1983–84 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

American college basketball season

1983–84 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball

ACC regular season champions
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 1
AP	No. 1
Record	28–3 (14–0 ACC)
Head coach	Dean Smith (23rd season)
Assistant coaches	Bill Guthridge (17th season) Eddie Fogler (13th season) Roy Williams (6th season)
Home arena	Carmichael Auditorium
Seasons← 1982–83 1984–85 →

1983–84 ACC men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 1 North Carolina	14	–	0	1.000	28	–	3	.903
No. 11 Maryland †	9	–	5	.643	24	–	8	.750
No. 19 Wake Forest	7	–	7	.500	23	–	9	.719
No. 14 Duke	7	–	7	.500	24	–	10	.706
Georgia Tech	6	–	8	.429	18	–	11	.621
Virginia	6	–	8	.429	21	–	12	.636
NC State	4	–	10	.286	19	–	14	.576
Clemson	3	–	11	.214	14	–	14	.500

† 1984 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The 1983–84 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented University of North Carolina in the 1983–84 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 28–3 overall, won the ACC regular season title with a 14–0 record and made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the 1984 NCAA tournament. They were coached by Dean Smith in his twenty-third season as head coach of the Tar Heels. They played their home games at the Carmichael Auditorium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Season Summary

Returning seniors Sam Perkins and Matt Doherty, junior Michael Jordan, and sophomore Brad Daugherty, the Tar Heels were ranked #1 in the AP poll and #2 in the Coaches' Poll to start the season.

On Saturday, November 3 coach Dean Smith recorded his 500th career victory with an 88–75 win at Stanford. On Wednesday, January 25 UNC recorded its largest margin of victory in the history of its rivalry with Wake Forest, trouncing Wake Forest 100–63. Except for the second week of the season, North Carolina was ranked #1 in the AP Poll for the entire season. The Tar Heels were 16–0 and dominating other teams, when their point guard, freshman Kenny Smith, was injured. He broke his wrist after being taken down on a break-away against #10 LSU on January 29, 1984. Although North Carolina won the game 90–79, the team's chemistry was disrupted. The Tar Heels won their next four games to reach 21–0 but lost on February 12, 1984, at 19th ranked (UPI) Arkansas 65–64. They won their last five games, including a memorable season-ending game over Duke (see below), to finish the regular season 26–1 and 14–0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Although Kenny Smith returned with a cast on his arm against Duke, the Tar Heels' season ended on a flat note. After beating Clemson in the opening round of the ACC Tournament, North Carolina lost to Duke 77–75 (see below) in the semi-finals of the tournament. Despite the loss, the Tar Heels retained their #1 ranking and received a #1 seed in the East Regional of the NCAA tournament. They received a first-round bye and defeated #8-seed Temple 77–66 in the second round. However, their season ended in disappointment in the East Regional semi-finals with a 72–68 loss to #4-seed Indiana.

Dean Smith often said that the 1983–84 Tar Heels' team was one of the few teams he coached that he felt was the best team in the country. Although freshman Kenny Smith was overshadowed by other teammates on this team, his mid-season injury may have prevented the Tar Heels, and stars Michael Jordan and Sam Perkins, from winning their second national championship in three years.

North Carolina played two notable games against Duke in 1984:

March 3, 1984: #1 North Carolina 96, Duke 83 (2OT)

The final home game for Matt Doherty, Michael Jordan, and Sam Perkins, was a memorable one for Tar Heels fans. North Carolina looked to be finished when Duke's Mark Alarie converted a three-point play with 20 second to go in regulation and the Tar Heels missed a jumper that would have tied the game. However, after the Blue Devils missed the front end of a one-and-one, Matt Doherty took the inbounds pass the length of the court and hit a 15-footer with one second remaining to force overtime. The teams traded baskets during the first overtime and headed for the second extra session tied at 79. Michael Jordan opened the second overtime with an ally oop and a free throw, but Johnny Dawkins cut the North Carolina lead to 82–81 with a short jumper. Duke would get only one more basket as Jordan and Sam Perkins carried the Tar Heels to the 96–83 final, and North Carolina became the first ACC team in 10 years to go undefeated in conference play (14–0). Alarie led all scorers with 28 points, while Jordan topped Carolina with 25.

