Al Hicks: A banner day for basketball

There have been more than a few contorted arguments offered in defense of the continued value of newspapers in the face of the assault by online content. However, I can give you one that is pretty much beyond dispute: The Big Win ain’t official till you see it bannered as a major top-of-the-Sports-section notice to the world the next day – and see just what clever twist the copy editor put on it. In this case, “1 to Remember,” as the Wolfpack basketball team finds legitimacy as a national basketball power.

I have been a Tar Heel fan for over 50 years, but it was a thing of wonder this season to see the Wolfpack gradually, haltingly discover confidence in its own high abilities, under Coach Mark Gottfried, with big upsets but sometimes losing it just a point or two short. They deserve to brandish this headline for some time to come – something you just cannot do with a cell phone, tablet or laptop!

We Heels will look forward to doing our best to outplay them, and to getting a little payback, in the Final Four!

This story was originally published March 23, 2015 at 1:35 PM with the headline "Al Hicks: A banner day for basketball."