Max Owens Class: Senior Hometown: Macon, Ga. High School: Mt. Zion Academy (N.C.) Height / Weight: 6-5 / 198 Position: Guard/Forward

One of the most experienced players on the squad • Excellent long-range shooter • Showed a lot of improvement handling the ball last year as his turnovers went from 51 to 35 from a year before despite playing in five more games • Has consistently been one of the top free throw shooters in the ACC • Has made 81.0 percent from the line in his career (94 for 116) • Has scored in double figures 18 times in his career with a career-high 23 points against UNLV in Charlotte last December and against Maryland in the 1999 ACC Tournament semifinals • Has scored 20-plus points four times in his career, three times in the Charlotte Coliseum • Has good size and quickness to defend the other team’s top perimeter threats • Has scored 539 points • Scored his 500th career point in the win at NC State on Feb. 9, 2000 • Field goal shooting percentage has improved each season (from .387 as a freshman to .431 as a sophomore to .490 as a junior).

JUNIOR SEASON (1999-2000)
Played in all 36 games and was sixth in scoring with 7.4 points per contest • Scored in double figures nine times with highs of 23 against UNLV, 22 against Louisville and 18 against #7 Michigan State and #1 Cincinnati • Was 5 for 9 from the floor, 2 for 3 in 3FG and 6 for 6 from the free throw line against the Spartans • Made 8 of 13 shots from the floor and was 5 for 5 from the line against UNLV • Made a career-high four three-point baskets against Cincinnati and Louisville • Had 17 points and six rebounds in the win at Miami • Made 6 of 10 from the field, including an acrobatic, left-handed reverse layup, and was 5 for 5 from the free throw line • Hit a three-pointer from the left corner that gave Carolina a 52-50 lead with 13:19 to play in the second half of the 75-63 win over Maryland • That gave UNC its first lead since the 11:59 mark of the first half, a lead Carolina would not relinquish the rest of the contest • Hit critical, back-to-back three-pointers in a 32-second span in the second half of the Feb. 9 game at NC State • His shots increased Carolina’s lead from two points to eight as the Heels took control of the game. • Owens also had a huge tip-in off an Ed Cota missed free throw with 33.2 seconds left to play to give UNC a 10-point lead and ice the victory • Scored 10 points against Wake Forest on Feb. 12, his first double-figure day since scoring 14 against Clemson on Jan. 2 • Scored in double figures in 9 of the first 14 games, but then scored a total of just 45 points in the next nine games • However, in a three-game stretch Feb. 9-20, he scored eight (at NC State),10 (Wake Forest) and 10 (Virginia) points, averaging 9.3 ppg • Hit both of his shots and scored five points in the regional semifinal win over Tennessee.

SOPHOMORE SEASON (1998-99)
Played in 31 games and averaged 7.8 points per contest • Shot 43.1 percent from the field (88 for 204), 35.7 percent from three-point range (25 for 70) and 85.1 percent from the free throw line (40 for 47) • Was second on the team in free throw percentage, just .03 behind Jason Capel • The 25 three-pointers were the third-most on the team.

Started all three games in the ACC Tournament and posted the two best scoring performances of his career • Scored 23 points against Maryland in the semifinal and had 22 against Duke in the championship game • Earned first-team All-ACC Tournament honors • Came into the ACC Tournament averaging 6.7 points • Made 5 of 9 shots from the floor against Maryland and 6 of 13 against Duke. Finished the season making 17 consecutive free throws • Was 11 for 12 vs. Maryland in the ACC semifinal, including his last eight • He was 8 for 8 from the charity stripe vs. Duke in the next game.

