CHAPEL HILL – “Goose bumps.”

That’s how Justin Pierce described his experience after being introduced to North Carolina’s legion of basketball fans gathered last Friday at the Smith Center for “Late Night With Roy.”

It was their first look at Pierce and his at them, and it was exhilarating.

“It’s one thing to picture a house of 20,000 and playing in front of it, it’s another thing to actually experience it,” Pierce said later that night. “That first time when getting introduced in front of the crowd, it’s an experience that’s something you dream about. I got goose bumps up there, it was breathtaking, honestly.”

And it’s only the beginning.

He’s a Tar Heel now. A different kind of one-and-done courtesy of the popular grad transfer route, which recently gave UNC Cameron Johnson, though he had two years in Chapel Hill. Pierce has one year to play for Carolina after graduating from William & Mary in three years with a double major in kinesiology and finance.

He’s obviously accomplished off the court, but the on-court stuff at Carolina will include adjusting to playing in front of huge crowds and raucous arenas every time the Tar Heels take the floor.

William & Mary’s Kaplan Arena seats 8,600 but rarely ever approaches capacity. Usually, the Tribe’s home crowds ranged between 3,500-4,500 during Pierce’s three seasons at the Williamsburg, VA school.

The largest crowds Pierce played in front of last season were 14,623 at Virginia before it dropped to 6,511 at Notre Dame. In fact, the Tribe played just two other games in front of at least 6,000 fans. As a sophomore, they played at Ohio State (11,158) and in his freshman season they visited Louisville (19,314), Duke (9,314) and Old Dominion (7,151).

Pierce may be in grad school at UNC, but he’s there to play basketball, to experience a different hoops level and try to help the Tar Heels contend for ACC and national supremacy. And Pierce believes he’s an ideal piece to Carolina’s puzzle.

“The guys, I fit in really well with them, and on the court, I think I fit in perfectly to what we’re trying to accomplish and win ballgames,” he said.

So, what kind of player is Pierce?

At 6-foot-7 and 210 pounds, he’s a combination wing and power forward, which is exactly how Roy Williams plans on using him.

“They want me to play both the three and the small-ball four,” Pierce said. “They think I can create some mismatch problems at the four with my ability to space the floor, but also at the three the way I can shoot it, rebound, pass it, score is something they’re looking for me to bring.

“With my experience and the production, I’ve done in the past three years, I think I’m going to add a lot to this team in those areas.”

An All-CAA third-team selection the last two seasons, Pierce has demonstrated he can produce averaging just under 15 points and nine rebounds as a sophomore and junior. He handed out 4.1 assists per game last season and shot 41.6 percent from 3-point range as a sophomore. His perimeter percentage dipped to 32.4 percent last year, but Pierce offered a bit of an explanation, noting he never really got over a broken right (shooting) wrist in July of 2018 until this past offseason.

He missed three months before returning at the start of the Tribe’s season and struggled shooting from beyond the arc. His free throw percent also dropped, going from 79 percent as a sophomore to 59 percent last winter.

“I should have sat out, to be honest,” he said. “I started out pretty slow, and shooting’s all rhythm, and to take three months, ask any good shooter, take three months off without shooting, it’s really hard.”

The Glen Ellyn, Ill, native will have to do a lot more than just shoot for the Tar Heels.

Pierce has adapted to how fast Williams wants to play, smiling and saying, “the pace of play we play at is highly regarded here in terms of running.” He will have to bang some, too. But that’s okay with Pierce, he started at power forward the last two seasons.

“So, I have experience guarding the four,” he said. “I know I’m not the biggest guy, especially at the ACC level, but coach has talked about when I’m at the four it’s a two-way street. I might be undersized but it’s going to be tough for ACC forwards to chase me around the perimeter.

“And with the way I rebound it, I averaged nine rebounds a game last year, and my athleticism, that makes up a little bit for me being a little undersized.”

If you listen to Pierce talk, the basketball stuff is, well, just basketball stuff. His confidence isn’t lacking, but the other bells and whistles likely will take some time.

He’s playing for college basketball royalty now. Massive crowds, throngs of media, fan fare and adulation that would be unrecognizable in Williamsburg are a part of the UNC hoops experience.

The goose bumps are sure to continue, but how he processes them will change over time. As he’s obviously done in the classroom, Pierce will probably soon master it, too.