North Carolina

Hunter Dickinson scores 21 as No. 1 Kansas routs North Carolina Central 99-56

Published

9 months ago

November 7, 2023

Hunter Dickinson scores 21 as No. 1 Kansas routs North Carolina Central 99-56

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Hunter Dickinson had seven points, two rebounds and a block in the first 90 seconds of his Kansas career Monday night, then made a trio of 3-pointers that showed the 7-foot-2 transfer from Michigan is more than just a beast on the block.

Not surprisingly, his newfound fans inside Allen Fieldhouse responded with waves of adulation.

“I was telling somebody, ‘I’m used to the opposing fans being this loud and more boos than cheers,’” Dickinson said after leading the top-ranked Jayhawks to a 99-56 wipeout of North Carolina Central on college basketball’s opening night.

“It was real fun to have people on my side for once,” added Dickinson, whose decision to leave the Wolverines left angry fans in his wake. “The atmosphere was insane. I’ve been hearing about it during my recruiting, and when I committed, and I was hearing so much about Allen Fieldhouse. And it lived up to it.”

Dickinson lived up to the hype, too, finishing with 21 points, eight boards and five assists.

Nic Timberlake had 13 points, KJ Adams scored 12 and Dajuan Harris Jr. dished out 10 assists for the Jayhawks, who led 59-17 by halftime before coasting over the final 20 minutes to their 51st consecutive home-opening win.

Ja’Darius Harris had 12 points to lead the Eagles.

“We have 10 new guys who really, none of them have really played Division I basketball,” longtime NC Central coach LeVelle Moton said. “You play this type of game, you get their attention early.”

Any doubt about the outcome was gone midway through the first half, when the Jayhawks went on a 20-2 run to take a 40-11 lead. McCullar scored eight during the spurt, and transfer forward Parker Braun added a highlight ally-oop dunk.

“The first 25 minutes, that ball moved” Jayhawks coach Bill Self said. “Seemed to me we got everything we wanted, even when we didn’t score.”

Dickinson had 17 points, seven boards and four assists by halftime; the Eagles had 18 points, eight rebounds and two assists.

“You have to pray, You have to go to church and get a strong service in,” Moton said of matching up with Dickinson. “He’s going to be a problem, and he’s not just going to be a problem for North Carolina Central. He’s going to be a problem for everyone.”

As impressive as the Jayhawks were offensively, piling up 34 assists on 39 field goals while shooting nearly 70% from the field, they were just as good on defense. NC Central was just 6 of 23 from 3 and shot 23% from the field.

“Coach has been on us pretty much every practice, just getting the defense right,” Timberlake said. “We came out storming.”

INJURY UPDATE

Kansas guard Johnny Furphy played with no limitations after dealing with shin splints during the preseason. Fellow freshman Jamari McDowell was not suited up after a minor injury in practice but should be back this week.

BIG PICTURE

NC Central will find life much easier in the MEAC, where the Eagles were picked to finish third this season.

Kansas had struggled in exhibitions against Illinois and Fort Hays State from beyond the 3-point line but went 13 of 23 against the Eagles. That included a 9-of-12 mark in the first half.

UP NEXT

NC Central plays Virginia-Lynchburg on Thursday night.

Kansas plays Manhattan on Friday night.

___ Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here ___ AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

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North Carolina

North Carolina Zoo celebrates its 50 anniversary

Published

7 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

North Carolina Zoo celebrates its 50 anniversary

ASHEBORO, N.C. (WTVD) — The North Carolina Zoo is celebrating 50 years.

Located in Asheboro, the zoo houses about 1,700 animals and over 250 species primarily from Africa and North America.

On social media, NC Zoo wrote Friday:

“Throughout our history, we’ve been home to a diverse array of remarkable animals, dedicated keepers, and passionate employees who work tirelessly behind the scenes. Join us in honoring this milestone by visiting the Zoo in 2024!”

