LAHAINA » It has worked like a charm twice already for Roy Williams and North Carolina. Now comes a chance to make it exact science.
In 2004 and 2008, the Tar Heels won the EA Sports Maui Invitational in November, then went on to win the national championship in the spring. One hasn’t ever come without the other for Williams, now in his 10th year at Chapel Hill.
UNC (3-0), despite having four players taken in the top 17 in the 2012 NBA Draft, arrived on Maui ranked No. 11 and as the favorite of the eight-team field, though fringe vote-getters Marquette (2-0), Butler (1-1) and Texas (2-0) have some notoriety. USC (2-0) is coming off a horrific season but has key players back from injuries. Illinois — fresh off a 78-77 overtime thriller of a victory at Hawaii on Friday to improve to 3-0 — has a new coaching staff and talented guards.
While this Maui field probably can’t stack up to the last two absurdly strong editions, it’s still considered the preeminent early-season tournament in the country.
"It does give you a great deal of confidence," Williams said of what success at the Lahaina Civic Center meant for his past title teams. "You play a field like they normally have here, and like the field again this year, it gives you confidence straight out that you’re going to be a very good basketball team."
UNC is 13-2 all-time on Maui. That’s second only to Duke (15-0).
The Tar Heels open today against rebuilding Mississippi State (1-1) at 1 p.m. Butler and Marquette tip off the tourney at 10:30 a.m.
On the other side of the bracket, host Chaminade (2-1), seeking its seventh all-time win in its signature event, takes on Texas at 4:30 p.m. USC and Illinois play the nightcap at 7.
"Last year I was actually nervous," second-year Silverswords coach Eric Bovaird said. "This year we have a comfort in knowledge of how the event works. I think it’ll help us be more successful."
If past experiences here have taught Williams anything, it’s that the former Kansas coach fully expects adversity on the way to glory.
"In ’04, Raymond Felton went down. We thought he might have broken his rib. He played with basically a cast on the whole tournament," Williams said. "(In ’08), we were concerned about Tyler Hansbrough, how much he could play (on an injured shin). We didn’t play him the first game. So you have to face some adversity, and you’re playing really, really good teams."
Sophomore forward James Michael McAdoo (21.0 ppg, 11.3 rpg) looks to be the Heels’ next big thing and headlines the field’s individual talent.
In an interesting twist, the first two winners of UH’s Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic tournament are here.
USC, the inaugural DHC winner in 2009, could contend with point guard Jio Fontan back from an ACL injury.
"We’d like to leave the same way (as ’09)," Trojans coach Kevin O’Neill said. "I think (Fontan) is going to have a breakout tournament. You know, we have a lot of faith in him as our leader. That guy’s going to have to be big for us for us to have a chance to win."
Butler is making its Maui debut, but won the 2010 DHC on the way to its second consecutive national title game appearance.
"Our scheduling in general has elevated itself every year because of the notoriety, and I think that’s a really good thing," Butler coach Brad Stevens said. "When I first started, I was a young assistant, I couldn’t get games, and I sure as heck couldn’t get a sniff of Maui. And so now, being able to be here … is really a bucket list type of thing for our program."
