Week 8 Rankings have been released and here is the rundown:
AP Top 25
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina jumps up one spot to #19 in the AP Top 25. Last week, Carolina crushed UAB 89-58. This week Carolina will host William & Mary (Dec. 30) and play on the road at Clemson (Jan. 3) in its conference opener.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (10-0)
#3 Virginia (11-0)
#5 Louisville (11-1)
#14 Notre Dame (12-1)
#19 UNC (9-3)
Kentucky was the unanimous #1 choice for the fourth straight week. A little shake up in the Top 10 this week as Arizona, Louisville, Texas, and Kansas lost. UVA moved to #3 and Louisville fell to #5 after losing to Kentucky last week. Arizona dropped from #3 to #8. The Top 10 in order are Kentucky, Dook, Virginia, Wisconsin, Louisville, Villanova, Gonzaga, Arizona, Iowa State, Utah.
One Out
TCU (was #25)
One In
#25 Georgetown
No other ACC teams received a vote for the AP Top 25 this week.
Monday, December 29, 2014
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Carolina Crushes UAB, 89-58
Six North Carolina players scored in double-digits Saturday afternoon as the Heels returned from Christmas break to completely dismantle the visiting UAB Blazers, 89-58. Marcus Paige led the charge with 16 points while Kennedy Meeks added 14 points and nine rebounds. Justin Jackson re-emerged on the offensive end to net 13 points, providing a spark late in the first half that would push this game far out of reach. The Blazers never served up a true test for the Heels as UAB started extremely slow and never was able to bounce back. Carolina extracted a bit of revenge for its upset loss to the Blazers last December in Birmingham, Alabama.
Boosted by a torrid start to the game, Carolina (9-3, 0-0 ACC) was well on its way to another dominant shooting performance of 50%. The Heels jumped out early behind six quick points from Meeks and some intense defensive pressure that caused UAB (4-9, 0-0 C-USA) to turn the ball over five times in the first five minutes. 9 of the Blazers first 10 shots were airballs and, subsequently, former UNC assistant Jerod Haase's team was down 15-2 with Carolina never looking back. The Heels continued to cruise into the half behind a flurry of perimeter shooting. Jackson ignited the run by splashing two threes, one so deep he was almost in Haase's pocket on the sideline, and then Paige connected on a 3 to push the Heels lead into the 20's. Jackson played his best game in weeks and exuded the confidence in his shot that teammates and coaches have been wanting to see for some time.
UNC Coach Roy Williams was delighted to see Jackson's success on the court. After the game Roy touched on this in his post-game news conference saying, "I think that was really good for him (Jackson), but it was also good for our team. We need somebody to step up and I've said all year I really think he is going to be a good shooter, and I think those were big for his confidence today."
Carolina had not had six players score in double figures during the same game since UNC beat Wake Forest early in the ACC schedule last year. The Heels were very efficient scoring-wise with everyone contributing. In addition to Paige, Meeks, and Jackson, three other Heels contributed extremely well to the point spread. Brice Johnson scored 11 points (7 rebounds), Isaiah Hicks added 11 as well and Nate Britt pumped in 10 points for his 5th double-digit scoring effort in his career as a Heel. But, it wasn't all offense that got the job done for UNC.
The Tar Heels turned up the defensive heat in this one, suffocating UAB into horrible shots and a measly 3 for 25 showing from 3-point range. Overall, the Blazers shot 30.5% for the game and it seemed that the Carolina defenders never allowed UAB to get comfortable on the offensive end. C.J. Washington led the Blazers with 12 points but only shot 3 of 13 from the floor. UAB's leading scorer, Robert Brown, was held to 11 points on 3 of 11 shooting. So many shots were rushed and many of those never even touched iron. Credit Carolina's perimeter defense for hawking the ball and getting hands up on shooters. UAB's most prolific 3-point shooter, freshman Nick Norton, was overwhelmed in the Dean Dome shooting 0 for 4 from 3. UNC's length on the edges and size downlow sucked the energy out of the Blazers where their game just went up in smoke. With the defensive pressure turned up on high, Carolina forced 18 turnovers and used those turnovers to create 27 points. Even so, Carolina continued to have its own turnover issues. Bad passes and trying to do too much led to Carolina's turnover woes, once again, as the Heels matched UAB's turnover mark with 18 throwaways. Although, UAB could only muster 15 points off Carolina's miscues. Still, for UNC, turning it over is a habit Coach Williams would like to lose immediately.
"The only disappointing thing, in the second half, was the turnovers," said Williams. "Everybody's trying to hit a home run. Just make the easiest play and don't try and make something when it's not there."
There were many plays that were not disappointing, however, and J.P. Tokoto brought the Dean Dome crowd to its feet with a thunderous tomahawk jam that posterized the UAB defender. The pump fake, drive, and throw down was quite an impressive display of athleticism that Tar Heel fans have grown to love from the extremely talented junior.
The energy was sky-high from the Heels all game long and, coming off the week-long Christmas break with only a slight amount of practice time, UNC continued to build momentum leading into conference play once the New Year arrives.
"It's a momentum thing for us; it's a learning experience," said UNC junior Brice Johnson after the game. "The ACC is a whole different ball game. We just have to go ahead and finish out the preseason and be ready for the next challenge."
Carolina is travel-tested and eager to begin the ACC stretch. With seven of its first 12 games being contested away from the Smith Center, UNC has learned a multitude of lessons so far this season that many Top 25 teams have not experienced to this point. I believe this type of non-conference schedule does wonders for the Heels and could benefit Carolina in the weeks and months to come. ACC play is on the doorstep with a January 3rd meeting at Clemson on the horizon. Carolina is hungry and getting better game by game and will finish off the non-conference slate on Monday against former Tar Heel Tony Shaver's William & Mary team.
Next Game: #20 North Carolina (9-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
William and Mary Tribe (6-4, 0-0 Colonial Athletic)
Date/Time: Monday, December 30, 2014 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN Full Court and ESPN 3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
Saturday, December 27, 2014
#20 UNC Returns from Christmas Break to Host UAB
Matchup: #20 North Carolina (8-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
UAB Blazers (4-8, 0-0 C-USA)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 27, 2014 @ 4:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
Christmas presents have been unwrapped and stockings were emptied so now it's time to return to the hardwood as North Carolina plays host to the UAB Blazers Saturday in the Dean E. Smith Center. After a week-long stretch of no basketball games, Carolina gets back into action this afternoon in hopes of continuing its momentum leading into conference play. Last time out, UNC defeated Ohio State in a matchup of Top 25 teams that was held at the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago. The Heels enjoyed Christmas week with family and friends and come together in Chapel Hill for a clash with the Blazers of Alabama-Birmingham.
UAB is no stranger to the Tar Heels, recently. The two teams will be competing in their third tilt in as many years with each team holding one victory apiece. Carolina handled the Blazers in 2012, 102-84, but UAB surprised #16 Carolina last year with a 63-59 victory in Birmingham. UNC holds a 3-1 lead in the series' history. You can say that today's game is the rubber match; however, on paper, the Heels (8-3, 0-0 ACC) hold an enormous upper-hand going into this one. The Blazers (4-8, 0-0 C-USA) have had their issues so far and come into the game versus the Tar Heels losing 3 of its last 4 games. Jerod Haase, in his third year as UAB coach, has had his hands full trying to overcome offensive struggles and a plethora of youth (10 underclassmen). Haase is very recognizable in Chapel Hill. He was part of Roy Williams' UNC coaching staff from 2003-2012. Haase also served on Williams' staff at Kansas from 1999-2003 and was coached by Williams during a four-year basketball career with Kansas. The return of Haase to Chapel Hill and his familiarity with Coach Williams' system does not seem to be a factor in the game today as the Tar Heels come into the matchup with many distinct advantages.
Carolina hasn't had too much trouble this season scoring points, averaging a robust 80.2 points per game. Three of its five starters are maintaining double-digit scoring averages, led by Marcus Paige's 13.4 ppg. Meeks follows closely with 13.3 ppg and Brice Johnson is the other double-digit scorer netting 11.9 ppg. Even the other two starters, Justin Jackson and J.P. Tokoto, are right on the cusp of double digits pouring in 9.5 and 9.1 ppg, respectively. In contrast, UAB is sorely in need of some offensive production. Only averaging 66.8 ppg, the Blazers are being outscored by their opponents and can only boast of one player consistently scoring in double digits. Robert Brown, transfer from Virginia Tech, has been the only consistent scorer for UAB, dumping in 13.6 ppg. He has scored double digits in four straight contests and led his team in scoring seven of the 12 total UAB games. C.J. Washington is close behind Brown with 9.8 ppg. With the Tar Heels averaging almost 14 points more per contest than the Blazers, it is clear to see that Carolina's athleticism and talent rises above those of their counterparts this afternoon. Youth lives large among the Blazers as 64.6% of its offense comes from the underclassmen. That youthfulness must bring toughness in its last non-conference game of the season as UAB will have to throw its heart and soul and everything it can muster offensively at the Tar Heels to have any chance of up-ending Carolina on the road.
