North Carolina and men's basketball coach Hubert Davis have parted ways after five seasons leading the tradition-rich program.

The school announced the decision Tuesday night, saying it had made “a leadership change” to end Davis' tenure as successor to retired Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams. That run featured featured multiple high points, but also wild swings of results, an inconsistency that runs contrary to the Tar Heels' status as a tradition-rich blueblood with a hallmark of sustained top-tier success.

The program with six NCAA titles and a national-record 21 Final Fours now has just three March Madness wins in the four seasons since an unexpected run to the 2022 national title game in Davis' debut season. The Tar Heels reached the Sweet 16 as a No. 1 seed in 2024 before being upset by Alabama, but otherwise haven't reached the round of 32 in that span, and even missed the NCAAs entirely in 2023.

The final blow was Thursday's overtime loss to VCU in the NCAA Tournament in which the Rams rallied from 19 down for the biggest comeback in first-round history, changing the tenor of conversations about Davis' future. And by Saturday, athletic director Bubba Cunningham said the school was evaluating “all facets” of the program.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Duke has starting big man Patrick Ngongba II back just in time for the No. 1 overall seed's run to the Sweet 16 of March Madness.

The 6-foot-11, 250-pound Ngongba returned to the lineup for Saturday's 81-58 second-round win over TCU in the NCAA Tournament's East Region. He had missed five straight games due to soreness in his right foot, an ailment that had him sporting a protective boot and using a knee scooter.

Ngongba came off the bench Saturday and played 13 minutes, finishing with four points, four rebounds, four assists and one block.

“I mean, I felt good,” Ngongba said. “I felt tired at some points in the game. but that's as expected.”

Ngongba hadn't played since he started feeling soreness in a win at N.C. State in early March. That sidelined him for the regular-season finale against North Carolina, three Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament games and then Thursday's NCAA opener against Siena.

Coach Jon Scheyer initially said the plan was for Ngongba to be back for the start of the NCAAs. After he missed the Siena game, Scheyer said he was hopeful Ngongba would be ready for TCU but he remained questionable entering Saturday.

Ngongba got a loud cheer from Duke fans as he hopped up to the scorer's table to check in at the 16:14 mark of the game. And he had a quick basket that highlighted the value of his space-eating presence, coming when he turned on Liutauras Lelevicius and muscled him down to the block to score inside before TCU's David Punch could get there to attempt a block from behind.

But Ngongba also had three of Duke's five first-half turnovers in sign that he was still catching up to game speed.

Ngongba is averaging 10.7 points and 6.0 rebounds, playing alongside star freshman Cameron Boozer and helping the Blue Devils use an inside-out approach that has often overwhelmed opponents. He's capable of attacking the rim (1.1 blocks) and passing out of double-teams (1.9 assists) while helping the Blue Devils routinely beat teams on the glass and outscore them in the paint.

Beyond his individual impact, Ngongba's return also means less time that Boozer has to slide over to the center position instead of operating more as the 4-man.

It's why Scheyer said Ngongba's return makes the Blue Devils “more whole” as they head to the nation's capital for next week's regional rounds.

“For Pat to come back to this game was not easy by any means,” Scheyer said. “He was fighting like crazy.”

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham said Saturday the school is evaluating “all facets” of its tradition-rich men's basketball program after another early exit from the NCAA Tournament under Hubert Davis.

Cunningham said in a statement he is working with UNC chancellor Lee Roberts and executive associate AD Steve Newmark — who will take over as Cunningham's successor in the coming months — in that review.

“Every year at the end of the season, it’s important to evaluate all facets of the program and look for ways to improve,” Cunningham said. "The chancellor, Steve and I are doing that together now and will continue to have discussions over the coming days.”

Davis closed his fifth season Thursday as successor to retired Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams with an overtime loss to VCU in the South Region, coming after the Rams rallied from 19 down for the biggest comeback in first-round history.

The program with six NCAA titles and a national-record 21 Final Fours now has just three March Madness wins in the four seasons since an unexpected run to the 2022 national title game in Davis' debut season. That includes reaching the round of 32 only once in that span, a Sweet 16 appearance two years ago as a No. 1 seed that lost in an upset to Alabama.

Davis signed a two-year extension last season running through 2029-30. The school would owe Davis $5 million in base salary payments for the remaining years of his deal plus, additional payments for the remaining months of the 2025-26 season.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness