'Pyscho T' drives foes mad with physical inside game
Tyler Hansbrough's two-handed slam over UNC Asheville's Kenny George - all 7-foot-7, 380 pounds of him - during a Jan. 9 game just certified the moniker given by Tar Heels strength and conditioning coach Jonas Sahratian. "It was his second day here as a freshman, and he hadn't said a word the whole time he was here," said Sahratian, remembering Hansbrough's second weight-room workout at UNC. "Tyler just started screaming. I said, 'You're psycho, Psycho T.'" The tag stuck like some hopelessly overmatched Atlantic Coast Conference post defender trying to avoid a George-like moment at the expense of the two-time first-team All-American. In a league that has produced countless stars best known by their monikers, few fit better than the one given to Tyler Hansbrough, a Poplar Bluff, Mo., big man who leads the ACC in scoring (22.0 points per game) and rebounding (10.1 per game) this season. Playing with relentless ferocity, Hansbrough cuts a swath much larger than his 6-9, 250-pound frame. "Hansbrough is always going to be a handful, regardless who's playing him," said coach Al Skinner, whose Boston College team visits fourth-ranked UNC tonight. "He's a workhorse. There's no lack of determination on his part. He's going to keep coming at you for 40 minutes, and if you're not mentally and physically prepared for that challenge, he's going to win, and usually he does." Just ask Miami coach Frank Haith. "He just completely dominated," Haith said last week after Hansbrough scored 27 of his 35 points in the second half of a 98-82 road victory. "My confidence was good tonight," Hansbrough said afterward. "But also, I'm still frustrated about some things from last game." The last game? Hansbrough was still fuming over the Tar Heels' 82-80 home loss to Maryland, which knocked them from atop the rankings. In particular, he was still mad that he missed a potential game-winning 3-point attempt - never mind that he has made just three from behind the arc in three seasons. "I've been around some good players, but he takes the cake," said Sahratian, who was at Kansas before following coach Roy Williams to UNC four years ago. "He's got big dreams, big aspirations." About the only thing that unsettles the big man is flying, especially in bad weather. When foul weather temporarily grounded the Tar Heels in Atlanta last season, Hansbrough asked for - and received - Williams' permission to ride back to Chapel Hill on the team's charter bus. On the court, however, Hansbrough is virtually unshakeable, as Florida State might discover when it plays UNC on Sunday afternoon in Tallahassee. The more physical the game, the more dominant the performance for Hansbrough. "It is difficult to officiate [Hansbrough] because he's in the middle of contact and that's just the way he plays," Williams said. Double- and triple-teams are norms. Williams said he can't remember the last team that attempted to defend Hansbrough man-up without assistance. "I don't think there has been this year at all," Williams said. "I don't remember many people playing him one-on-one last year. I'd say it probably was back in his freshman year would be a guess." Sahratian also marvels at Hansbrough's ability to maintain his cool. "How does he not want to throw punches at people?" Sahratian asked. "We played Georgia Tech, and after the game, he looked like he was in a UFC fight. ... He's kind of like a machine. The more you hit him, it feeds him. He channels that anger by getting more points and rebounds."
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