Another glaring statistic when comparing these two opponents is the fact that Carolina dominates the rebounding aspect of the game. UNC boasts a 45.1 rebounds/game average which is over 10 rebounds a game more than the 35.1 reb/gm average the Blazers tout. Carolina is much bigger downlow and its length is going to affect UAB on both ends of the court. No one on the Blazers team averages five rebounds a contest, whereas UNC has three players in that category (Meeks-9.5, Johnson-7.0. Tokoto-5.1). Also, UAB ranks in the bottom 30 of the country in defensive rebounding (only 23.1 per game) which makes the Tar Heel board-bangers salivate since Carolina pulls down 44.9 percent of its misses (17.4 offensive rebounds/gm), ranking third nationally.
Defense has surely blossomed this year for the Heels. Carolina has caused its opponent to turn the ball over 14.5 times a game and is a sign that the Heels have begun to master its defensive pressure much earlier than recent seasons. Look for Carolina's defense to make a positive impact on the game versus UAB and moving forward throughout the season. Today, Carolina will need to stifle freshman point guard Nick Norton who has dished out 51 assists so far for the Blazers. Norton is a huge threat from the outside, shooting 44% from 3-pt range and is making 81% of his free throws. It seems, though, that if you can guard him on the perimeter and force him to turn the ball over, you can completely take Norton out of the game. Norton has strictly been a 3-pt shooter and rarely shoots 2-pointers, and when he does he isn't that successful (only 4 of 10 from 2-pt range all season!).
The Heels have shared the ball incredibly well so far this campaign. With 17.8 assists per game and a blistering field-goal percentage of 45.2%, these numbers have been able to hide the fact that perimeter offense has been stagnant at best. Paige seemed to find his outside touch just a bit against the Buckeyes in Chicago, but the Heels have still been unable to find any consistency from the outside. As long as Carolina can dish out the assists and score at a high percentage from inside the arc, the 3-point shot isn't as necessary as some believe. However, making the three could add a whole other dimension to our team's game and really identify the Tar Heels as a major player in the National Championship picture.
Carolina hopefully gained some major confidence with its win over Ohio State last Saturday and can build upon that success with these final two non-conference matchups at home (William & Mary being the other) before ACC play begins. UAB may still be reeling from its 16-point loss to Chattanooga Monday night and if they do not give an A+ performance in Chapel Hill, expect Carolina to have little trouble disposing of the Blazers.
Carolina, earlier this week, accepted UAB's Committed To A Cure Challenge for pediatric cancer research. In an effort created by UAB Coach, Haase, and staff to raise awareness for pediatric cancer research, during today's game, each player on both teams will sport opposite-colored shoes. To build on this initiative, UNC has challenged its fans to wear two different colored shoes to the Dean Dome for today's game. So, when viewing the game today, there should be an assortment of colors on the court at all times (maybe we'll get One White, One Carolina Blue shoe for each of our Heels!).
vs
UAB Blazers (4-8, 0-0 C-USA)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 27, 2014 @ 4:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
Christmas presents have been unwrapped and stockings were emptied so now it's time to return to the hardwood as North Carolina plays host to the UAB Blazers Saturday in the Dean E. Smith Center. After a week-long stretch of no basketball games, Carolina gets back into action this afternoon in hopes of continuing its momentum leading into conference play. Last time out, UNC defeated Ohio State in a matchup of Top 25 teams that was held at the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago. The Heels enjoyed Christmas week with family and friends and come together in Chapel Hill for a clash with the Blazers of Alabama-Birmingham.
UAB is no stranger to the Tar Heels, recently. The two teams will be competing in their third tilt in as many years with each team holding one victory apiece. Carolina handled the Blazers in 2012, 102-84, but UAB surprised #16 Carolina last year with a 63-59 victory in Birmingham. UNC holds a 3-1 lead in the series' history. You can say that today's game is the rubber match; however, on paper, the Heels (8-3, 0-0 ACC) hold an enormous upper-hand going into this one. The Blazers (4-8, 0-0 C-USA) have had their issues so far and come into the game versus the Tar Heels losing 3 of its last 4 games. Jerod Haase, in his third year as UAB coach, has had his hands full trying to overcome offensive struggles and a plethora of youth (10 underclassmen). Haase is very recognizable in Chapel Hill. He was part of Roy Williams' UNC coaching staff from 2003-2012. Haase also served on Williams' staff at Kansas from 1999-2003 and was coached by Williams during a four-year basketball career with Kansas. The return of Haase to Chapel Hill and his familiarity with Coach Williams' system does not seem to be a factor in the game today as the Tar Heels come into the matchup with many distinct advantages.
Carolina hasn't had too much trouble this season scoring points, averaging a robust 80.2 points per game. Three of its five starters are maintaining double-digit scoring averages, led by Marcus Paige's 13.4 ppg. Meeks follows closely with 13.3 ppg and Brice Johnson is the other double-digit scorer netting 11.9 ppg. Even the other two starters, Justin Jackson and J.P. Tokoto, are right on the cusp of double digits pouring in 9.5 and 9.1 ppg, respectively. In contrast, UAB is sorely in need of some offensive production. Only averaging 66.8 ppg, the Blazers are being outscored by their opponents and can only boast of one player consistently scoring in double digits. Robert Brown, transfer from Virginia Tech, has been the only consistent scorer for UAB, dumping in 13.6 ppg. He has scored double digits in four straight contests and led his team in scoring seven of the 12 total UAB games. C.J. Washington is close behind Brown with 9.8 ppg. With the Tar Heels averaging almost 14 points more per contest than the Blazers, it is clear to see that Carolina's athleticism and talent rises above those of their counterparts this afternoon. Youth lives large among the Blazers as 64.6% of its offense comes from the underclassmen. That youthfulness must bring toughness in its last non-conference game of the season as UAB will have to throw its heart and soul and everything it can muster offensively at the Tar Heels to have any chance of up-ending Carolina on the road.
Another glaring statistic when comparing these two opponents is the fact that Carolina dominates the rebounding aspect of the game. UNC boasts a 45.1 rebounds/game average which is over 10 rebounds a game more than the 35.1 reb/gm average the Blazers tout. Carolina is much bigger downlow and its length is going to affect UAB on both ends of the court. No one on the Blazers team averages five rebounds a contest, whereas UNC has three players in that category (Meeks-9.5, Johnson-7.0. Tokoto-5.1). Also, UAB ranks in the bottom 30 of the country in defensive rebounding (only 23.1 per game) which makes the Tar Heel board-bangers salivate since Carolina pulls down 44.9 percent of its misses (17.4 offensive rebounds/gm), ranking third nationally.
Defense has surely blossomed this year for the Heels. Carolina has caused its opponent to turn the ball over 14.5 times a game and is a sign that the Heels have begun to master its defensive pressure much earlier than recent seasons. Look for Carolina's defense to make a positive impact on the game versus UAB and moving forward throughout the season. Today, Carolina will need to stifle freshman point guard Nick Norton who has dished out 51 assists so far for the Blazers. Norton is a huge threat from the outside, shooting 44% from 3-pt range and is making 81% of his free throws. It seems, though, that if you can guard him on the perimeter and force him to turn the ball over, you can completely take Norton out of the game. Norton has strictly been a 3-pt shooter and rarely shoots 2-pointers, and when he does he isn't that successful (only 4 of 10 from 2-pt range all season!).
The Heels have shared the ball incredibly well so far this campaign. With 17.8 assists per game and a blistering field-goal percentage of 45.2%, these numbers have been able to hide the fact that perimeter offense has been stagnant at best. Paige seemed to find his outside touch just a bit against the Buckeyes in Chicago, but the Heels have still been unable to find any consistency from the outside. As long as Carolina can dish out the assists and score at a high percentage from inside the arc, the 3-point shot isn't as necessary as some believe. However, making the three could add a whole other dimension to our team's game and really identify the Tar Heels as a major player in the National Championship picture.
Carolina hopefully gained some major confidence with its win over Ohio State last Saturday and can build upon that success with these final two non-conference matchups at home (William & Mary being the other) before ACC play begins. UAB may still be reeling from its 16-point loss to Chattanooga Monday night and if they do not give an A+ performance in Chapel Hill, expect Carolina to have little trouble disposing of the Blazers.
Carolina, earlier this week, accepted UAB's Committed To A Cure Challenge for pediatric cancer research. In an effort created by UAB Coach, Haase, and staff to raise awareness for pediatric cancer research, during today's game, each player on both teams will sport opposite-colored shoes. To build on this initiative, UNC has challenged its fans to wear two different colored shoes to the Dean Dome for today's game. So, when viewing the game today, there should be an assortment of colors on the court at all times (maybe we'll get One White, One Carolina Blue shoe for each of our Heels!).
Monday, December 22, 2014
Heels Rise to #20 This Week, Kentucky Unanimous #1 for Third Straight Week
Hello "Corner" Readers!! I'm back from my Chicago trip and it was successful! HEELS came out victorious over Ohio State 82-74 and my friends and I thoroughly enjoyed Downtown Chicago (sight-seeing, art culture, bars, restaurants, Willis (Sears) Tower, United Center, Millennium Park, etc. Sorry to all the readers that were expecting a Clary's Carolina Corner pre- and post-game edition for the Ohio State game. However, due to the mini-vacation in Chi-Town and my hands being so greasy from Chicago-style Deep-Dish Pizza, I had no time to post the articles. With the vacation out of the way and the Christmas Holiday being over before the next UNC game, my next article posting will occur on-time for the UAB game on 12/27.