The Zoo also mentioned the Zoo’s first animals, which were two Galapagos tortoises named Tort and Retort.

The post said in part: “These two tortoises symbolize the early days of the North Carolina Zoo and are cherished deeply in our hearts.”

The North Carolina Zoo is one of two state-supported zoos in the country. The other is the Minnesota Zoo.

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North Carolina

NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank

Published

14 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

NC has some of the most dangerous roads in the US: See how Wilmington-area counties rank

With a recent study revealing North Carolina as one of the states with the riskiest roads to travel, some may wonder how safe the roads are here in the Cape Fear region.

MarketWatch Guides, a site that provides “reviews of consumer products and services to help readers make educated purchasing decisions,” focuses in part on car insurance comparisons, vehicle safety and more.

A recent study by the site analyzed factors including annual miles driven per 100,000 system miles, percentage of rough roads and fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers. States were given a rating out of 10 points, with 10 being the most dangerous.

More: Distracted driving in Wilmington: How big of a problem is it?

North Carolina’s ranking among the most dangerous

According to the study, the states with the most dangerous drivers based on the factors studied are:

Louisiana – 7.55/10

California – 7.21/10

New Mexico – 6.74/10

Hawaii – 6.73/10

Delaware – 6.67/10

New Jersey – 6.53/10

Mississippi – 6.47/10

North Carolina – 6.39/10

Massachusetts – 6.33/10

Maryland and Texas – 6.26/10

According to the study, North Carolina had 32.5 fatal injuries per 100,000 licensed drivers, but only 2.1% of rough roads, which was the lowest percentage out of the other ranked states.

For a more localized perspective, the North Carolina Department of Transportation releases annual traffic crash facts data. The most recent 2022 report includes a ranking of counties based on several factors, including reported crashes, crash severity, crash rates based on population, registered vehicles and estimated vehicle miles traveled.

The most dangerous county for drivers, ranked at No. 1 for the past five years, was Robeson County. The county had 60 fatal crashes in 2022 with 1,136 non-fatal injury crashes. The rest of the total 4,056 crashes were property-damage-only. The county with the best ranking was Hyde County, coming in at No. 100. The county had one fatal crash in 2022 and 10 non-fatal injury crashes. The county had a total of 45 crashes, the rest of which were property damage only.

More: MyReporter: Which intersections see the most red-light camera violations in Wilmington?

Here’s where the Cape Fear region counties ranked.

Brunswick County

Ranked No. 76 in 2022, Brunswick County had 25 fatal crashes and 715 non-fatal injury crashes. The total crashes for that year were 3,146. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

New Hanover County

Ranked No. 58, New Hanover had 19 fatal crashes and 1,313 non-fatal injury crashes, both of which went down from 2021. The total crashes in New Hanover were 5,617. The remainder of the crashes were property damage only.

Pender County

Ranked No. 47, Pender County had the worst ranking despite having the lowest number of crashes. The county had 12 fatal crashes and 374 non-fatal injury crashes, and a total of 1,156 crashes. The rest of the crashes were property damage only.

Iris Seaton, USA Today Network, contributed to this report.

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North Carolina

Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina

Published

22 hours ago

August 3, 2024

Press Room

Tropical Storm Debby expected to bring rainfall to Virginia & North Carolina

Tropical Storm Debby already has parts of Florida under tropical storm warnings. The Florida Big Bend is currently under a Hurricane Warning. Debby is forecast to briefly strengthen into a category 1 hurricane as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico where water temperatures are near 90 degrees.

As it continues its path over land it is expected to dial back to tropical storm strength as it reaches the Carolinas mid to late next week. Moderate rainfall is possible for northeast North Carolina and southern Virginia by the end of the week.

Higher amounts of rain are possible for southernmost portions of the Outer Banks but generally models show 2-4 inches for northeast North Carolina and 1-2 inches for southern Virginia through Thursday.

Stay with News 3’s First Warning Weather Team for the latest updates as the storm develops.

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