WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – The tears that poured from Garrison Brooks’ eyes on senior night suggested the North Carolina forward was done playing home games for the Tar Heels.

It was a special night. Carolina beat Duke to sweep the season series, Brooks played very well scoring 14 points, and his emotion was perhaps the biggest storyline of the night.

But, if one is to take the 6-foot-10 Alabama native at his word Friday night, the door could be slightly open for Brooks to take advantage of the NCAA giving every basketball player back this year of eligibility. So conceivably, Brooks could play another season for the Tar Heels.

So, is it something he has given any consideration?

“A little bit,” he replied, some 25 minutes after UNC’s 85-62 loss to Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Mackey Arena.

This was a rather challenging season for Brooks. He started the campaign as the ACC Preseason Player of the Year but didn’t even make honorable mention All-ACC, though 23 other players made the first three teams as well as honorable mention. As a junior, Brooks averaged 16.8 points and 8.5 rebounds while making second-team All-ACC.

This season, however, his numbers dropped to 10.2 points and 6.8 rebounds. His field goal accuracy went from 53.5 percent to 47.6 percent. And so on.

But at times Friday night, Brooks spoke like someone who is moving on. He was reflective and appeared to be at peace with how this season turned out, even with the many COVID-related restrictions applied to the players’ lives.

“Really tough,” Brooks said, when asked how difficult the year was. “Of course, we couldn’t do as many activities as we want together, couldn’t hang around each other as much, couldn’t go out and enjoy campus as much, just a lot different.

“But I’m still very grateful, still had a lot of fun with our guys. You can see how hard we worked to get to this point and you’ve just got to be grateful for times like this.”

And there were fun times.

The Tar Heels went 18-11 a season after going 14-19, so clearly they made significant progress, and Brooks enjoyed watching so many younger teammates grow and mature during the season, sometimes following his lead.

Even with the many obstacles this team had to hurdle, Brooks is comfortable with how it played out, because it’s about more than just hoops.

“It’s always fun coming in and you see guys working hard, guys getting better, I enjoy seeing guys get better,” he said. “They work out every day, they try to get better, and it’s something you see everybody try to dedicate themselves to. (And) I always enjoy friendships.

“The environment, being together all the time, just hanging out all the time playing card games, going out to eat, just hanging out at the gym. I enjoy that all the time. I think we had a great group of guys.”

So, does he want to go through it again? And how will Brooks move forward in determining his future?

“Just sit back and think how much I can accomplish anywhere, just in case it’s going somewhere else or staying here or turning pro,” he said. “It’s something I always think about – I think about it to myself and (will) just come to a decision.”

And now he will have some time to make that determination.