"Those familiar No. 50 Tar Heels' basketball jerseys were back out in full force at Sunday's game at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Tyler Hansbrough, a first-round draft pick by the Indiana Pacers, was back in North Carolina for the first time as a professional as the Pacers took on the Charlotte Bobcats.

When he entered the game off the bench with 4:38 left in the first quarter, he was greeted with the largest collective cheer of the night. There were a few boos mixed in - but not many - for one of the most decorated players in Tar Heel basketball history.

"I'm glad to be back in Carolina. I caught up with a bunch of friends and had dinner with a friend last night," Hansbrough said. "It's great to be back and see everybody."

To show just how partisan things were in Hansbrough's favor, when Bobcats first-round pick and former Duke player Gerald Henderson came into the game or stepped to the free-throw line, he was met with quite a few boos by his own home crowd. That duo will seemingly forever be linked by Henderson's late-game, hard foul on Hansbrough in 2007 in Chapel Hill.

Hansbrough, a 6-9, 250-pound forward, played just over 20 minutes, scoring eight points and grabbing six rebounds while committing five fouls. His most impressive offensive play of the night came on his final basket in the fourth quarter when he received a pass near the top of the key, dribbled into the paint then spun and pump-faked before scoring.

It's clear the Pacers are bringing Hansbrough along diligently as he recovers from a sore right shin."