University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols Upset By North Carolina, 74-69
March 25, 2000 | Men's Basketball
 Tennessee's Ron Slay shoots over North Carolina's Brendan Haywood (00) |
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Ed Cota spurred a late second-half comeback, then he and freshmen Joseph Forte and Julius Peppers hit six straight free throws in the final 34.9 seconds, giving the Tar Heels a 74-69 victory over Tennessee and another stunning upset.
Eighth-seeded North Carolina (21-13), fresh off beating the South's top seed Stanford, overcame a 51-42 deficit by holding the fourth-seeded Volunteers (26-7) without a field goal for nearly the last seven minutes.
The Tar Heels are headed to the regional final for the sixth time in 10 years. They'll play seventh-seeded Tulsa (32-4), which has never gotten this far. The contrast could be a factor as North Carolina has made the Final Four every time it has made the final eight since 1991, winning it all in '93.
The winning rally kicked into top gear when Forte drilled a 3-pointer and Jason Capel hit a layup to get North Carolina within 64-62. Cota made a running jumper in the lane, then hit another floater over Ron Slay to make it 66-64 with 2:00 left.
Forte, who scored 22 points and broke Sam Perkins' school record for points by a freshman, held the ball too long on North Carolina's next possession and forced up a jumper with the shot clock winding down. It was blocked, but went straight to Peppers, who appeared to have redirected it into the hoop before the buzzer. TV replays showed he got it off in time, but it was waved off.
Any controversy was avoided after Slay missed a wild layup and threw down Forte as they went for the rebound. North Carolina coach Bill Guthridge screamed for an intentional foul, but didn't get it. Forte hit both free throws with 34.9 left.
Peppers, who is missing spring football practice thanks to the Tar Heels' NCAA run, was fouled after rebounding a 3-point miss by Tony Harris and the 57-percent free throw shooter drilled both with 26.7 seconds to play to make it 70-64.
Tennessee's scoring drought, which left them without a field goal since 7:15, ended with 13.6 seconds left when Harris made his first basket of the night, a 3-pointer.
But Cota hit two free throws with 11.5 seconds left.
C.J. Black scored off a rebound for the Volunteers' final points, then the Tar Heels answered with a long inbounds pass to Max Owens that led to a two-handed dunk and a wild celebration by the Carolina fans in the Erwin Center.
