Tyler Hansbrough is still in limbo.

According to his father, Gene, the National Player of the Year had X-rays on his shin yesterday and told his father that he "can't feel the sore spot anymore."

That's obviously good news for Hansbrough and the Tar Heels this season because the injury appears to be healing instead of turning into a more-serious stress fracture.

North Carolina's season-opener is one week from today at home against Penn. That appears highly unlikely since Hansbrough still hasn't returned to practice. It's also doubtful that we'll see a Patrick Patterson-Hansbrough matchup when Kentucky travels to Chapel Hill on Nov. 18. The Tar Heels will then travel to UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 21 before heading to the Maui Invitational - which begins in 16 days.

``I think Maui's going to be a big question mark," Gene Hansbrough said. ``The early games are nice games, but you've got to be thinking down the road."

This isn't the first time Hansbrough's been hurt; he broke his leg his freshman year of high school when he was undercut.

``He's like a caged tiger right now," Gene Hansbrough said. ``Rest is a hard thing for him to do because he doesn't see himself improving."

SCRIMMAGE LIST

Here is a less-extensive list of scrimmages for this weekend:

Today:

Gonzaga vs. Texas in Denver
UNLV at Arizona State
George Mason at Georgetown
Loyola Marymount at USC
Ole Miss at UAB
St. John's at Iona
Marist at Army
Appalachian State at Liberty
Lehigh at Maryland Eastern-Shore
Sacred Heart at St Peter's
High Point at Campbell
Hofstra at Columbia
James Madison vs. Hampton
Yale at Stony Brook
St. Francis (NY) at NJIT
Southeastern Louisiana at FAMU

Sunday:
LSU vs. New Orleans
TCU vs. Texas A&M
Radford at Wofford
Belmont at Eastern Kentucky