Monmouth Men’s Basketball To Host University Of North Carolina In 2020-21

WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Monmouth University Men’s Basketball and Head Coach King Rice, a 1992 graduate of the University of North Carolina, have announced a three-year agreement with UNC, beginning with a matchup in West Long Branch in December 2020. The Hawks will visit Chapel Hill, NC in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

“This is an exciting game for Monmouth Basketball and I am truly thankful to Coach Williams and the North Carolina Basketball family for coming up here in what will be my 10^th year to play in our home arena,” said Rice. “This has been a dream of mine since I became a head coach and I knew I could count on my North Carolina family to make my dreams come true again. They made my dreams come true as a kid to be able to go there and represent the Carolina family and now they’re making my dreams come true again by bringing the North Carolina Tar Heels, led by Roy Williams into the OceanFirst Bank Center to really show what the Carolina family is all about which is loyalty.”

North Carolina Head Coach Roy Williams will bring his team to the OceanFirst Bank Center on December 17, 2020, marking the first time an ACC opponent will come to West Long Branch. With this agreement, Williams has now agreed to host the Hawks four times in King Rice’s tenure in addition to playing MU in New Jersey.

Monmouth visited Chapel Hill in King Rice’s first season on January 1, 2012, and again played in the Dean Smith Center on December 28, 2016.

King Rice played point guard at UNC for four seasons under the legendary Dean Smith, culminating in a trip to the 1991 Final Four. Rice, who is currently in his ninth season at the helm of the Blue and White, finished his career third all-time in career assists with 629 and played in 140 games in Chapel Hill. Also on Monmouth’s staff is former North Carolina standout JR Reid, who was a consensus First Team All-American and the ACC Rookie of the Year while at UNC before a 14-year professional career.

“This is fabulous for us, getting a chance to be a coach and playing against your alma mater is terrific,” said Reid. “It’s going to be a lot of fun, and I think the fans are in for a great game. This is awesome for Coach Rice. To be able to have this job for 10 years and have the respect he has throughout the coaching industry is fabulous and I’m just fortunate to be a part of it and to say he’s a good friend of mine. For Coach Williams to come up, he didn’t have to do this, and that shows how he feels about Coach Rice as well. This is a very important and special time for us.”

One of the most historic programs in college basketball, the Tar Heels boast seven national championships, 20 Final Four appearances, 18 ACC titles and over 2,200 all-time victories.

Information regarding men’s basketball ticketing for the 2020-21 season will be made available at a later date. Those wishing to fill out an interest form can visit https://flyhawks.co/STForm.