Sean May, Rashad McCants and Raymond Felton weren't together this past week, opting instead to show allegiances to their high school sneaker companies at the summer's two high-profile camps. But it's the last time the trio anticipates any division at North Carolina in the coming year.

The three heralded members of the Tar Heels' 2002 freshmen class and the cornerstone of the program for next season were candid about their renewed focus at putting UNC back in the NCAA Tournament under new coach Roy Williams. Sure, there is still some bitterness from the Matt Doherty era, at least from May and McCants, but the position from the three is to move ahead.

	Rashad McCants and his sophomore mates are determined to get UNC back on top in 2003-04.

"There's a lot more excitement and anticipation," McCants said at the Nike camp in Indianapolis. "We're eager to see what's going to happen and have the program move forward."

McCants said he was never close to transferring, despite rumors to the contrary during last season. He admitted there were a few Heels who considered the move, but he wasn't one of them. His goal remains to see his name in the rafters of the Smith Center when his career is over.

But McCants did take a jab at Doherty by saying if the coach had remained in charge, "I'd deal with it." McCants said playing for Doherty wasn't hard, but it was "uncomfortable." He added that some players felt more respected than others.

He also said North Carolina chancellor James Moeser and the athletic director Dick Baddour approached team members about Doherty.

Felton, meanwhile, was at the adidas camp in New Jersey this week. And he was quick to defend Doherty and his staff, saying "they weren't bad guys. I loved them. They were all cool with me."

May said the previous coaching staff was laid back -- a stark contrast to the public persona put on Doherty, who is considered more intense than most head coaches. May said the new coaching staff was all business and that Williams "jumped on us about grades and work ethic, and it's been great since he's been there. Everyone has a positive attitude."

May, however, does have an issue with being asked to return for a one-game appearance in the ACC tournament. May, who broke his foot last season against Iona on Dec. 27, was averaging nearly a double-double at the time of his injury. He sat out the rest of the regular season, but the 6-8 power forward returned for the ACC semifinals against Duke. He played 10 minutes and scored only four points.

May, who was just cleared to play full speed last week and was doing high intensity drills during the Nike camp, said he was off the court for seven weeks after the season. He now admits he shouldn't have played in the one game.

"Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't have done it," May said. "They (the coaches) kept telling me we would have a chance to get to the NCAAs. But knowing what I know now about my foot, I wouldn't have done it."

Former North Carolina assistant and present Marshall assistant Bob MacKinnon disputed May's accounts while at the adidas camp last week. He said the staff never told May that he had to play for the Tar Heels to get in the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels weren't a realistic bubble team (17-14 before the Duke game) and ended up in the NIT, making it to the third round before losing to Georgetown.

	“	We lost our hunger. We lost our hunger for winning and mellowed out. ... we had guys who weren't used to losing. But we're more mature now and we expect to be in the NCAAs. ”
		— Rashad McCants, UNC sophomore guard

Still, May contends that had he not played in the one game then he would have had a chance to get a medical redshirt from this season. But May had already played in 10 games before the Duke game, which was past a third of the regular-season allotment of 28 games. If the NCAA considers the postseason, May would have a shot to get a redshirt because he would have played in under 10 percent of his games. But usually the NCAA doesn't allow a player to play past New Year's Eve and still receive a medical redshirt.

MacKinnon said North Carolina investigated his attempt at a redshirt and found May wouldn't have received one. May said he is appealing the decision and waiting to hear the outcome. May is considered a possible NBA draft pick in the coming years and likely won't last four or even five years in college.

Nevertheless, May's departure from the lineup, when the Tar Heels were 7-3, disrupted the chemistry created early in the 2002-03 season.

"We lost our hunger," McCants said. "We lost our hunger for winning and mellowed out. We lost six or seven straight games (actually five) and we had guys who weren't used to losing. But we're more mature now and we expect to be in the NCAAs."

But it won't be all about the sophomores in 2003. All three second-year players said junior Jawad Williams should be the team's breakout star next season. Williams was a subordinate headline player to McCants (17 ppg), Felton (12.9 ppg) and May. But Williams was the second-leading scorer with 14.9 points a game.

"A lot of people will be surprised by Jawad," May said. "He is underrated for what he does and the way he contributes. (Sophomore forward) David Noel could also be the missing piece."

Most of the team hung around Chapel Hill prior to July and most intend on getting together in August. May, McCants and Felton chose summer school and Chapel Hill over USA Basketball. Felton was also getting to know the latest Tar Heel when Roy Williams snagged a big-time recruit in 6-7 forward Marvin Williams out of Bremerton, Wash.

Despite last year's struggles, Marvin Williams said he wanted to be a part of North Carolina and had always dreamed of playing in Chapel Hill. It's the same story when it comes to Felton, McCants and May. Each guaranteed a return to the Big Dance in 2004.