With that said, Week 7 Rankings have been released and here is the rundown:
AP Top 25
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina jumps up four spots to #20 in the AP Top 25. Last week, Carolina won big over UNC-G and upset #12 Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (10-0)
#4 Louisville (10-0)
#5 Virginia (11-0)
#16 Notre Dame (11-1)
#20 UNC (8-3)
Kentucky was the unanimous #1 choice for the third straight week. The Top 10 stayed pretty much intact except a flip-flop of #5 & #6 with Virginia hopping Wisconsin for the 5th ranking. that means the ACC has three teams in the Top 5. The Top 10 in order are Kentucky, Dook, Arizona, Louisville, Virginia, Wisconsin, Villanova, Gonzaga, Texas, Kansas.
Four teams dropped out of the AP Top 25 due to losses to unranked teams. Miami (Fl)'s disappointing loss to Eastern Kentucky kicked them out and Michigan State's startling loss at home to Texas Southern dropped them from the rankings. San Diego St and Butler also fell from the AP Top 25.
Four Out
Miami (Fl) (was #18)
San Diego St. (was #19)
Butler (was #23)
Michigan St. (was #25)
Four In
#22 Baylor
#23 Northern Iowa
#24 Colorado St.
#25 TCU
Miami (Fl) was the only other ACC team to receive votes for the AP Top 25 this week; however, those votes were not enough to place the Hurricanes into the Top 25.
With that said, Week 7 Rankings have been released and here is the rundown:
AP Top 25
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina jumps up four spots to #20 in the AP Top 25. Last week, Carolina won big over UNC-G and upset #12 Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (10-0)
#4 Louisville (10-0)
#5 Virginia (11-0)
#16 Notre Dame (11-1)
#20 UNC (8-3)
Kentucky was the unanimous #1 choice for the third straight week. The Top 10 stayed pretty much intact except a flip-flop of #5 & #6 with Virginia hopping Wisconsin for the 5th ranking. that means the ACC has three teams in the Top 5. The Top 10 in order are Kentucky, Dook, Arizona, Louisville, Virginia, Wisconsin, Villanova, Gonzaga, Texas, Kansas.
Four teams dropped out of the AP Top 25 due to losses to unranked teams. Miami (Fl)'s disappointing loss to Eastern Kentucky kicked them out and Michigan State's startling loss at home to Texas Southern dropped them from the rankings. San Diego St and Butler also fell from the AP Top 25.
Four Out
Miami (Fl) (was #18)
San Diego St. (was #19)
Butler (was #23)
Michigan St. (was #25)
Four In
#22 Baylor
#23 Northern Iowa
#24 Colorado St.
#25 TCU
Miami (Fl) was the only other ACC team to receive votes for the AP Top 25 this week; however, those votes were not enough to place the Hurricanes into the Top 25.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Tar Heels Dismantle the Spartans, Cruise to 79-56 Victory Over UNC-G
Kennedy Meeks muscled his way to a team-high 18 points as #24 North Carolina convincingly defeated another in-state foe Tuesday night, UNC-Greensboro, 79-56. Complete domination in the paint allowed the Heels to jump all over the Spartans early and never look back. An obvious size advantage in favor of the Heels was the glaring difference in this one. Carolina used its inside presence to beat down the Spartans and completely controlled the game throughout. Joel James matched a career-high in points with 11 in 16 efficient minutes of play off the bench showcasing nice footwork, good hands, and a sweet running skyhook.
Meeks and James were the only Tar Heels to score in double figures but Carolina shared the wealth inside on a night when UNC Preseason All-American Marcus Paige struggled mightily shooting the ball.
Paige finished only 1-of-8 from the field, 1-of-6 from 3 point range for six points, but the perimeter offense didn't need to shine on this night. That is because defense and rebounding ruled the evening. Carolina doubled up the Spartans on the glass, outrebounding UNC-G 51-25. 20 of those 51 rebounds came on the offensive glass, a place where UNC did major damage. Due to most of the scoring coming from inside the paint, Carolina made 49.2% (30-61) of its field goal attempts which definitely masked perimeter shooting woes where UNC only made 21.4% of its 3-point shots.
The Tar Heels succeeded in bouncing back from a tough road defeat to top-ranked Kentucky on Saturday by utilizing its size and length to overpower the injury-plagued Spartans. Depth played a huge role in the lop-sided victory for the Heels. In addition to James' double-digit scoring game, Isaiah Hicks was an inside presence with eight points. Also, Joel Berry II showed once again that he can contribute off the bench scoring eight points without committing one turnover. In fact, the Carolina bench outscored the Spartans 37-17 and highlighted the Spartan's lack of personnel in that area. UNC-G's Diante Baldwin (playing in only his 3rd game of the season due to an injury) netted 13 points off the bench but the scoring ran dry elsewhere among the Spartans' reserves.
Despite a horrible night for the Spartans shooting from 3-pt range and from the free throw line, Kayel Locke was a bright spot for UNC-G scoring 17 points and pulling down four rebounds. Team scoring leader Tevon Saddler (averaging 16.4 pts/gm coming in) was held to just six points on 3-of-8 shooting. Saddler was saddled with early foul trouble and eventually fouled out with 11:15 in the game. Not what UNC-G Coach Wes Miller, former Tar Heel and a member of the 2005 National Championship team coached by Roy Williams, had hoped for from his squad. Carolina's stingy defense created all sorts of shooting problems for the Spartans. When the UNC big men clogged the lane, UNC-G had one option and that was to shoot. Unfortunately for the Spartans, that didn't work out so well, either. In my pre-game analysis, I mentioned that UNC-G would have to shoot well from the perimeter Tuesday night to counter the Tar Heels size inside. But, UNC-G managed to make only 5-of-24 three-pointers (20.8%) and that average looks a little better due to a couple late 3's from Nicholas Paulos. Free throws didn't go any better as the Spartans made less than half of them (11-26 for 42.3%).
UNC still has a number of areas to work on and improve, mainly turnovers, as the Heels gave it away 17 times tonight (that's coming off a 18 turnover game versus Kentucky). J.P. Tokoto, after starting so clean in the early games, has begun to throw the ball away in high doses. Tokoto had another six turnover game (he had six against Kentucky) and Brice Johnson added four turnovers. Carolina will take full advantage of some practice time now that exams are done and there is no class during the holiday break. Coach Williams mentioned in his post-game news conference that he is looking forward to practices being "Long, Long, and Long" over the next coming days as the Heels prepare to meet #12 Ohio State in Chicago at the CBS Sports Classic on Saturday. UNC will have full practices on Wednesday and Thursday before flying to Chicago Thursday night. The Heels will then have a full practice on Friday in the United Center to get ready for Saturday's most important showdown with the Buckeyes.
The next four days are, undoubtedly, the most crucial days of the Tar Heels season to this point. Practice is exactly what the doctor ordered for this team and expect Carolina to immerse itself deeply in getting better and ironing out issues that keep popping up. Practice will bring a focus back to doing the right things and should have the Heels prepared for top competition in Chicago.
Official Box Score: UNC 79 - UNCG 56
Next Game: #24 North Carolina (7-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
#12 Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 20, 2014 @ 1:00pm EST
Location: United Center in Chicago, IL
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
Meeks and James were the only Tar Heels to score in double figures but Carolina shared the wealth inside on a night when UNC Preseason All-American Marcus Paige struggled mightily shooting the ball.
Paige finished only 1-of-8 from the field, 1-of-6 from 3 point range for six points, but the perimeter offense didn't need to shine on this night. That is because defense and rebounding ruled the evening. Carolina doubled up the Spartans on the glass, outrebounding UNC-G 51-25. 20 of those 51 rebounds came on the offensive glass, a place where UNC did major damage. Due to most of the scoring coming from inside the paint, Carolina made 49.2% (30-61) of its field goal attempts which definitely masked perimeter shooting woes where UNC only made 21.4% of its 3-point shots.
The Tar Heels succeeded in bouncing back from a tough road defeat to top-ranked Kentucky on Saturday by utilizing its size and length to overpower the injury-plagued Spartans. Depth played a huge role in the lop-sided victory for the Heels. In addition to James' double-digit scoring game, Isaiah Hicks was an inside presence with eight points. Also, Joel Berry II showed once again that he can contribute off the bench scoring eight points without committing one turnover. In fact, the Carolina bench outscored the Spartans 37-17 and highlighted the Spartan's lack of personnel in that area. UNC-G's Diante Baldwin (playing in only his 3rd game of the season due to an injury) netted 13 points off the bench but the scoring ran dry elsewhere among the Spartans' reserves.
Despite a horrible night for the Spartans shooting from 3-pt range and from the free throw line, Kayel Locke was a bright spot for UNC-G scoring 17 points and pulling down four rebounds. Team scoring leader Tevon Saddler (averaging 16.4 pts/gm coming in) was held to just six points on 3-of-8 shooting. Saddler was saddled with early foul trouble and eventually fouled out with 11:15 in the game. Not what UNC-G Coach Wes Miller, former Tar Heel and a member of the 2005 National Championship team coached by Roy Williams, had hoped for from his squad. Carolina's stingy defense created all sorts of shooting problems for the Spartans. When the UNC big men clogged the lane, UNC-G had one option and that was to shoot. Unfortunately for the Spartans, that didn't work out so well, either. In my pre-game analysis, I mentioned that UNC-G would have to shoot well from the perimeter Tuesday night to counter the Tar Heels size inside. But, UNC-G managed to make only 5-of-24 three-pointers (20.8%) and that average looks a little better due to a couple late 3's from Nicholas Paulos. Free throws didn't go any better as the Spartans made less than half of them (11-26 for 42.3%).
