A few days after the basketball season ended, the loss still hurts.
For players on the team, “hurts” could be both literal and figurative. Between the smacks that Brady Manek took to the face, the punch to the gut that Puff Johnson took that caused him to heave on the court, the newly-twisted ankle for Caleb Love, and the further twisting of the ankle for Armando Bacot, the Tar Heels gave a new meaning to the term “playing with pain.” They may not have earned the win, but the definitely earned college basketball’s respect.
The team is now home, though, and all of the confetti has fallen.