The school made a coaching change. Now it's up to these three to live up to their proclamations.

What else we're hearing
At Indiana ... Mike Davis continues to rack up a potential No. 1 recruiting class in 2004 with the commitments of Josh Smith of Georgia and D.J. White of Alabama last week. Both players are from Davis' stronghold in the South. The two forwards join guards and Indiana natives James Hardy and Robert Vaden. The Hoosiers desperately needed a breakthrough recruiting class after last season's subpar effort. Indiana got Patrick Ewing Jr. and Jessan Gray for this year's team. Neither is expected to be an impact player, although Ewing Jr., could see significant time. But White and Smith could end up being four-year starters, if they last that long in college. Each could could consider a jump to the NBA before their IU careers are over. Davis said he got on players too late in 2002 after the national title game. He said he was behind "the eight ball" a year ago. But he said he was ahead of the recruiting game with this class. "I was disappointed last year," Davis said. "We tried to go after the top players but we didn't get them. But we're in good shape now." If the '04 commitments stay together, and joins a veteran crew of Bracey Wright and Marshall Strickland, the Hoosiers should be even with Michigan State in 2005 and '06 atop the Big Ten.

At Notre Dame ... The coaching staff has told Chris Thomas they don't want to see him at any other events this summer (Nike camp, Jordan camp). He's expected to remain in South Bend as much as possible. The staff wants their junior point guard to be running pickup games on campus and meshing a younger team this summer. Thomas declared for the 2003 draft before withdrawing, and was somewhat distant from the team during the spring. His re-introduction to the team members has gone smoothly, but they didn't want him straying too far from campus this summer. The Irish do have a paper trail of Thomas' NBA visits when the NCAA wants to check his offseason receipts, he needs to prove he has repaid any expenses. Meanwhile, the Irish are anticipating to hear from the ACC sometime in the next two weeks, possibly with a formal invitation to be the conference's 12th team. But the consensus is that the Irish would turn any invite down and wait to see how the Big East possibly breaks apart.

At Syracuse ... Coach Jim Boeheim is making predictions again. A year ago, he said Carmelo Anthony would be the freshman of the year and maybe the best player in the country. Who knew he would be so prophetic? Boeheim isn't predicting a freshman of the year award or a national title, but he's not shying away from pumping up his players. Boeheim said the incoming class of freshmen is the "the best I've seen." He means at Syracuse, and that's some heady company to put this crew against during his tenure. But Boeheim is anticipating monster results from 6-11 Darryl Watkins, 6-8 Terrence Roberts, 6-2 Louis McCroskey and 6-7 Demetris Nichols. The Orangemen are already loaded, even without Anthony, with the return of forwards Hakim Warrick and Craig Forth and guards Gerry McNamara, Josh Pace and Billy Edelin.

At Tennessee ... Coach Buzz Peterson had no choice but to dump Elgrace Wilborn after he was charged with aggravated assault for hitting teammate Brandon Crump in the face on campus. Peterson told Wilborn he needed to apologize to Crump, to Crump's parents and take anger management classes. Peterson said Wilborn made the apologies but wouldn't go to anger management. Tennessee is down two scholarship players and will welcome a big man if it can find one for the upcoming season.

At Villanova ... The Wildcats are trying to schedule a few non-Division I games on the West Coast before they go to the Maui Invitational, so they can take any players who might have to sit the first three games of the season for violating a phone call rule to the islands. The Wildcats will be shorthanded for up to eight games next season and are still awaiting word on the official fallout from the NCAA after they were hit with suspensions to end last season. But they are expecting a few of the players to have only three-game suspensions. If that turns out to be the case, the Wildcats would need to play two games prior to Maui so they could bring them on the trip. If not, the players can't travel, since the Maui Invitational is a three-game tournament. If a player isn't eligible to play in at least one game, he can't travel.

At Cincinnati ... Bob Huggins is quietly pumping the Bearcats as a potential top 10 team next season. He said the best player in workouts has been Florida transfer James White. Jason Maxiell is also expected to have a breakout season in the post. The key, however, will be incoming transfers Robert Whaley, who is expected to play despite some legal troubles, and 6-8 sophomore Armein Kirkland. Newcomers Asrangue Souleymane and Nick Williams, along with Eric Hicks, who has had legal issues but is expected to be on the team, and point guard Chadd Moore could be the difference in the Bearcats reclaiming the Conference USA title.

In scheduling ... Saint Joseph's is set to play California in the Pete Newell Challenge. The marquee game in the doubleheader is Gonzaga-Stanford ... Oregon is looking for an opponent for its game in the Rose Garden (Dec. 6). The Ducks want to play Gonzaga (one of the best-kept recruiting rivalries), but the Zags' schedule is full.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. His Weekly Word on college basketball is updated Fridays throughout the year.