UNC still has a number of areas to work on and improve, mainly turnovers, as the Heels gave it away 17 times tonight (that's coming off a 18 turnover game versus Kentucky). J.P. Tokoto, after starting so clean in the early games, has begun to throw the ball away in high doses. Tokoto had another six turnover game (he had six against Kentucky) and Brice Johnson added four turnovers. Carolina will take full advantage of some practice time now that exams are done and there is no class during the holiday break. Coach Williams mentioned in his post-game news conference that he is looking forward to practices being "Long, Long, and Long" over the next coming days as the Heels prepare to meet #12 Ohio State in Chicago at the CBS Sports Classic on Saturday. UNC will have full practices on Wednesday and Thursday before flying to Chicago Thursday night. The Heels will then have a full practice on Friday in the United Center to get ready for Saturday's most important showdown with the Buckeyes.
The next four days are, undoubtedly, the most crucial days of the Tar Heels season to this point. Practice is exactly what the doctor ordered for this team and expect Carolina to immerse itself deeply in getting better and ironing out issues that keep popping up. Practice will bring a focus back to doing the right things and should have the Heels prepared for top competition in Chicago.
Official Box Score: UNC 79 - UNCG 56
Next Game: #24 North Carolina (7-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
#12 Ohio State Buckeyes (8-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 20, 2014 @ 1:00pm EST
Location: United Center in Chicago, IL
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
Heels Stay on the Road, Tangle with UNC-G in Greensboro Coliseum
Matchup: #24 North Carolina (6-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
UNC-Greensboro Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern)
Date/Time: Tuesday, December 16, 2014 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
It will be Students vs. Teacher tonight in the Greensboro Coliseum as Roy Williams brings his North Carolina Tar Heels into town to face-off with the UNC-Greensboro Spartans. Two of Williams' former players, UNC-G Head Coach Wes Miller and Assistant Coach Jackie Manuel, were part of Carolina's 2005 National Championship team. For the second straight year, Carolina will matchup with the Spartans and this time around UNC-G hosts the Heels. Carolina (6-3, 0-0 ACC) will be suiting up for its second of three straight road games as UNC hopes to rebound from a loss to top-ranked Kentucky on Saturday afternoon in Rupp Arena. The Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern) had an extremely rough start to the 2014-2015 season dropping six straight contests at one point (including defeats at the hands of UNC-Wilmington, Longwood, and Indiana to name a few). However, UNC-G has bounced back and is on a three-game winning streak after toppling conference-rival East Tennessee State on Saturday 80-79. Tonight, UNC-G begins a stretch of four straight non-conference games before jumping back into the Southern Conference schedule. Carolina is looking to begin a winning streak of its own and it all starts tonight in the familiar confines of the Greensboro Coliseum.
vs
UNC-Greensboro Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern)
Date/Time: Tuesday, December 16, 2014 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
It will be Students vs. Teacher tonight in the Greensboro Coliseum as Roy Williams brings his North Carolina Tar Heels into town to face-off with the UNC-Greensboro Spartans. Two of Williams' former players, UNC-G Head Coach Wes Miller and Assistant Coach Jackie Manuel, were part of Carolina's 2005 National Championship team. For the second straight year, Carolina will matchup with the Spartans and this time around UNC-G hosts the Heels. Carolina (6-3, 0-0 ACC) will be suiting up for its second of three straight road games as UNC hopes to rebound from a loss to top-ranked Kentucky on Saturday afternoon in Rupp Arena. The Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern) had an extremely rough start to the 2014-2015 season dropping six straight contests at one point (including defeats at the hands of UNC-Wilmington, Longwood, and Indiana to name a few). However, UNC-G has bounced back and is on a three-game winning streak after toppling conference-rival East Tennessee State on Saturday 80-79. Tonight, UNC-G begins a stretch of four straight non-conference games before jumping back into the Southern Conference schedule. Carolina is looking to begin a winning streak of its own and it all starts tonight in the familiar confines of the Greensboro Coliseum.
The beginning of that streak will have to come at the expense of two former Tar Heels. Wes Miller is in his third year as Head Coach of the Spartans and many Carolina Faithful remember his days on campus. Miller redshirted during Roy Williams first year with Carolina (2003-2004) after transferring over from James Madison. Wes would play three seasons with Carolina, winning a National Championship in 2005 with Raymond Felton and Sean May and served as team captain in the 2006-2007 UNC season. UNC-G Assistant Coach Jackie Manuel also had a hand in the 2005 Championship team. As a junior and senior, Manuel earned All-ACC Defensive Team honors and was consistently praised by Coach Williams for his extra effort and skill on the defensive end. Now, can Miller and Manual translate the success with the Heels to success against the Heels? It will take a monumental defensive effort from the Spartans to slow down Carolina.
With final exams in the rear-view mirror and coming off a hard defeat to Kentucky, UNC players are looking to take out some major aggression on the Spartans. And, there are quite a few aspects of this game that seem to lie in the Tar Heels' favor. First being the seemingly glowing rebounding advantage Carolina holds over the Spartans. The Tar Heels come into tonight's contest averaging 43.6 rebounds/game while the Spartans are only pulling down 32.5 boards/game. UNC-G has been outrebounded by their opponents this season, only mustering 325 rebounds to it opponents' total of 343. Expect UNC post players to be more physical and focus on boxing out the Spartans. UNC sophomore Kennedy Meeks has excelled this season with his post play averaging close to a double-double for the year. Meeks' 9.4 rebs/gm lead the Heels and his ability to dominate the paint tonight could go a long way in commanding Carolina to victory. Brice Johnson has to be thrown into the mix when talking about post player domination. Johnson had a stellar first half versus Kentucky and has played very well the last two games. Look for Johnson to continue pushing himself to be much tougher and aggressive than many give him credit for. Meeks and Johnson are both averaging double figure scoring marks at 13.3 and 11.7, respectively. Carolina's leading scorer, Marcus Paige, may have an edge in this one as well.
UNC-G allows its opponents to make 40.3% of its three-point field goals and tonight could be as good a night as any for Paige to continue shooting the rock like he did in the second half versus Kentucky. Paige has, at times, looked uncomfortable with his shot and somewhat timid offensively this season. But, when he drilled home four 3-pointers in the final 20 minutes versus the Wildcats, you got the feeling that Paige's confidence received an adrenaline shot. The Heels would love to have Paige keep the confidence flowing as it nears another huge matchup this weekend in Chicago versus Ohio State. If Paige can deliver a high-scoring game against UNC-G, his confidence may be soaring through the roof come Saturday afternoon.
With that said, another Tar Heel that could use some confidence-building is freshman Justin Jackson. Besides Paige, Jackson is the only other Carolina player that has started all nine games for the Heels. Jackson has shown glimpses of his true talent, especially early when he scored 18 points on the road against Davidson and 13 points for games in the Bahamas versus UCLA and Florida. However, since that time, Jackson has significantly struggled shooting just 15 of his last 44 from the field and averaging just 3 rebounds/game. Jackson has noticeably rushed his shot and, lately due to his low shooting percentage, he has faded throughout the game (he spent most of the second half versus Kentucky on the bench). Coach Williams believes it's only a matter of time before Jackson breaks out with a big game.
"He needs to be more positive with what he does," Williams said on his radio show Monday night. "It's like John Wooden used to say, 'Be quick but don't hurry."
Williams has always stated that Jackson seems the most likely to emerge beside Paige as a tremendous perimeter threat; we're just waiting for that moment. Jackson does have a good stroke (he is shooting 78.9% from the free throw line), it just means harnessing the freshman jitters and that will come with more games played. Let's hope his breakout moment comes sooner, rather than later. Either way, Jackson is definitely a key player to watch as the season moves forward and he grows into his role on the team.
UNC-G has been playing with an injury-plagued lineup which has crippled Coach Miller's team depth. The Spartans lean heavily on the starting five as all of those players are averaging almost triple the playing time as any other players off the bench. Last season's Southern Conference (SoCon) Player of the Year Tevon Saddler is having another excellent start. Saddler leads the Spartans in scoring with 16.4 points/game includiing back-to-back 24 point efforts against Greensboro College and East Tennessee State. With all that scoring comes an Achilles' Heel for Saddler...he turns the ball over at an unbelievably high rate. He has 45 turnovers already this season (4.5 per game) and it is not a new trend. He has been turning the ball over consistently throughout his first two seasons as a Spartan. Look for Carolina to force Saddler into bad decisions which could lead Carolina into fast-break transition opportunities to speed up the game in UNC's favor.
The Spartans have a few perimeter shooters on its team and, with Carolina's size advantage downlow, perimeter shots may come at a premium for UNC-G. Sharpshooters Nicholas Paulos and Clay Byrd are the most effective from three-point land. Paulos has splashed 33 of 70 3's this year (47.1%) and Byrd is not too shabby himself, nailing 25 of 76 3's (32.9%). So, the Spartans have proven they can make the outside shot and Carolina's perimeter defense must be on its toes and aggressive with hands in the face of each shot. This is one aspect of the game that the Spartans have an advantage in on paper. A true test to whether the Spartans can keep it close will be its ability to connect from long-range.
