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North Carolina's Ellington plans to give MOP trophy to parents [BC-BKC-FINAL-NCAROLINA-NOTES:RA](News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) DETROIT _ When you play alongside the 2008 National Player of the Year and the 2009 ACC Player of the Year, individual awards can be hard to come by. So to be named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four was both surprising and exciting to UNC wing guard Wayne Ellington, who cried after UNC beat Michigan State, 89-72, for the NCAA title on Monday night. "It felt great," he said, grinning. "I play with a lot of great guys, and I felt like a couple of us could have got it. But all the hard work, all the shots after practice _ all the shots at night time, coming in by myself _ it just all paid off." Ellington scored 17 of his 19 title game points in the first half, when UNC took the largest opening-period lead (55-34) in championship game history. He shot 7-for-12 for the game. Ellington said he'll probably give his trophy to his parents. A BIG BIRD(IE) TOLD ME: Perhaps the only disappointing moment for UNC coach Roy Williams on Monday night came when Motown singing legends The Temptations left the floor so quickly after singing the national anthem that he didn't get a chance to shake their hands. But seeing some other legends at the game made up for it. "Having Larry (Bird) and Magic (Johnson) there, that was neat," Williams said. "Larry Bird has been a great friend, he's offered me an NBA job at least a couple of times. He came over, and Magic came over, and I said, 'I know where your allegiance is, but I appreciate you supporting college basketball' kind of thing, and then Larry came over and said 'kick their butt,' and I think he did that because he knew Magic was so big in Michigan State's corner." HIDING THE NET: During the years, forward Tyler Hansbrough has donated scores of his national trophies to the school's basketball museum. But after the Tar Heels blew out Michigan State, he said he finally found one thing he wants to keep. "This net _ I'm not going to give them this net," he said, referring to the freshly-cut nylon hanging around his neck. "I'll hide it." Hansbrough finished with 18 points and seven rebounds, and was named to the all-Final Four team. As another reward, the notoriously-dedicated workout maven didn't plan to go anywhere near a gym Tuesday. "I'm giving myself a week off," he smiled. OUCH: Considering how injury-riddled the Tar Heels were during the season, it shouldn't come as a surprise that a couple of Tar Heels played hurt Monday. Senior Danny Green, who finished with six points and three rebounds, only went through dummy drills Sunday "because his back and rib cage took a pretty good shot in the semifinals," Williams said. Freshman forward Ed Davis, meanwhile, "had a pretty significant hip pointer." Even so, he finished with 11 points and eight rebounds in 14 minutes. ___ (c) 2009, The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.). Visit The News & Observer online at http://www.newsobserver.com/ Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. _____ PHOTOS (from MCT Photo Service, 202-383-6099): NORTH CAROLINA KeyWords:: BC-BKC-FINAL-NCAROLINA-NOTES:RA BC BKC FINAL NCAROLINA NOTES RA |