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Deon Hunter flashed back to one of the memorable moments in his North Texas career this week. Hunter was a star for the Mean Green back in 1988, when UNT made the NCAA tournament for the first time and faced a North Carolina team loaded with future NBA players like J. R. Reid and Rick Fox. They all seemed like secondary figures to the main figure in Tar Heels hoops back then, head coach Dean Smith. Hunter and his former teammate Ricky Robertson both recalled the day their paths intersected with Smith’s on one of the most memorable days in UNT sports history this week after learning that the North Carolina legend had died on Saturday at the age of 83. Smith’s funeral will take place today, while a public memorial will be held on Feb. 22 at the Dean E. Smith Center on the North Carolina campus in Chapel Hill. Both Hunter and Robertson were key players for UNT back in 1988 when the Mean Green lost to the Tar Heels 83-65 in a first-round game in Salt Lake City. “He was a John Wooden to me in my era,” Hunter said. “I always wanted to play for a top 10 or 20 team, but it wasn’t in the cards for me. When you are playing at a mid-major, the goal is to get to the tournament and get to play against a team like North Carolina. To know that Dean Smith had to game plan for me and Tony Worrell and our team was an experience. “We got to one of the biggest stages in college basketball.” Read more: http://www.dentonrc.com/sports/sports-headlines/20150211-mens-basketball-reliving-a-memorable-ncaa-tourney-game.ece