March Madness: Tar Heels’ history as 8-seed in NCAA Tournament

RALEIGH, NC - MARCH 19: Teammates Brice Johnson #11 and Marcus Paige #5 of the North Carolina Tar Heels try to grab a loose ball from Quadree Smith #10 of the Providence Friars during the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 19, 2016 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC - MARCH 19: Teammates Brice Johnson #11 and Marcus Paige #5 of the North Carolina Tar Heels try to grab a loose ball from Quadree Smith #10 of the Providence Friars during the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 19, 2016 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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March Madness
Head Coach Bill Guthridge hugs Ed Cota #5 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the NCAA Men”s Finals Four Game against the Florida Gators at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Gators defeated the Tar Heels 71-59. /

Bill Guthridge guides North Carolina to Final Four appearance

In his third season as the North Carolina men’s basketball coach, Bill Guthridge led the Tar Heels on a run that no one quite expected.

As a No. 8 seed for the second time in program history, the 1989-1990 Tar Heels made a spectacular run to the Final Four. It marked the 15th time that the UNC basketball program has been one of the final four teams standing.

Here’s a closer look at the journey that led this group to the Final Four:

South Region First Round: Defeated No. 9 Missouri 84-70

South Region Second Round: Defeated No. 1 Stanford 60-53

South Region Sweet 16: Defeated No. 4 Tennessee 74-69

South Region Elite 8: Defeated No. 7 Tulsa 59-55

National Semifinal (Final Four): Lost to No. 5 Florida 71-59

North Carolina continued their trend of knocking off No. 1 seeds. Following up their upset over No. 1 Oklahoma a decade prior, the Tar Heels knocked off Stanford (who was 27-4 on the year) to make their way to the Sweet 16.

This time, the UNC basketball program wouldn’t end their journey in the field of 16, as they not only won their Sweet 16 contest but continued their path to the Final Four with a win over Tulsa in the Elite 8.

Unfortunately, their Cinderella-type run ended with a loss to the Billy Donovan-led Florida Gators in the Final Four. Although the run didn’t end as the program wanted it to, this Tar Heels group, led on the court by the likes of Ed Cota, Joseph Forte, Brendan Haywood, and Jason Capel, defied the odds by simply making it to this point of the tournament.

Time to fast forward in time (once again) to the 2010s, as the Tar Heels No. 8 seed luck starts to dry out a bit.