UNC basketball newcomer Harrison Ingram has a promise: ‘We’re coming for everybody’
Harrison Ingram isn’t lacking energy.
Twenty minutes after North Carolina’s big exhibition game win Friday over St. Augustine’s, Ingram was all hyper, bouncy, as if willing to get the call from UNC coach Hubert Davis, throw his jersey back on and go back on the Smith Center court for more hoops.
Ingram was smiling, laughing, talking the talk.
Asked if that was his natural disposition, Ingram said, “Oh, yeah. All day. Every day.”
At 6-7 and 235 pounds, with his soft hands and good mobility, the transfer from Stanford looks like he could be an edge rusher or tight end for Mack Brown’s football team. Davis is more than happy to have him in his lineup and around this UNC team.
“He’s one of those guys who makes you laugh and he’s not trying to make you laugh,” Davis said. “He’s so much fun to be around. As soon as he walks into the room it just brightens up the entire room.”
Ingram, a junior, is noticeable on the court, too. In the Tar Heels’ 117-53 win over the Falcons, he started the game and made the most of his 25 minutes: 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocks, all without a turnover.
Left alone at the 3-point line in the first half, Ingram knocked down the shot from the key. A few minutes later, he did it again as the Heels were 10-of-18 on 3’s in opening up a 65-26 halftime cushion.
“Harrison has that ability,” senior guard R.J. Davis said. “He has that confidence and we tell him to keep shooting it.”
Davis was lighting it up, nailing 3’s and scoring 20 of his 22 points in the first half. Armando Bacot, despite a slow start, was drawing the usual attention inside and had 13 points and 10 boards.
But Ingram was a guy who quickly caught the eye when No. 55 was on the floor.
“You talk about his versatility,” Hubert Davis said. “He’s got really good size. You put a smaller guy on him and he has the ability to post up and finish around the basket. But also, you put a bigger guy on him and he has the ability to handle the ball and make plays and shoot from 3.
“And he’s a good defensive player. He’s one of those guys who always gets his hands on the ball. He’s really good at deflections, something I didn’t know that I know now. I’m glad he’s here.”
A Dallas native, Ingram averaged 10.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists as the Cardinal went 14-19 last season. Once he entered the NCAA transfer portal, he was highly sought after as many schools around the country scrambled to add players in the topsy-turvy environment that is college sports.
The Tar Heels, preseason No. 1, failed to make the NCAA tournament last season, not that Ingram wants to talk about that.
“Last year was last year,” he said. “This is a new year and a new team.”
Ingram is a big part of that newness, that freshness. There are a lot of new faces in the program, all hungry to win, R.J. Davis said.
After the exhibition game, with his parents at the Smith Center to see it, Ingram was dissecting the win and how much fun everybody had and how hard the Heels would be to play against this season.
“It’s about playing faster, being more dominant,” he said. “Teams know if they score, they better run. It’s a track meet. We want teams to know when they see that North Carolina game on the schedule, they know they have to run.”
If Ingram comes off sounding cocksure or a little too full of himself, he doesn’t mean to be. He’s young, he’s good, he’s in a good spot.
Ingram said he has had fun chirping with the guys during practice -- “We’re always getting into it but never cross the line,” he said -- and did some more after the game.
Elliot Cadeau had perhaps the game’s best dunk Friday, the freshman guard darting down the lane for a high-rise slam over a St. Aug’s big.
Has that happened to Ingram?
“Oh, no. Never, never,” he said. “Not yet, not yet.”
Asked his best position, Ingram quickly replied, “To me, it doesn’t matter. You put me on the court and I’ll make it work. You want me to post up and guard the best player, I’ll do it. I can guard full court. I can pick up 1 through 5 and I can lock it down.
“I think I can do a little of everything. I can be in a stretch-4 role, be in a defensive role, I’ll be in a playmaking role, I’ll be in a scoring role, a posting up role.”
What can’t he do?
“With my game, I try to be perfect,” he said, smiling again. “I can’t tell you that on camera, right?”
Too late for that. The TV guys were gone but there was a cell-phone video being shot.
No problem, though. This night, this season, it’s more about the team game, Ingram said.
“We’re coming,” he said. “We’re coming for everybody, I promise.”
This story was originally published October 29, 2023 at 5:30 AM with the headline "UNC basketball newcomer Harrison Ingram has a promise: ‘We’re coming for everybody’."