Was 6 for 8 from the field, including 2 for 2 from three-point range, and scored 14 points in the Tar Heels’ 98-64 win over Florida State on Feb. 7 • Made 3 of 5 three-point attempts en route to a then-career-high 16 points in the win over Georgia Tech on Jan. 31 • He scored 10 points in the first half as Carolina built a nine-point lead by intermission • At Duke on Jan. 27, he scored 10 points on 4 for 5 shooting • Made his only three-point attempt and also had three rebounds • Was 8 for 13 (.615) from three-point range in a four-game stretch from Dec. 22 to Jan. 6 • Was 3 for 4 at Georgia Tech, 2 for 3 at California, 1 for 3 vs. Clemson and 2 for 3 at Florida State • Connected on two three-pointers in the second half in the win at Florida State on Jan. 6 • The first came with 12:12 remaining and tied the score at 40 • Nearly five minutes later and after FSU had cut UNC’s lead to five points, Owens hit his second three-pointer.

Missed three games late in the season because of a left groin strain and did not return to the rotation until the regular-season finale vs. Duke.

FRESHMAN SEASON (1997-98)
Appeared in 22 games, including eight regular-season ACC contests and two in the NCAA Tournament • Scored 30 points, grabbed 18 rebounds, had five assists and four steals for the season • Had a season-high four points against UCLA, Chattanooga and Appalachian State • Was 12 for 31 from the floor, including three for 11 from three-point range • Had seven offensive rebounds.

PREP
Played his final two scholastic years at Mount Zion Christian Academy in Durham • A native of Macon, Ga., he played at Central High in Macon as a freshman and sophomore • Played for Coach Joel Hopkins at Mount Zion • Was the MVP at Mount Zion as a junior when he averaged 26.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.0 steals • With additional good players at Mt. Zion he did not need to score as much as a senior and averaged just over 15 points per contest • Led his AAU team to a second-place finish in the national tournament in 1996 • Suffered a stress fracture in his lower leg early in his senior season when he landed on a stray ball during a layup drill while playing in a tournament • Missed five games due to the injury.

Owens Personality File

College Major:
African Studies
Post-school ambition:
To play in the NBA
Hobbies:
Roller skating, reading, listening to music, watching movies
People who have had the greatest influence on my athletic career:
My family - Ms. Jackie Smith, Val Owens, James Smith
Athletes I most admire:
Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Tiger Woods, Jerry Rice
Favorite book:
The Bible
Favorite foods:
Pasta and chicken
Favorite TV shows:
In the House, Parent Hood, Ripley
Favorite movies:
Hollow Man, The Godfather
Favorite musical performers:
DMX, Jay-Z, Tupac, R. Kelly, Biggie Smalls
My greatest sports moment:
Making the winning basket in little league to win the championship
Interesting facts about myself:
I’m easy-going, live life to the fullest and be all I can be in anything
My favorite basketball player when I was growing up was:
Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Bernard King
What I like most about UNC:
The love people give to me and the atmosphere
My favorite sport other than college basketball is:
Tennis, football
The one thing I would change about college basketball is:
The politics
If I could do one thing better it would be:
Get closer to Christ
Person in history I’d most like to meet:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Arthur Ashe
Most interesting thing I did this summer:
Enjoyed my family and friends
Full given name:
Orolando Max Julian Owens
Birthdate and place of birth:
January 1, 1978, in Georgia
Parents’ names:
Jackie and James Smith, Earl Harris
High school coach’s name:
Joel Hopkins

OWENS’ CAREER HIGHS
Points: 23 vs. Maryland (3/6/99) and UNLV (12/4/99)
Field Goals: 8 vs. UNLV (12/4/99) and Buffalo (12/7/99)
3-Point Field Goals: 4 vs. Cincinnati (12/8/99) and Louisville (12/23/99)
Free Throws: 11 vs. Maryland (3/6/99)
Rebounds: 6 vs. Virginia (1/21/99) and Miami (12/15/99)
Assists: 3 on three occasions
Steals: 3 on three occasions

MAX OWENS GAME-BY-GAME
1997-98

1998-99

1999-2000

University of North Carolina Men's Basketball

Printer-friendly format

Email this article