CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Michael Malone walked into a room full of reporters waiting to ask him about a tougher-than-expected win in his coaching debut at blueblood program North Carolina, then offered a quip that certainly captured the mood.
"You guys have as much fun as I did?" Malone said. "Welcome to the roller coaster."
The man who coached the NBA's Denver Nuggets to an NBA championship 3 1/2 years ago had just watched his Tar Heels have to push through the final six minutes to beat Western Carolina 80-72 on Monday night. That opened a chapter that represents the program's first major break from decades of "Carolina Family" coaches rooted in the tenure of late Hall of Famer Dean Smith.