March 10, 1984: #16 Duke 77, #1 North Carolina 75

After losing two close games to North Carolina in the regular season, Duke finally upset the Tar Heels in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament. Johnny Dawkins and Tommy Amaker led the Blue Devils to a 40–32 halftime advantage. Nevertheless, North Carolina went on a 12–2 run to open the second half, tying the score at 44–44 in a game that was close the rest of the way. David Henderson hit four late free throws to keep Duke in the lead, but Michael Jordan closed the gap to 77–75. North Carolina regained possession with three seconds left in the game, but the Tar Heels comeback bid ended with Matt Doherty's errant inbounds pass. Jordan led all scorers with 22 points, while Doherty scored 20 and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Roster

1983–84 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
PG	20	Cliff Morris	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	—	Jr		Durham, NC
PG	22	Buzz Peterson	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	—	Jr	Asheville	Asheville, NC
G/F	23	Michael Jordan	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Jr	Emsley A. Laney	Wilmington, NC
PF	24	Joe Wolf	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Fr	Kohler	Kohler, WI
SG	25	Steve Hale	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	—	So		Jenks, OK
PG	30	Kenny Smith	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Fr	Archbishop Molloy	Queens, NY
PF	35	Dave Popson	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Fr	Bishop O'Reilly	Ashley, PA
F/C	41	Sam Perkins	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Sr	Shaker (Latham NY	Brooklyn, NY
C	42	Brad Daugherty	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	—	So	Owen	Black Mountain, NC
SG	43	Curtis Hunter	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	—	Fr	Southern	Durham, NC
SF	44	Matt Doherty	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	—	Sr	Holy Trinity	East Meadow, NY
SF	50	Cecil Exum	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	—	Sr		Dudley, NC
C	51	Timo Makkonen	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	—	Sr		Lahti, Finland

Head coach

Dean Smith (Kansas)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Source: Tar Heel Times

Player stats

Player	Games	Minutes	Field Goals	Three Pointers	Free Throws	Rebounds	Blocks	Steals	Points
Michael Jordan	31	915	247	N/A	113	163	35	50	607
Sam Perkins	31	1029	195	N/A	155	298	60	28	545

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank	Opponent	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
Nov 26, 1983*	No. 1	Missouri	W 64–57	1–0	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
Nov 28, 1983*	No. 1	Tennessee-Chattanooga	W 85–63	2–0	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 2, 1983*	No. 2	vs. Fordham Stanford Invitational	W 73–56	3–0	Maples Pavilion Stanford, CA
Dec 3, 1983*	No. 2	at Stanford Stanford Invitational	W 88–75	4–0	Maples Pavilion Stanford, CA
Dec 10, 1983*	No. 1	at Syracuse	W 87–64	5–0	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY
Dec 21, 1983*	No. 1	Dartmouth	W 103–58	6–0	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Dec 27, 1983*	No. 1	vs. Iona ECAC Holiday Festival	W 74–61	7–0	Madison Square Garden New York, NY
Dec 28, 1983*	No. 1	at No. 8 St. John's ECAC Holiday Festival	W 64–51	8–0	Madison Square Garden New York, NY
Jan 5, 1984*	No. 1	vs. Boston University	W 87–54	9–0	Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC
Jan 7, 1984	No. 1	at No. 12 NC State Carolina–State Game	W 81–60	10–0 (1–0)	Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, NC
Jan 12, 1984	No. 1	at No. 5 Maryland	W 74–62	11–0 (2–0)	Cole Field House College Park, MD
Jan 14, 1984	No. 1	at No. 12 Wake Forest	W 70–62	12–0 (3–0)	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
Jan 18, 1984	No. 1	Virginia	W 69–66	13–0 (4–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 21, 1984	No. 1	at Duke Rivalry	W 78–73	14–0 (5–0)	Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, NC
Jan 25, 1984	No. 1	No. 17 Wake Forest	W 100–63	15–0 (6–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 28, 1984	No. 1	Georgia Tech	W 73–61	16–0 (7–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Jan 29, 1984*	No. 1	LSU	W 90–79	17–0	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 1, 1984	No. 1	Clemson	W 97–75	18–0 (8–0)	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
Feb 3, 1984*	No. 1	vs. Furman North-South Doubleheaders	W 83–48	19–0	Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC
Feb 4, 1984*	No. 1	vs. Citadel North-South Doubleheaders	W 76–60	20–0	Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC
Feb 9, 1984	No. 1	at Virginia	W 85–72	21–0 (9–0)	University Hall Charlottesville, VA
Feb 12, 1984* NBC	No. 1	vs. Arkansas	L 64–65	21–1	Pine Bluff Convention Center (7,529) Pine Bluff, AR
Feb 18, 1984	No. 1	NC State Carolina–State Game	W 95–71	22–1 (10–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 19, 1984	No. 1	Maryland	W 78–63	23–1 (11–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 26, 1984	No. 1	at Clemson	W 82–71	24–1 (12–0)	Littlejohn Coliseum Clemson, SC
Feb 29, 1984	No. 1	at Georgia Tech	W 69–56	25–1 (13–0)	Omni Coliseum Atlanta, GA
Mar 3, 1984 Raycom/JPT	No. 1	No. 15 Duke Rivalry	W 96–83	26–1 (14–0)	Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, NC
ACC Tournament
Mar 9, 1984 12:00 p.m., Raycom/JPT	(1) No. 1	vs. (8) Clemson Quarterfinal	W 78–66	27–1	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
Mar 10, 1984 Raycom/JPT	(1) No. 1	vs. (4) No. 16 Duke Semifinal / Rivalry	L 68–72	27–2	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC
NCAA Tournament
Mar 17, 1984*	(1 E) No. 1	vs. (8 E) No. 20 Temple Second Round	W 77–66	28–2	Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte, NC
Mar 22, 1984*	(1 E) No. 1	vs. (4 E) Indiana Sweet Sixteen	L 68–72	28–3	Omni Coliseum Atlanta, GA
*Non-conference game. Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East Region. All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