This will be only the second meeting in history between North Carolina and its in-state counterpart UNC-Greensboro. As mentioned earlier, Carolina won the only other meeting, last year, 81-50 in the Dean Dome. Coach Williams has a 2-0 record over UNC-G, as his other victory came with the 2002 Kansas team who defeated the Spartans by a wide margin of 105-66.
"He needs to be more positive with what he does," Williams said on his radio show Monday night. "It's like John Wooden used to say, 'Be quick but don't hurry."
Williams has always stated that Jackson seems the most likely to emerge beside Paige as a tremendous perimeter threat; we're just waiting for that moment. Jackson does have a good stroke (he is shooting 78.9% from the free throw line), it just means harnessing the freshman jitters and that will come with more games played. Let's hope his breakout moment comes sooner, rather than later. Either way, Jackson is definitely a key player to watch as the season moves forward and he grows into his role on the team.
UNC-G has been playing with an injury-plagued lineup which has crippled Coach Miller's team depth. The Spartans lean heavily on the starting five as all of those players are averaging almost triple the playing time as any other players off the bench. Last season's Southern Conference (SoCon) Player of the Year Tevon Saddler is having another excellent start. Saddler leads the Spartans in scoring with 16.4 points/game includiing back-to-back 24 point efforts against Greensboro College and East Tennessee State. With all that scoring comes an Achilles' Heel for Saddler...he turns the ball over at an unbelievably high rate. He has 45 turnovers already this season (4.5 per game) and it is not a new trend. He has been turning the ball over consistently throughout his first two seasons as a Spartan. Look for Carolina to force Saddler into bad decisions which could lead Carolina into fast-break transition opportunities to speed up the game in UNC's favor.
The Spartans have a few perimeter shooters on its team and, with Carolina's size advantage downlow, perimeter shots may come at a premium for UNC-G. Sharpshooters Nicholas Paulos and Clay Byrd are the most effective from three-point land. Paulos has splashed 33 of 70 3's this year (47.1%) and Byrd is not too shabby himself, nailing 25 of 76 3's (32.9%). So, the Spartans have proven they can make the outside shot and Carolina's perimeter defense must be on its toes and aggressive with hands in the face of each shot. This is one aspect of the game that the Spartans have an advantage in on paper. A true test to whether the Spartans can keep it close will be its ability to connect from long-range.
This will be only the second meeting in history between North Carolina and its in-state counterpart UNC-Greensboro. As mentioned earlier, Carolina won the only other meeting, last year, 81-50 in the Dean Dome. Coach Williams has a 2-0 record over UNC-G, as his other victory came with the 2002 Kansas team who defeated the Spartans by a wide margin of 105-66.
Monday, December 15, 2014
UNC dips to #24 this week, Kentucky remains strong at #1
AP Top 25
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina drops three spots to #24 in the AP Top 25. Carolina blew out ECU this week, but lost to top-ranked Kentucky 84-70.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (8-0)
#4 Louisville (9-0)
#6 Virginia (9-0)
#18 Miami (Fl) (9-1)
#21 Notre Dame (10-1)
#24 UNC (6-3)
Kentucky was, once again, the unanimous #1 choice this week as the Top 10 stayed pretty much intact except a flip-flop of #8 & #9 with Gonzaga leapfrogging Texas for the 8th ranking. Top 10 in order are Kentucky, Dook, Arizona, Louisville, Wisconsin, Virginia, Villanova, Gonzaga, Texas, Kansas.
Only one team dropped out of the AP Top 25 this week and that was Northern Iowa after its Double-OT loss to VCU.
One Out
Northern Iowa (was #23)
One In
#25 Michigan State
No other ACC teams received votes for the AP Top 25 this week.
ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina drops three spots to #24 in the AP Top 25. Carolina blew out ECU this week, but lost to top-ranked Kentucky 84-70.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (8-0)
#4 Louisville (9-0)
#6 Virginia (9-0)
#18 Miami (Fl) (9-1)
#21 Notre Dame (10-1)
#24 UNC (6-3)
Kentucky was, once again, the unanimous #1 choice this week as the Top 10 stayed pretty much intact except a flip-flop of #8 & #9 with Gonzaga leapfrogging Texas for the 8th ranking. Top 10 in order are Kentucky, Dook, Arizona, Louisville, Wisconsin, Virginia, Villanova, Gonzaga, Texas, Kansas.
Only one team dropped out of the AP Top 25 this week and that was Northern Iowa after its Double-OT loss to VCU.
One Out
Northern Iowa (was #23)
One In
#25 Michigan State
No other ACC teams received votes for the AP Top 25 this week.
#1 Kentucky downs Carolina 84-70; Perimeter shooting key in UK win
First of all, I would like to apologize for the late blogspot on this game. It's the holiday season, as you know, and my family visited Ashley and I this weekend. Due to time spent with my parents and then having to work Midnight-Eight today, I have been unable to produce a blog on the UK/UNC game until now. As we all move through Christmastime, I will continue to provide the best insight into Carolina basketball that I can; but there may be a couple of games where I am just a tad bit behind on publishing my posts because of the hectic holiday schedule. However, I'm back in the saddle and ready to talk about Saturday's game. So, let's dive into it, shall we...
Backed by a breakout three-point shooting performance, incredible depth and size, and a tenacious defense, the Kentucky Wildcats upended the visiting North Carolina Tar Heels, 84-70 Saturday afternoon in Lexington. On a day where the 'Cats played its first game without vocal leader Alex Poythress, everything clicked and top-ranked Kentucky never trailed in this one. Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein led the Wildcats (11-0, 0-0 SEC) with 15 points apiece, in front of a raucous Rupp Arena crowd, and overwhelmed the #21 Heels (6-3, 0-0 ACC) with their athleticism, defensive hustle, and accuracy from behind the 3-point arc.
Brice Johnson paced the Heels with 15 points and Marcus Paige used a flurry of offense in the second half to net 14 total points.
Johnson beat the Wildcats down the floor on a number of occasions early in the first half, but never could gain traction in the half-court offensive sets due to Kentucky clamping down effectively on defense for most of the game. The stifling D brought forth by the kids from Lexington proved too much for Carolina and forced the Heels into some silly turnovers (UK totaled a a season-high 12 steals). Carolina came in to the game averaging 13.2 turnovers/game, but coughed it up an excessive 19 times on Saturday. Kentucky was efficient in producing points off those turnovers, as well, edging UNC 23-13 in that category.
But, it was the red-hot perimeter shooting in the first half that deflated the Heels' sails from the start. Carolina started the game in a 2-3 zone looking to pack the defense downlow, which was a great coaching call considering the Wildcats came into Saturday's game shooting 27.7% from 3. It backfired, however, when Kentucky drained two early threes in succession and continued to heat up from the outside. Booker returned after missing a game and delivered immediately. He finished a perfect 3-for-3 from long range and 5-for-8 from the field. Kentucky guard, Aaron Harrison also joined in on the fun by ending a 2-for-12 slump entering the game to knock down three 3's and finish with 14 points. I said in my pre-game analysis that whichever team could catch fire from the outside would probably have the best chance to win. Prophetic words from Clary's Carolina Corner as the Heels were pushed into a halftime hole, trailing 49-34 as the 'Cats combined to score 31 points off of three-pointers and free throws in the first 20 minutes of play. Carolina only had 6 points in the first half from those corresponding categories.
Shooting was off the charts for both teams in the first half, UK was 55.6% from the field while Carolina followed closely behind at 53.6%. As mentioned before, creating turnovers and getting to the foul line kept the 'Cats in the lead. On the other hand, Carolina sunk to 37.5% shooting in the second half and the Wildcats bettered their first half mark by shooting 57.1% in the second stanza. With the double-digit lead, Kentucky turned its focus from perimeter offense to hustle and fast break scoring. Cauley-Stein brought energy and aggressiveness directly at the Heels and his intensity on both ends outshined any chance the Heels had at a second-half comeback. With Carolina cutting the deficit to 66-57 behind Paige's reemergence from the perimeter, Kentucky called upon Cauley-Stein to make the big plays. Coming up with steals, diving on the floor for loose balls, and finishing the fast break with a thunderous jam was all Kentucky needed to shut down the Heels comeback effort.
UNC Coach Roy Williams spoke about Cauley-Stein's play after the game saying, "He effects the game in every way, he blocks shots, gets steals, ges follow-dunks, and gets dunks from guard penetration throwing it up around the rim, he goes and gets it, but he is a complete player." Williams continued, "Their defense was so much stronger and I think that was the dominating thing in the game. And Willie was the spearhead."
UNC's star guard, Paige, gave an All-American effort for a stint midway through the second half, finally breaking out of a so-called "slump". He drilled 4 three-pointers in that time to bring Carolina within striking distance, only to have the Wildcats rip it away. Getting Paige back on track was a great sign for North Carolina and, if the junior from Marion, Iowa can move forward with this confidence, the season should blossom for him and the Heels. Another wonderful sign for Carolina, is that it outrebounded a Kentucky team that has dominated its opposition in that category. UK came into the game with 424 total rebounds to 304 total boards from its opposing teams, so to see the Heels have so much success on the backboards versus so much size and length was enlightening. Admittedly, Kentucky made a high percentage of field-goal attempts, so the chance for rebounds was scarce. But, you cannot deny the numbers and Carolina won the rebounding battle.
