For UNC basketball, Saint Peter’s just ‘another team that’s in our way’ Tar Heels say

North Carolina understands the Cinderella story aspect of Saint Peter’s becoming the first No. 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history to advance to the Elite Eight.

UNC forward Armando Bacot fully expects fans of other teams to get behind the Peacocks. But he also said that just comes with the territory at Carolina.

“If I wasn’t playing, I’d probably be rooting for them to beat us too, just because everybody wants to see that Cinderella team make it this far,” Bacot said. “But being at UNC, I mean, you kind of used it, other than when we play Duke, everybody’s roots against so I mean, we’re used to it.”

One thing he said Carolina won’t do is look at the seeding as a way to measure the competition. Bacot said UNC coach Hubert Davis told the team on Selection Sunday that he never paid attention to seeding, and that anything can happen in the tournament.

The UNC (No. 8) and Saint Peter’s (No. 15) are the highest-seeded pair of teams to ever meet in the Elite Eight.

“They’re here for a reason, we don’t really pay attention to Cinderella or the seeding or whatever,” UNC guard Caleb Love said. “We’re going to treat them as such. They’re another team that’s in our way.”

How is Saint Peter’s doing this?

That the Peacocks have strutted past Kentucky and Purdue, teams that both have potential first round NBA prospects, wasn’t a matter of execution and Xs and Os, according to Saint Peter’s forward K.C. Ndefo.

“We wanted it, we want it more than guys and it shows on the court,” Ndefo said. “We’re doing whatever we have to do to get the win. We’re grinding it out, we’re a grinding team. We play defense, we love each other, and this is what it’s all about.”

SPU coach Shaheen Holloway said his team has used the NCAA Tournament as a proving ground.

“I’ve been saying it the whole tournament, these guys really play with their chip on their shoulder,” Holloway said. “And some of these guys that were sitting up here just now feel like they belong at schools like that. So this is their opportunity to kind of showcase their talent and show what they can do.”

Peacocks turning point

Saint Peter’s most recent loss came on Feb. 20, when Siena’s 84-70 win marked the Peacocks’ worst conference loss of the season. Holloway said the team got away from the things that made it successful, and even hinted that being nationally televised on ESPNU contributed to their lack of focus.

“After that game, we had a big meeting, after the game I had a big reality check myself,” Holloway said. “I decided I’m going to do things my way, and whatever happens, happens.”

Holloway made sure his players understood what their strengths were — he said he’s not the type of coach to define roles. And the players bought in to how they needed to play defensively.

The Peacocks haven’t lost a game since, and their 10 game winning streak is the longest in the nation.