Heel Tough Blog: Cameron Fens Won't Play in Friday's Exhibition

The Tar Heels made their way to Charlotte today for the annual preseason event to promote the upcoming college basketball season, as Michael Malone, Neo Avdalas, and Jarin Stevenson met with the media in uptown Charlotte. This precedes Carolina’s first exhibition game on Friday night against USC, the unofficial start of the Malone era in Chapel Hill. 

A major talking point around preseason practice is the status of UNC big man Cameron Fens, who transferred to North Carolina after earning All-Summit League honors at South Dakota. Fens is one of many players seeking a fifth year of eligibility, after the NCAA adopted the five-for-five model earlier this off-season. Fens was deemed ineligible earlier this preseason, and per Michael Malone, he will not play in Friday’s exhibition contest, or any contest, until he gains eligibility, something Carolina is still optimistic about. 

With that in mind, that means that the frontcourt that we see on Friday night will be the frontcourt that we could see in the season opener against Western Carolina, which is less than a month away. After losing Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar to the NBA, UNC rebuilds its frontcourt with international players Sayon Keita and Alexandros Samodurov, along with Northwestern transfer Cade Bennerman. Jarin Stevenson, who returned to UNC even after the firing of Hubert Davis, is projected to start at the power forward spot, but could very well see time at the center position, with Fens ineligible. 

Friday’s exhibition will start at 7 PM on the ACC Network. 

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