Blog: UNC has practice day in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (WTVD) -- North Carolina has gone Hollywood. The Tar Heels descend on Los Angeles in hopes of keeping their season alive. To do that, they must beat Wisconsin Thursday night.
The last few days have been filled with worry surrounding the sprained left knee of sophomore Kennedy Meeks. The 6'9" post player practiced with a protective brace during North Carolina's workout at the Staples Center. I asked him if he feels like it's improved over the last couple of days.
"Yeah, I do," Meeks said. "Just been doing a lot of pool workouts. Taking some medicine. Uh, having a medicine patch on my knee. Whatever I can do to get back. I'm just trying to work toward it and hopefully tomorrow I'll be about 90 to 95 percent."
That's giant news and should give the team a big lift. They need every advantage to take down the top seeded Badgers.
Speaking of, Junior JP Tokoto says playing at Wisconsin would have been his second choice behind UNC. A Wisconsin native, Tokoto credits Roy Williams for persistently recruiting him making his decision an easy one. Tokoto played AAU ball with Badgers Sam Dekker and Bronson Koenig and remains tight with the pair. Don't let that fool you. Despite their friendship, he still wants to beat them badly.
One other Wisconsin tie belongs to guard Marcus Paige who's sister wore the "red and white" during her playing days. Morgan Paige is 15 months older than her little bro and now plays pro ball in Romania. Despite her strong ties to Wisconsin, Morgan believes that blood is thicker than affiliation.
"A little part of me would love to see them go all the way," Morgan says. "But when it comes to siblings and family. I want nothing but the best and success for him."
Apparently the NCAA forgot that the East Coast is represented here. They are locking the doors and stopping the media shuttle at 11 p.m. ET, meaning our crew has to move all our gear back and forth via cab instead of leaving it locked up here. #SportsAnchorProblems.