The war was won, though, with Kentucky's intense passion and will to win. The Wildcats pulled out all the stops en route to another double-digit victory over tough competition. The emotion was strong all day for UK as players were determined to perform and execute to back up the loss of their leader Poythress. With Poythress sidelined by a Torn ACL that occurred in Thursday's practice, Kentucky showed their support by wearing blue "Roar for 22" shirts in pre-game warmups and the crowd went wild with vocal support when Poythress made his appearance on crutches.
All in all, the atmosphere and stellar play by the number-one ranked Wildcats proved too much for the Heels on this day in December. The season is early, though, and Carolina can definitely improve upon its deficiencies. The loss was a less somber one than the Butler and Iowa defeats as the Carolina locker room was described as seeing this result as more "instructive" than head-hanging. Competing against one heck of team on the road in the early months of the season and one heck of a crowd (9th largest all-time UK home attendance in legendary Rupp Arena) will come in handy big-time once the Heels embark on the 18-game ACC slate.
Carolina finds itself on the cusp of an important seven-day stretch. The Tar Heels will remain on the road as they visit UNC-Greensboro on Tuesday night (UNC-G is coached by former Carolina player, Wes Miller) and then the Heels travel to the United Center in Chicago to play #12 Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic. If the Heels can defeat the Buckeyes next Saturday in a critical non-conference matchup, that would mean Carolina would enter ACC play having three solid wins out of conference by beating UCLA, Florida, and Ohio State. One would expect Carolina to compete at the top of the standings in a loaded ACC this year. On the other hand, if Carolina were to lose to the Buckeyes, that would mean four non-conference losses and the need for Carolina to have some major impressive wins during ACC action.
Personally, I am gearing up for the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago. I will be attending the game with friends versus Ohio State on Saturday in the United Center (home of my Chicago Bulls!) and I will be checking out the Kentucky/UCLA game that follows the Heels/Buckeyes. So excited for my trip and following the Heels to a classic destination! More on that mid-week. For now, Carolina will gear up to face the Spartans of UNC-Greensboro led by basketball-savvy coach Wes Miller. I'm 100% sure it will make UNC Coach Roy Williams a very proud man to see one of his own players doing what he loves.
But, it will make him even more proud to see his current players taking care of business on the road..Tar Heels-style!
Next Game: #24 North Carolina (6-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
UNC-Greensboro Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern)
Date/Time: Tuesday, December 16, 2014 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
Backed by a breakout three-point shooting performance, incredible depth and size, and a tenacious defense, the Kentucky Wildcats upended the visiting North Carolina Tar Heels, 84-70 Saturday afternoon in Lexington. On a day where the 'Cats played its first game without vocal leader Alex Poythress, everything clicked and top-ranked Kentucky never trailed in this one. Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein led the Wildcats (11-0, 0-0 SEC) with 15 points apiece, in front of a raucous Rupp Arena crowd, and overwhelmed the #21 Heels (6-3, 0-0 ACC) with their athleticism, defensive hustle, and accuracy from behind the 3-point arc.
Brice Johnson paced the Heels with 15 points and Marcus Paige used a flurry of offense in the second half to net 14 total points.
Johnson beat the Wildcats down the floor on a number of occasions early in the first half, but never could gain traction in the half-court offensive sets due to Kentucky clamping down effectively on defense for most of the game. The stifling D brought forth by the kids from Lexington proved too much for Carolina and forced the Heels into some silly turnovers (UK totaled a a season-high 12 steals). Carolina came in to the game averaging 13.2 turnovers/game, but coughed it up an excessive 19 times on Saturday. Kentucky was efficient in producing points off those turnovers, as well, edging UNC 23-13 in that category.
But, it was the red-hot perimeter shooting in the first half that deflated the Heels' sails from the start. Carolina started the game in a 2-3 zone looking to pack the defense downlow, which was a great coaching call considering the Wildcats came into Saturday's game shooting 27.7% from 3. It backfired, however, when Kentucky drained two early threes in succession and continued to heat up from the outside. Booker returned after missing a game and delivered immediately. He finished a perfect 3-for-3 from long range and 5-for-8 from the field. Kentucky guard, Aaron Harrison also joined in on the fun by ending a 2-for-12 slump entering the game to knock down three 3's and finish with 14 points. I said in my pre-game analysis that whichever team could catch fire from the outside would probably have the best chance to win. Prophetic words from Clary's Carolina Corner as the Heels were pushed into a halftime hole, trailing 49-34 as the 'Cats combined to score 31 points off of three-pointers and free throws in the first 20 minutes of play. Carolina only had 6 points in the first half from those corresponding categories.
Shooting was off the charts for both teams in the first half, UK was 55.6% from the field while Carolina followed closely behind at 53.6%. As mentioned before, creating turnovers and getting to the foul line kept the 'Cats in the lead. On the other hand, Carolina sunk to 37.5% shooting in the second half and the Wildcats bettered their first half mark by shooting 57.1% in the second stanza. With the double-digit lead, Kentucky turned its focus from perimeter offense to hustle and fast break scoring. Cauley-Stein brought energy and aggressiveness directly at the Heels and his intensity on both ends outshined any chance the Heels had at a second-half comeback. With Carolina cutting the deficit to 66-57 behind Paige's reemergence from the perimeter, Kentucky called upon Cauley-Stein to make the big plays. Coming up with steals, diving on the floor for loose balls, and finishing the fast break with a thunderous jam was all Kentucky needed to shut down the Heels comeback effort.
UNC Coach Roy Williams spoke about Cauley-Stein's play after the game saying, "He effects the game in every way, he blocks shots, gets steals, ges follow-dunks, and gets dunks from guard penetration throwing it up around the rim, he goes and gets it, but he is a complete player." Williams continued, "Their defense was so much stronger and I think that was the dominating thing in the game. And Willie was the spearhead."
UNC's star guard, Paige, gave an All-American effort for a stint midway through the second half, finally breaking out of a so-called "slump". He drilled 4 three-pointers in that time to bring Carolina within striking distance, only to have the Wildcats rip it away. Getting Paige back on track was a great sign for North Carolina and, if the junior from Marion, Iowa can move forward with this confidence, the season should blossom for him and the Heels. Another wonderful sign for Carolina, is that it outrebounded a Kentucky team that has dominated its opposition in that category. UK came into the game with 424 total rebounds to 304 total boards from its opposing teams, so to see the Heels have so much success on the backboards versus so much size and length was enlightening. Admittedly, Kentucky made a high percentage of field-goal attempts, so the chance for rebounds was scarce. But, you cannot deny the numbers and Carolina won the rebounding battle.
The war was won, though, with Kentucky's intense passion and will to win. The Wildcats pulled out all the stops en route to another double-digit victory over tough competition. The emotion was strong all day for UK as players were determined to perform and execute to back up the loss of their leader Poythress. With Poythress sidelined by a Torn ACL that occurred in Thursday's practice, Kentucky showed their support by wearing blue "Roar for 22" shirts in pre-game warmups and the crowd went wild with vocal support when Poythress made his appearance on crutches.
All in all, the atmosphere and stellar play by the number-one ranked Wildcats proved too much for the Heels on this day in December. The season is early, though, and Carolina can definitely improve upon its deficiencies. The loss was a less somber one than the Butler and Iowa defeats as the Carolina locker room was described as seeing this result as more "instructive" than head-hanging. Competing against one heck of team on the road in the early months of the season and one heck of a crowd (9th largest all-time UK home attendance in legendary Rupp Arena) will come in handy big-time once the Heels embark on the 18-game ACC slate.
Carolina finds itself on the cusp of an important seven-day stretch. The Tar Heels will remain on the road as they visit UNC-Greensboro on Tuesday night (UNC-G is coached by former Carolina player, Wes Miller) and then the Heels travel to the United Center in Chicago to play #12 Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic. If the Heels can defeat the Buckeyes next Saturday in a critical non-conference matchup, that would mean Carolina would enter ACC play having three solid wins out of conference by beating UCLA, Florida, and Ohio State. One would expect Carolina to compete at the top of the standings in a loaded ACC this year. On the other hand, if Carolina were to lose to the Buckeyes, that would mean four non-conference losses and the need for Carolina to have some major impressive wins during ACC action.
Personally, I am gearing up for the CBS Sports Classic in Chicago. I will be attending the game with friends versus Ohio State on Saturday in the United Center (home of my Chicago Bulls!) and I will be checking out the Kentucky/UCLA game that follows the Heels/Buckeyes. So excited for my trip and following the Heels to a classic destination! More on that mid-week. For now, Carolina will gear up to face the Spartans of UNC-Greensboro led by basketball-savvy coach Wes Miller. I'm 100% sure it will make UNC Coach Roy Williams a very proud man to see one of his own players doing what he loves.
But, it will make him even more proud to see his current players taking care of business on the road..Tar Heels-style!
