. No. 6 Purdue Great Alaska Shootout | W 73–69 | 6–0 | Sullivan Arena Anchorage, AK |
| Dec 3, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. Louisville | W 81–72 | 7–0 | United Center Chicago, IL |
| Dec 5, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. Chattanooga | W 68–38 | 8–0 | Bojangles Coliseum Charlotte, NC |
| Dec 6, 1997* | No. 3 | vs. Virginia Tech | W 78–57 | 9–0 | Bojangles Coliseum Charlotte, NC |
| Dec 13, 1997* | No. 2 | Princeton | W 50–42 | 10–0 | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Dec 16, 1997* | No. 1 | Hampton | W 92–69 | 11–0 | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Dec 20, 1997 | No. 1 | at No. 17 Florida State | W 81–73 | 12–0 (1–0) | Donald L. Tucker Civic Center Tallahassee, FL |
| Dec 27, 1997* | No. 1 | at Georgia | W 82–80 $^{OT}$ | 13–0 | Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA |
| Dec 29, 1997* | No. 1 | at Bethune–Cookman | W 97–46 | 14–0 | Moore Gymnasium Daytona Beach, FL |
| Jan 3, 1998 | No. 1 | at No. 21 Clemson | W 73–70 | 15–0 (2–0) | Littlejohn Coliseum Clemson, SC |
| Jan 8, 1998 | No. 1 | Georgia Tech | W 96–75 | 16–0 (3–0) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Jan 10, 1998 | No. 1 | Virginia | W 81–73 | 17–0 (4–0) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Jan 14, 1998 | No. 1 | at Maryland | L 83–89 $^{OT}$ | 17–1 (4–1) | Cole Field House College Park, MD |
| Jan 17, 1998* | No. 1 | Appalachian State | W 96–63 | 18–1 | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Jan 21, 1998 | No. 2 | at NC State Carolina–State Game | W 74–60 | 19–1 (5–1) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, NC |
| Jan 24, 1998 | No. 2 | No. 20 Florida State | W 103–55 | 20–1 (6–1) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Jan 28, 1998 | No. 2 | Clemson | W 88–79 | 21–1 (7–1) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Jan 31, 1998 | No. 2 | at Wake Forest | W 79–73 | 22–1 (8–1) | Lawrence Joel Coliseum Winston-Salem, NC |
| Feb 5, 1998 | No. 2 | No. 1 Duke Rivalry | W 97–73 | 23–1 (9–1) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Feb 8, 1998 | No. 2 | at Georgia Tech | W 107–100 $^{OT}$ | 24–1 (10–1) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum Atlanta, GA |
| Feb 11, 1998 | No. 1 | at Virginia | W 60–45 | 25–1 (11–1) | University Hall Charlottesville, VA |
| Feb 14, 1998 | No. 1 | No. 24 Maryland | W 85–67 | 26–1 (12–1) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Feb 21, 1998 | No. 1 | NC State Carolina–State Game | L 72–86 | 26–2 (12–2) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Feb 24, 1998 | No. 3 | Wake Forest | W 72–53 | 27–2 (13–2) | Dean Smith Center Chapel Hill, NC |
| Feb 28, 1998 | No. 3 | at No. 1 Duke Rivalry | L 75–77 | 27–3 (13–3) | Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, NC |
| ACC tournament ||||||
| Mar 6, 1998 | (2) No. 4 | vs. (7) NC State Quarterfinals | W 73–46 | 28–3 | Greensboro Coliseum Complex Greensboro, NC |
| Mar 7, 1998 | (2) No. 4 | vs. (3) No. 21 Maryland Semifinals | W 83–73 $^{OT}$ | 29–3 | Greensboro Coliseum Complex Greensboro, NC |
| Mar 8, 1998 | (2) No. 4 | vs. (1) No. 1 Duke Championship Game | W 83–68 | 30–3 | Greensboro Coliseum Complex Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 12, 1998* | (1 E) No. 1 | vs. (16 E) Navy First Round | W 88–52 | 31–3 | Hartford Civic Center Hartford, CT |
| Mar 14, 1998* | (1 E) No. 1 | vs. (8 E) Charlotte Second Round | W 93–83 $^{OT}$ | 32–3 | Hartford Civic Center Hartford, CT |
| Mar 19, 1998* | (1 E) No. 1 | vs. (4 E) No. 16 Michigan State Sweet Sixteen | W 73–58 | 33–3 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| Mar 21, 1998* | (1 E) No. 1 | vs. (2 E) No. 6 Connecticut Elite Eight | W 75–64 | 34–3 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| Mar 28, 1998* | (1 E) No. 1 | vs. (3 W) No. 7 Utah Final Four | L 59–65 | 34–4 | Alamodome San Antonio, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East region. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||

## Team players drafted into the NBA

| Year | Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1998 | 1 | 4 | Antawn Jamison | Toronto Raptors |
| 1998 | 1 | 5 | Vince Carter | Golden State Warriors |
| 1998 | 2 | 34 | Shammond Williams | Chicago Bulls |
| 2001 | 1 | 20 | Brendan Haywood | Cleveland Cavaliers |