North Carolina coach Hubert Davis got a nice surprise on Friday afternoon.

Veteran guard Leaky Black got to deliver the news that Davis had won the John McClendon National Coach of the Year Award. The locker room erupted.

Here’s video:

North Carolina struggled at times this season, but Davis always got the Tar Heels back on track. He also made sure they would be peaking at the right time — they have just three losses since Jan. 24.

Davis led North Carolina to a 28-9 record this season, which is his first at the helm in Chapel Hill. He’s the first coach to reach the Final Four in his first season since Bill Guthridge did it after he took over for Dean Smith in 1997-98.

This award is presented annually to the nation’s best coach across all levels of college basketball. Previous winners include Kelvin Sampson, Chris Beard, Chris Holtmann and John Thompson.

North Carolina will face Duke in the Final Four on Saturday night.