The Last Dance

Men's Basketball

Georgia State and 'The Last Dance'

ATLANTA-'The Last Dance', a documentary on Michael Jordan and 1997-98 Chicago Bulls, has captivated the sports world during a rare time in our history when we don't have live sports.

Believe it or not, Georgia State has a small connection to the documentary as the Panthers faced Michael Jordan's North Carolina Tar Heels during the 1982-83 season. The game didn't go the Panthers way – a 95-55 loss – but the Panthers did hold Jordan in check.

The game was just a week after the Panthers nearly knocked off Georgia Tech before falling 64-60 in the final minute.

"It was fun to play for Georgia State back then," former Panther Joe Brus said. "We were not in a conference at the time, so we got to play against everyone, including some big trips. We had one of the most talented teams I have ever seen in 1982-83 and held our own against a lot of those teams."

The Voice of the Panthers, Dave Cohen, actually didn't call the game. Cohen was in his first year at Georgia State and didn't make the trip to Chapel Hill. A year later he would start his run of now 37-straight years on the sidelines for the Panthers.

"I was just out of high school during that 1982-83 season," Cohen recalled. "I was around the team but wasn't traveling to do radio just yet. In hindsight, it would have been pretty cool to see the defending national champions along with Michael Jordan in person."

With the near upset a week before against the Yellow Jackets, Brus and his teammates had confidence going into Carmichael Auditorium that January.

"Carmichael Auditorium was old, but it was cool," Brus said. "We had never played in front of that many people, probably around 10,000. There was no way for us to practice for that in advance. They were loud and into the game. It was cool for all of us to play in front of that many people."

Following the game, Brus told the Chapel Hill media, "This place is the mecca of college basketball. It was a blast going out there."

And what about going up against Michael Jordan?

"I rate him as the No. 1 player to ever play the game because he could do everything," Brus said. "The game was different back then. Jordan played pure basketball and just glided around the court.

"However, that North Carolina team wasn't just about Jordan. They were stacked. They had Sam Perkins, Brad Daugherty, Matt Doherty. The whole team was extremely impressive. We played quarters back then and Dean Smith let everyone on the team play and each of those guys were really good."

The biggest consolation for Georgia State was that Chavelo Holmes was the game's high scorer with 20. As a 6-4 sophomore at the time, he made 10-of-14 field goal attempts, while Reggie Chennault chipped in 13 points and forward Joe Brown added 11.

Oh yeh, since we are sure you are wondering, Michael Jordan led five Tar Heels in double figures with 16 points. Not bad considering years later Jordan would score 69 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
 
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