North Carolina big man Armando Bacot is returning for his senior season after the Tar Heels fell a game short of winning an improbable national championship.
He announced his decision , nine days after .
Tar Heel forever 鉂わ笍
— Armando Bacot Jr. (@iget_buckets35)
鈥淭his year鈥檚 experience showed me that I do not want to miss the chance to do it again next season,鈥� Bacot said.
, the 6-foot-10 junior's post presence was critical to the eighth-seeded Tar Heels reaching a record 21st Final Four in coach Hubert Davis鈥� debut season.
He averaged a team-high 16.3 points and ranked third nationally in rebounding (13.1). His national-best 31 double-doubles tied Navy star and eventual No. 1 overall NBA draft pick David Robinson (1986) for the NCAA single-season record. And he became the first player with six double-doubles in a single NCAA Tournament.
Bacot is on pace to become UNC's career rebounding leader, needing 219 鈥� a total he has passed in each of his three seasons and more than doubled as a junior 鈥� to overtake Tyler Hansbrough (1,219).
鈥淕etting to the final game and getting so close lit a fire inside of him to achieve that goal more than ever,鈥� Davis said in a statement. 鈥淗e feels he can still get better and improve on parts of his game to put himself in a position to have a long and successful NBA career. And he feels this is the best place for him to do that.鈥�
Bacot will also have the opportunity to continue cashing in on his fame after the NCAA allowed college athletes to profit on their name, image and likeness (NIL). That included , availability for Cameo personalized video messages and .
, finishing with 15 points and 15 rebounds.
鈥淥n the court we got so close this year. I know there are no guarantees,鈥� Bacot said, adding: 鈥淢y Carolina story isn鈥檛 finished just yet. Next season starts right now.鈥�
