UNC, Preseason No. 1, Declines 2023 NIT Invite After Missing NCAA Men's Tournament

North Carolina's men's basketball season is over.

The Tar Heels announced Sunday that they would be declining a bid to play in the National Invitation Tournament after failing to be selected for the NCAA tournament.

Head coach Hubert Davis released the following statement:

"All season, our focus and goal have been on being the best team we can possibly become and reaching our full potential to give us another opportunity to compete, play for and win an NCAA championship. Although we no longer have that opportunity and this season wasn't what we had hoped for, I want to thank our players and staff for their hard work and love for Carolina Basketball. Many factors go into postseason play, and we believe now is the time to focus on moving ahead, preparing for next season and the opportunity to again compete for ACC and NCAA championships. I also want to thank our great fans for their incredible support. Our commitment to you is what drives us to improve our program in every way."

Given that North Carolina opened as the preseason No. 1 in the rankings, failing to make this year's tournament was particularly disappointing.

It was also unprecedented:

The Tar Heels didn't miss the tourney by much, however, as they were one of the selection committee's first four teams out:

North Carolina's 2022-23 meltdown is mystifying. They went from reaching last year's title game, losing to Kansas, to declining the NIT. And they brought back four players—R.J. Davis, Caleb Love, Leaky Black and Armando Bacot—from that team, so it isn't as though they could blame youth and inexperience.

"I guess really we weren't that good," Bacot bluntly told reporters Thursday.

"The pressure I think can get to everybody," he added after the team lost to Duke to close the regular season. "I mean, we're human. I'd definitely say it somewhat got into our locker room."

The Tar Heels still went 20-13 but struggled against teams that finished ranked this season. They lost to Duke twice, went 1-2 against Virginia, 0-1 against Miami and lost nonconference games against Alabama and Indiana.

"It's a lot of emotions just to see from last year, the type of run we made," Davis told reporters. "Like you said, looking from the outside in this year, it's tough. It's a tough position to be in."