Everything came together at the right time for North Carolina, which compensated for an uneven regular season with a run to the national championship game of the 2022 NCAA tournament.
That included a victory over Duke in the Final Four, sending Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski out with a loss to his biggest rival in his final game. The win over their rivals will likely make the Tar Heels' collapse in the second half of Monday's national title game against Kansas easier to accept for the team's fans.
The overall tournament outcome represents an encouraging foundation for Hubert Davis' tenure.