Main article: 1983–84 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final
AP	1	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Coaches	Not released		2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

Awards and honors

Michael Jordan, ACC Player of the Year
Michael Jordan, Adolph Rupp Trophy
Michael Jordan, Naismith College Player of the Year
Michael Jordan, USBWA College Player of the Year
Michael Jordan, John R. Wooden Award

Team players drafted into the NBA

Year	Round	Pick	Player	NBA Club
1984	1	3	Michael Jordan	Chicago Bulls
1984	1	4	Sam Perkins	Dallas Mavericks
1984	6	118	Matt Doherty	Cleveland Cavaliers
1984	9	194	Cecil Exum	Denver Nuggets
1985	7	147	Buzz Peterson	Cleveland Cavaliers
1986	1	1	Brad Daugherty	Cleveland Cavaliers
1986	4	81	Steve Hale	New Jersey Nets
1987	1	6	Kenny Smith	Sacramento Kings
1987	1	13	Joe Wolf	Los Angeles Clippers
1987	4	88	Dave Popson	Detroit Pistons

References

"Wolfpack win streak ends at 15". USA Today. December 5, 1983.
Moore, David Leon (January 26, 1984). "North Carolina confuses, routs Wake 100-63". USA Today.
^ "May's Injury Joins Long List For Carolina Hoops, Jan. 29, 2003". TarHeelBlue.com. Archived from the original on April 14, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2011.
"1983-1984 UNC Basketball Roster". Tar Heel Times. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
"Michael Jordan Past Stats, Playoff Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards". Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
"Sam Perkins Past Stats, Playoff Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards". Archived from the original on October 25, 2007. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
*ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 910–911. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
"1983-84 College Basketball Polls". Sports Reference. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
"About Us". Archived from the original on January 7, 2009. Retrieved April 17, 2009.
"Naismith Awards - Naismith Trophy". Archived from the original on March 2, 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2009.
"The Oscar Robertson Trophy - Past Oscar Robertson Trophy Winners". Archived from the original on June 11, 2008. Retrieved June 11, 2008.
"Wooden Award - Athletics". Archived from the original on April 13, 2009. Retrieved April 22, 2009.
"1984 NBA Draft on databaseBasketball.com". Archived from the original on July 6, 2012. Retrieved April 24, 2012.

v t e North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball
Venues	Bynum Gymnasium (1910–1923) Tin Can (1924–1938) Woollen Gymnasium (1938–1965) Carmichael Auditorium (1965–1986) Dean Smith Center (1986–present)
Rivalries	Duke (Carlyle Cup) Kentucky NC State Wake Forest
Culture & lore	Rameses The Marching Tar Heels Junior varsity team Inside Carolina Four corners offense Blue blood status Dixie Classic/Big Four Jumpman Invitational Tobacco Road Academic-athletic scandal Gambling scandal
People	Head coaches Honorees Honored players NBA draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Helms and Premo-Porretta national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics; NCAA championships in bolded italics

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