UNC coach Roy Williams, pictured here with the Tar Heels' freshmen, hasn't often gone "wacko" this preseason, as he likes to say. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — Roy Williams continues to recover from the surgery he underwent in September to remove a tumor from his kidney but, he said on Thursday, “I don’t think I’m 100 percent.”

Then again, Williams said, “I don’t have to be.”

UNC coach Roy Williams is still deciding on his starting five for the season-opener against Gardner-Webb. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — One day before North Carolina begins the season here on Friday night against Gardner-Webb, four-fifths of the Tar Heels’ starting lineup appears set.

“I feel fairly comfortable about Marcus [Paige] and Dexter [Strickland] and Reggie [Bullock] and James Michael [McAdoo],” UNC coach Roy Williams said earlier today. “But that fifth spot, from one day to the next, I change quite a bit.”

Dexter Strickland has heard from N.C. State fans following his public comments about the Wolfpack. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — You probably remember Dexter Strickland’s comments about N.C. State a while back. Strickland, the North Carolina senior guard, told CBSSports.com’s Jeff Goodman that the Wolfpack represented “the least” of the Tar Heels worries, and he noted that UNC routinely defeats N.C. State.

I recently had a chance to ask Strickland about the reaction he received from those comments.

“They’ve been blowing up my Twitter, saying crazy things,” Strickland said. “There’s this one guy, I don’t even know his name. He tweets me every day, and he counts down to the days. It’s a State fan. He says, ’95 days until we destroy UNC.’ And then the next day, ’94 days …’” 

Brice Johnson and the UNC freshmen combined for 29 points in the Tar Heels' first exhibition victory. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina started its first exhibition game slowly but a dominating game-ending run propelled the Tar Heels to an 81-54 victory against Shaw on Friday night. 

Here's the game story.

And here's a look back at our first real look at UNC: 

North Carolina guard Dexter Strickland isn't buying the hype surrounding N.C. State. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — Good stuff – no, great stuff – here from Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com. Goodman recently visited Chapel Hill and spent some time with Dexter Strickland, the North Carolina senior guard.

 The pair talked about Strickland’s injury last season, about how things might have been different had he remained healthy. And, oh yes, the topic of N.C. State came up. The Wolfpack, after all, were picked to win the ACC for the first time since coming off their national championship season in 1974.

Roy Williams, Dexter Strickland and the Tar Heels have history on their side after being picked to finish third in the ACC. ROBERT WILLETT

CHAPEL HILL — Back from a long day yesterday at the ACC’s annual basketball media day, where voters picked North Carolina to finish third in the conference.

Which got to me thinking: What has happened the other times that UNC has been picked to finish third?

UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp said the university would likely raise entrance requirements for incoming athletes, but coach Roy Williams said he is unaware of any impending changes. CHUCK LIDDY

CHARLOTTE — University of North Carolina Chancellor Holden Thorp said in an interview with The News & Observer last month that the university would likely raise entrance requirements for athletes ahead of a more stringent NCAA policy that will go into effect in 2016.

But Tar Heels basketball coach Roy Williams said here on Wednesday that he was unaware of any imminent changes to UNC’s admittance standards for athletes.

Marcus Paige and the Tar Heels are No. 12 in the preseason coaches' poll. ROBERT WILLETT

CHARLOTTE — North Carolina will begin the season ranked No. 12 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches poll, which was released earlier today. The Tar Heels are the third ACC team in the poll, behind No. 6 N.C. State and No. 8 Duke.

The Associated Press’ top 25 poll will be released later this month.

You can find the complete coaches poll right here.

Roy Williams has remained active in practice while he recovers from surgery to remove a tumor from his kidney. ROBERT WILLETT

CHARLOTTE — Remember that stuff Roy Williams said last week about how he might need to take it easy while he recovered from surgery to remove a tumor from his kidney?

Well, it hasn’t exactly happened that way. At least not during UNC’s first few practices.

The Tar Heels began preseason practice on Saturday, and Williams has been as feisty and fiery as ever, said Reggie Bullock, the UNC junior guard. 

North Carolina sophomore forward James Michael McAdoo doesn't consider this a rebuilding year for the Tar Heels. ROBERT WILLETT

CHARLOTTE — North Carolina lost its top four players from a season ago. Harrison Barnes, John Henson, Kendall Marshall and Tyler Zeller all were selected among the top 17 picks in the NBA draft. The Tar Heels lost nearly 70 percent of its scoring and rebounding, and nearly 80 percent of assists.

So it’s not surprise, then, that UNC arrived here in Charlotte at the ACC’s annual media day without the kind of hype and expectations that surrounded the Heels at the start of the past two seasons. Or is it a surprise? Reggie Bullock, the junior guard, said he hasn’t felt any difference without those high expectations.

“I don’t feel like it’s calmer at all,” he said. “I feel like we still have the bulls eye on our back.”