Next Game: #24 North Carolina (6-3, 0-0 ACC)
vs
UNC-Greensboro Spartans (4-6, 1-0 Southern)
Date/Time: Tuesday, December 16, 2014 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN2 or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
Saturday, December 13, 2014
Battle of Blue Bloods Takes National Spotlight; Carolina Visits #1-Ranked Kentucky
Matchup: #21 North Carolina (6-2, 0-0 ACC)
vs
#1 Kentucky Wildcats (10-0, 0-0 SEC)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 13, 2014 @ 12:00pm EST
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
Storied rivalries exude passion, intensity, and excitement...all of these characteristics, and more, are embodied by two true blue bloods of college basketball. North Carolina and Kentucky, two of the three winningest teams in history, will collide in a Saturday afternoon marquee showdown on Rupp Arena's legendary court. Two programs that have long been considered standard bearers of the sport rekindle an intense non-conference tilt that will have all eyes fixated on Lexington. The #21-ranked Tar Heels travel to the "Bluegrass State" in search of its 14th win over a #1-ranked Associated Press squad while the Wildcats focus on overcoming a season-ending injury to one of its leaders and staying undefeated.
Carolina (6-2, 0-0 ACC) will be shooting for the upset Saturday as it matches up with an extremely good Kentucky team. The Wildcats (10-0, 0-0 SEC) have looked very impressive so far this season by dominating the opposition with size, strength and aggressive defense. The Tar Heels have not encountered, as of yet, the overall height and sheer athleticism that Kentucky brings to the table. Carolina post players, mainly Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson, will go toe-to-toe with freshman Karl-Anthony Towns and a pair of 7-footers downlow (Dakari Johnson and Willie Cauley-Stein). Towns has been a beast on the boards but where he, and the rest of the Wildcats, excels is in swatting the opposing teams' shots. Towns leads Kentucky with 28 blocks already (that's 2.8 blocks/game). Kentucky, as a team, blocks more than 25 percent of its opponents' 2-pt field goals! That number is a definite eye-opener and could be a big factor in stymieing Carolina's offensive production. Meeks, Johnson, and other Tar Heels must use their own athleticism and fundamentals to position themselves closer to the basket and take it up strong against the Wildcats.
If the Heels can manage to get the ball past the flyswatters, offensive rebounding will likely be a key ingredient in Carolina's winning formula. Coming into the game, Kentucky has not been as good of a defensive rebounding team, actually below average. Carolina averages 16.9 offensive rebounds per game and attacking the glass for missed offensive attempts would indicate a more hard-nosed and grittier style of play that UNC Coach Roy Williams and staff have been dying to see consistently on the court. The Heels will need all the extra effort plays and, I believe, offensive rebounding will be the perfect place to ignite production on the offensive end.
Carolina, all season long, has had a deeper bench advantage on its opposition; however, Saturday's game versus Kentucky is the exact opposite. The Heels have used a floating rotation of nine to ten players throughout the year, but the Wildcats use 12 guys with nine of those players averaging over 17.9 minutes/game. UK Coach John Calipari has the luxury this season of playing two full rotations of exceptionally talented athletes. As Tar Heel fans remember the classic "Blue Team" substitution used by Hall of Famer and legend Dean Smith (subbing in 5 scrappy players at once), Calipari does the same type of substitutions all game long. More recently, you know when you see Coach Williams get mad at his Carolina lineup on the court and he substitutes for all five men at the same time, well, Calipari does this as a "platoon" strategy...just because he can. Calipari will routinely sub five guys for five guys ensuring that all of his players are well rested down the stretch. Quite a testament to the type of recruits that the Kentucky coaching staff has reeled in to the University. It will be interesting to see if Calipari sticks with this substitution scheme after one of his team's leaders fell victim to a Torn ACL injury during practice Thursday afternoon.
Alex Poythress, Junior forward for the Wildcats, landed awkwardly on his left leg after a layup during a Thursday scrimmage, tearing his ACL, ending his season, and it has emotionally affected the whole Wildcats team. Poythress was averaging 5.5 pts/gm, 3.3 reb/gm, and 1.2 blocks/gm, an upperclassmen and someone the younger players on the team looked up too. Will the Wildcats be able to move past this disappointing loss only 48 hours after finding out the news? Only time will tell, but it is certain the Kentucky players are heartbroken. Rightfully so. Suite mate and best friend of Poythress, UK leading scorer (10.3 pts/gm) Cauley-Stein puts the Poythress loss in perspective when he says, "Nobody can make the plays that he makes. He's a freak athlete. (He) does special things you can't replace." Cauley-Stein continues, "So now we've got to figure out how to play differently. That's going to be the biggest thing is how we're going to play now, what lineups are we going to use if we still use the platoon system, and if we do, just make it work."
So, can the Heels capitalize on a Kentucky squad that will be tinkering with its lineup and bench substitutions? It may be the best time to strike. In order to pull off an incredible victory on the road, one must think that Carolina's leading scorer, Marcus Paige, needs to have a "Paige-like" game to really get his rhythm going. Yes, Paige leads the Heels in points per game (14.0 pts/gm). But, we have yet to see the dynamite, explosive scoring outbursts this year that Tar Heel fans in Chapel Hill and across the nation have grown accustomed to seeing. With both teams struggling so far from 3-point range (Carolina 28.0% and Kentucky 27.7%), Paige finding his shot in Lexington could do wonders for the Heels' chances in this one. Shot-blocking is Kentucky's claim to fame and one way to counteract the blocks is to avoid them. Shooting the basketball well from the outside could force the Wildcats into tighter half-court perimeter defense which would enable slashers like J.P. Tokoto and Justin Jackson to attack the rim with authority. Kentucky has been able to sink back on defense this year and clog up the lane, creating more opportunities for blocked shots. Expect perimeter shooters such as Paige, Nate Britt, Jackson, and even Tokoto to look for their shot early to see if they can catch fire against a top-tier Kentucky defense.
The Heels are no slouch on D, either. UNC ranks third in the ACC and fifth nationally in opponents' field goal percentage, at 33.5% (Kentucky is 1st in that category...told you the Wildcats were good). UNC is performing at one of its highest defensive levels in the Roy Williams-era. So far, in each of its eight games, the Tar Heels have limited opponents to an under-40% field-goal percentage. That is the longest such streak since Coach Williams donned the Carolina-blue jacket 12 years ago. Carolina must force Kentucky's perimeter into bad shots and, most importantly, turnovers. Turnovers could touch off a bevy of fast breaks and transition points that would put the Tar Heels in a much more comfortable position controlling the tempo and causing havoc for opposing offenses. Continuing this splendid defensive trend is absolutely not out of the question for the Heels, but it is going to take some muscle and physicality to push the Wildcats away from the basket and force them to shoot a higher dosage of perimeter shots (UK shoots 46.6% from 2-pt range and 27.7% from 3-pt range). The Wildcats are looking to do the same thing to the Heels (Carolina shoots 44.9% from 2-pt range and 28.0% from 3-pt range). In my opinion, whichever team can light it up from the outside on a more consistent basis, that will be the team that comes away the victor.
This will be the 37th meeting between the two schools. Carolina holds the all-time advantage with a 23-13 record over the Wildcats, including wins in seven of the last 10 matchups. Last year, Carolina beat Kentucky 82-77 behind an impressive game from Marcus Paige. Paige scored 21 points in the second half to combine with James Michael McAdoo and Tokoto as leading scorers for the Heels.
As I mentioned earlier, Kentucky ranks 1st and Carolina ranks 3rd in all-time NCAA victories. Kentucky has 2,150 wins to Carolina's 2,120 W's. Kansas is the other blue blood in the middle with 2,133. UK and UNC lead the stat sheet when it comes to the NCAA Tournament, as well. The basketball powerhouses top the list in NCAA Tournament appearances, games, and wins with UNC holding the record of 18 Final Four appearances.
Saturday will be a giant mountain for the Heels to climb on the road in Lexington. But, if it's one thing the Tar Heels have been in its history, that is...Giant Killers! If UNC can bring Clary's 5 P's to Rupp Arena...Poise, Pride, Passion, Perseverance, and Performance, another upset of a #1 could be in the making.
vs
#1 Kentucky Wildcats (10-0, 0-0 SEC)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 13, 2014 @ 12:00pm EST
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
Storied rivalries exude passion, intensity, and excitement...all of these characteristics, and more, are embodied by two true blue bloods of college basketball. North Carolina and Kentucky, two of the three winningest teams in history, will collide in a Saturday afternoon marquee showdown on Rupp Arena's legendary court. Two programs that have long been considered standard bearers of the sport rekindle an intense non-conference tilt that will have all eyes fixated on Lexington. The #21-ranked Tar Heels travel to the "Bluegrass State" in search of its 14th win over a #1-ranked Associated Press squad while the Wildcats focus on overcoming a season-ending injury to one of its leaders and staying undefeated.
Carolina (6-2, 0-0 ACC) will be shooting for the upset Saturday as it matches up with an extremely good Kentucky team. The Wildcats (10-0, 0-0 SEC) have looked very impressive so far this season by dominating the opposition with size, strength and aggressive defense. The Tar Heels have not encountered, as of yet, the overall height and sheer athleticism that Kentucky brings to the table. Carolina post players, mainly Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson, will go toe-to-toe with freshman Karl-Anthony Towns and a pair of 7-footers downlow (Dakari Johnson and Willie Cauley-Stein). Towns has been a beast on the boards but where he, and the rest of the Wildcats, excels is in swatting the opposing teams' shots. Towns leads Kentucky with 28 blocks already (that's 2.8 blocks/game). Kentucky, as a team, blocks more than 25 percent of its opponents' 2-pt field goals! That number is a definite eye-opener and could be a big factor in stymieing Carolina's offensive production. Meeks, Johnson, and other Tar Heels must use their own athleticism and fundamentals to position themselves closer to the basket and take it up strong against the Wildcats.
