National champions Luke Maye and Kenny Williams suited up in their white jerseys with baby blue trim on Thanksgiving afternoon in a matchup against Texas in Las Vegas, Nevada. North Carolina, ranked seventh in the nation at the time, was outplayed by a more energetic Longhorn team. For most Carolina fans the game was a snoozer. One Carolina fan, though, seized the spotlight during one of the few times that Carolina did not allow an open three or a thunderous dunk: halftime.
Chapel Hill High School Spanish teacher and soccer coach Davis Boyle made the trip to Las Vegas to watch his beloved Tar Heels play in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational.
Boyle was sitting in his seat watching the game when a promotions worker approached a Texas fan to ask him if he would like to take part in the halftime shooting contest. The Longhorn fan was hesitant to accept the offer, so Boyle jumped in without hesitation in hopes of securing a spot in the challenge.
“Hey, Hey! Me! Me!” Boyle called out.
The arena employee turned around. “Well, we actually need one for each team, so you’re in,” he replied.
Just like that, Boyle was set to take the Orleans Arena floor in front of over 7,000 people during halftime.
“I met a bunch of Carolina fans at lunch before the game, so I knew a bunch of people that were going to be in the crowd,” Boyle said.
When he got on the court, Boyle was not flustered by the big arena.
“I didn’t really look up when I got out there,” Boyle said. “I just tried to focus on the basket and making the shots.”
Then again, it wouldn’t be expected that Boyle would shy away from participating in the halftime entertainment. Eight or nine years ago, Boyle recalled, he was again in Las Vegas to watch a NBA Summer league game at the Thomas and Mack Center. He competed in a free throw contest during halftime in front of a young star.
“I remember that Carmelo [Anthony] was sitting in the front row,” Boyle said. “I air-balled the very first free throw, and I could hear Carmelo laughing at me and then I rolled off eight in a row and ended up winning the contest. I looked over at Carmelo after,” Boyle said with a laugh.
With that experience under his belt, Boyle felt prepared for his second opportunity.
Boyle’s task was to make a layup, knock down a free throw, and sink a three-pointer in 30 seconds. Then, he had one opportunity to make a one half court shot to win a Continental Tire prize pack.
Thanks to his son, Boyle had been practicing practicing his hardwood skills.
“[Harrison] plays Carrboro Recreation basketball, so we go and shoot around every once and awhile,” Boyle said.
Boyle camped out under the basket waiting to begin.
He banked in the layup on the first try—a good start.
Then, he moved to the free-throw line where he missed his first two opportunities and netted his third shot from the stripe.
Boyle stepped behind the three-point line and splashed his first shot-something the Tar Heels could have used more of in the game.
Boyle then ran to the half-court line and launched the basketball.
The ball fell short, but Boyle was unfazed.
“I just went out there and had fun,” Boyle said.
Boyle wasn’t able to collect the prize pack, but still earned a T-shirt for his performance.
In the spirit of Boyle’s competition, Proconian is launching a basketball contest of its own. Take an unedited video of yourself making a lay-up, free throw, three pointer, and half-court shot all in a row without missing. Then, send it to a Proconian social media account or tag us in the post to be entered in a drawing to win two Carolina Basketball tickets to the game against Davidson/Harvard.
