Nassir Little, Tar Heels affected by flu-like symptoms in Sweet 16 loss to Auburn
Without thinking, Brandon Robinson stood up.
Nassir Little was in front of him, exploding off the right block just a few feet from North Carolina’s bench — something Robinson and the rest of the Tar Heels had seen so many times before.
It was supposed to be the next in a season of thunderous dunks, one capable of resurrecting No. 1-seeded UNC as Auburn tried to shoot its way to the Elite Eight.
Except it wasn’t.
Instead, Little’s dunk was blocked. And so was the next one.
Twice in the span of two minutes midway through the second half, Little made a move to the rim, a posterizing dunk just inches away. And both times, the Tigers swatted it away.
Less than 24 hours earlier, Little was hooked up to an IV as his temperature climbed to 102 degrees. And though he woke up Friday morning determined to play through the flu-like symptoms, the lasting effects were apparent throughout UNC’s 97-80 loss to No. 5-seeded Auburn.
“I didn’t feel my best,” Little said, his voice congested and thick as he sat in front of his locker at the Sprint Center. “I just try to give it a shot, just try to help the team out. I didn’t do as much as I wanted to, but at least I could say I gave it a shot.”
Little wasn’t the only Tar Heel playing through an illness. Senior Cameron Johnson was dealing with similar symptoms, his fever hitting 100 degrees Thursday night, coach Roy Williams said.
“It was tough for us today,” Williams said at the podium afterward. “Nassir didn’t have as much lift as he had, and Cam wasn’t the same person on the court. Those are excuses. We’ve got to congratulate Auburn and Bruce and the job that he and his coaching staff did.”
Like Williams, Little didn’t blame the missed dunks on his compromised health, instead crediting Auburn for their play.
In the first dunk attempt, which would’ve cut UNC’s deficit to five, Little started his explosion from the block, leaping up with the ball clutched between both hands. But before Little could get to the rim, Auburn’s Austin Wiley knocked the ball out of his grasp, sending it flying toward the almost-jubilant players on UNC’s bench.
A minute later, Little received a pass from Robinson underneath the cylinder as the junior maneuvered around Anferee McLemore. Again, Little clutched the ball in both hands as he leapt toward the basket. This time, Chuma Okeke, who later exited with a serious knee injury, came up from behind him. Okeke moved swiftly, positioning his hand in front of the ball to knock it loose again.
The second dunk would’ve cut Auburn’s growing lead to eight. Instead, it kicked off a barrage of Tiger 3-pointers that stretched the lead to 19 with 9:19 left to play.
“I’m so used to him dunking on everybody,” Robinson said of Little. “It was just surprising. They did a good job of competing and blocking those shots, and those were some of the plays that were the difference in the game.”
It wasn’t just that Little’s normal dunks weren’t falling. He was struggling in nearly every phase of the game, fatiguing quickly as he tried to keep up with the frenetic pace. After averaging 18.3 minutes per game this season, Little was only on the court for 12 Friday night.
“On the court, the hardest thing was just breathing,” he said. “I couldn’t really breathe because I had a lot of mucus in my chest, and I think that affected me today.”
Little finished with just four points, three rebounds and two turnovers in what could be his final game in a North Carolina uniform. Meanwhile Johnson, who wasn’t available for interviews because he was throwing up, finished his last game with 15 points and five rebounds.
“I wish we could go back again, him and Cam were healthy,” Robinson said. “I think that could’ve helped us out a lot. I appreciate those guys for going out there and trying to give it their all, even though they didn’t feel great.
“It’s just the way things happened. It’s human, it’s life. We can’t do anything about it, but I appreciate them for trying their hardest.”
This story was originally published March 30, 2019 at 12:36 AM with the headline "Nassir Little, Tar Heels affected by flu-like symptoms in Sweet 16 loss to Auburn."