If the Heels can manage to get the ball past the flyswatters, offensive rebounding will likely be a key ingredient in Carolina's winning formula. Coming into the game, Kentucky has not been as good of a defensive rebounding team, actually below average. Carolina averages 16.9 offensive rebounds per game and attacking the glass for missed offensive attempts would indicate a more hard-nosed and grittier style of play that UNC Coach Roy Williams and staff have been dying to see consistently on the court. The Heels will need all the extra effort plays and, I believe, offensive rebounding will be the perfect place to ignite production on the offensive end.
Carolina, all season long, has had a deeper bench advantage on its opposition; however, Saturday's game versus Kentucky is the exact opposite. The Heels have used a floating rotation of nine to ten players throughout the year, but the Wildcats use 12 guys with nine of those players averaging over 17.9 minutes/game. UK Coach John Calipari has the luxury this season of playing two full rotations of exceptionally talented athletes. As Tar Heel fans remember the classic "Blue Team" substitution used by Hall of Famer and legend Dean Smith (subbing in 5 scrappy players at once), Calipari does the same type of substitutions all game long. More recently, you know when you see Coach Williams get mad at his Carolina lineup on the court and he substitutes for all five men at the same time, well, Calipari does this as a "platoon" strategy...just because he can. Calipari will routinely sub five guys for five guys ensuring that all of his players are well rested down the stretch. Quite a testament to the type of recruits that the Kentucky coaching staff has reeled in to the University. It will be interesting to see if Calipari sticks with this substitution scheme after one of his team's leaders fell victim to a Torn ACL injury during practice Thursday afternoon.
Alex Poythress, Junior forward for the Wildcats, landed awkwardly on his left leg after a layup during a Thursday scrimmage, tearing his ACL, ending his season, and it has emotionally affected the whole Wildcats team. Poythress was averaging 5.5 pts/gm, 3.3 reb/gm, and 1.2 blocks/gm, an upperclassmen and someone the younger players on the team looked up too. Will the Wildcats be able to move past this disappointing loss only 48 hours after finding out the news? Only time will tell, but it is certain the Kentucky players are heartbroken. Rightfully so. Suite mate and best friend of Poythress, UK leading scorer (10.3 pts/gm) Cauley-Stein puts the Poythress loss in perspective when he says, "Nobody can make the plays that he makes. He's a freak athlete. (He) does special things you can't replace." Cauley-Stein continues, "So now we've got to figure out how to play differently. That's going to be the biggest thing is how we're going to play now, what lineups are we going to use if we still use the platoon system, and if we do, just make it work."
So, can the Heels capitalize on a Kentucky squad that will be tinkering with its lineup and bench substitutions? It may be the best time to strike. In order to pull off an incredible victory on the road, one must think that Carolina's leading scorer, Marcus Paige, needs to have a "Paige-like" game to really get his rhythm going. Yes, Paige leads the Heels in points per game (14.0 pts/gm). But, we have yet to see the dynamite, explosive scoring outbursts this year that Tar Heel fans in Chapel Hill and across the nation have grown accustomed to seeing. With both teams struggling so far from 3-point range (Carolina 28.0% and Kentucky 27.7%), Paige finding his shot in Lexington could do wonders for the Heels' chances in this one. Shot-blocking is Kentucky's claim to fame and one way to counteract the blocks is to avoid them. Shooting the basketball well from the outside could force the Wildcats into tighter half-court perimeter defense which would enable slashers like J.P. Tokoto and Justin Jackson to attack the rim with authority. Kentucky has been able to sink back on defense this year and clog up the lane, creating more opportunities for blocked shots. Expect perimeter shooters such as Paige, Nate Britt, Jackson, and even Tokoto to look for their shot early to see if they can catch fire against a top-tier Kentucky defense.
The Heels are no slouch on D, either. UNC ranks third in the ACC and fifth nationally in opponents' field goal percentage, at 33.5% (Kentucky is 1st in that category...told you the Wildcats were good). UNC is performing at one of its highest defensive levels in the Roy Williams-era. So far, in each of its eight games, the Tar Heels have limited opponents to an under-40% field-goal percentage. That is the longest such streak since Coach Williams donned the Carolina-blue jacket 12 years ago. Carolina must force Kentucky's perimeter into bad shots and, most importantly, turnovers. Turnovers could touch off a bevy of fast breaks and transition points that would put the Tar Heels in a much more comfortable position controlling the tempo and causing havoc for opposing offenses. Continuing this splendid defensive trend is absolutely not out of the question for the Heels, but it is going to take some muscle and physicality to push the Wildcats away from the basket and force them to shoot a higher dosage of perimeter shots (UK shoots 46.6% from 2-pt range and 27.7% from 3-pt range). The Wildcats are looking to do the same thing to the Heels (Carolina shoots 44.9% from 2-pt range and 28.0% from 3-pt range). In my opinion, whichever team can light it up from the outside on a more consistent basis, that will be the team that comes away the victor.
This will be the 37th meeting between the two schools. Carolina holds the all-time advantage with a 23-13 record over the Wildcats, including wins in seven of the last 10 matchups. Last year, Carolina beat Kentucky 82-77 behind an impressive game from Marcus Paige. Paige scored 21 points in the second half to combine with James Michael McAdoo and Tokoto as leading scorers for the Heels.
As I mentioned earlier, Kentucky ranks 1st and Carolina ranks 3rd in all-time NCAA victories. Kentucky has 2,150 wins to Carolina's 2,120 W's. Kansas is the other blue blood in the middle with 2,133. UK and UNC lead the stat sheet when it comes to the NCAA Tournament, as well. The basketball powerhouses top the list in NCAA Tournament appearances, games, and wins with UNC holding the record of 18 Final Four appearances.
Saturday will be a giant mountain for the Heels to climb on the road in Lexington. But, if it's one thing the Tar Heels have been in its history, that is...Giant Killers! If UNC can bring Clary's 5 P's to Rupp Arena...Poise, Pride, Passion, Perseverance, and Performance, another upset of a #1 could be in the making.
Monday, December 8, 2014
Carolina Drops Nine Spots to #21 in the Latest Polls; Kentucky Unanimous #1
AP Top 25
USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina drops nine spots to #21 in the AP Top 25. The loss to Iowa on Wednesday hurt the Heels in this week's poll as many media outlets questioned Carolina's toughness.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (8-0)
#4 Louisville (7-0)
#6 Virginia (9-0)
#20 Miami (Fl) (8-1)
#21 UNC (6-2)
#25 Notre Dame (8-1)
Kentucky was the unanimous #1 choice this week and Dook's victory over Wisconsin pushed the Blue Devils to #2, leapfrogging Arizona who stays put at #3. Louisville and Wisconsin round out the Top 5.
Four teams dropped out of the AP Top 25, including three Big Ten teams making room for three others and an ACC team. Here's how it shook out:
Four Out
Michigan (was #17)
Arkansas (was #18)
Michigan St. (was #19)
Illinois (was #24)
Five In
#17 Washington
#23 Northern Iowa
#24 St. John's
#25 Notre Dame
NC State also received votes; however, its total votes did not propel them into this week's Top 25.
USA Today Coaches Poll
The latest polls are in and Carolina drops nine spots to #21 in the AP Top 25. The loss to Iowa on Wednesday hurt the Heels in this week's poll as many media outlets questioned Carolina's toughness.
ACC teams in this week's poll are:
#2 Dook (8-0)
#4 Louisville (7-0)
#6 Virginia (9-0)
#20 Miami (Fl) (8-1)
#21 UNC (6-2)
#25 Notre Dame (8-1)
Kentucky was the unanimous #1 choice this week and Dook's victory over Wisconsin pushed the Blue Devils to #2, leapfrogging Arizona who stays put at #3. Louisville and Wisconsin round out the Top 5.
Four teams dropped out of the AP Top 25, including three Big Ten teams making room for three others and an ACC team. Here's how it shook out:
Four Out
Michigan (was #17)
Arkansas (was #18)
Michigan St. (was #19)
Illinois (was #24)
Five In
#17 Washington
#23 Northern Iowa
#24 St. John's
#25 Notre Dame
NC State also received votes; however, its total votes did not propel them into this week's Top 25.
Heels Make the Pirates Walk the Plank; UNC Wins Big 108-64
Brice Johnson stepped up in a mammoth way Sunday afternoon by posting a monster game of 19 points and a career-high 17 rebounds leading the way for North Carolina in a 108-64 thrashing of East Carolina. The Heels (6-2, 0-0 ACC) would shoot a red-hot 60% from the field, dishing out a flurry of 27 assists while only turning it over eight times. J.P. Tokoto posted an all-around game that Tar Heels fans have grown accustomed to seeing. Tokoto scored 19 points, handed out eight assists, only turning the ball over once. Carolina used its size to its advantage by going inside repeatedly and, more often than not, finishing around the rim. Kennedy Meeks also offered up another double-double of 12 points, 11 rebounds (his fifth of the season) and the Heels performed nicely on a day when Carolina needed to build confidence and rhythm.
"Needless to say, we played a heck of a lot better than we did Wednesday night," Coach Roy Williams opened with in his post-game news conference. "We invested a lot more in the last couple of days. Mentally, we were more in the game."
After a couple of sub-par performances versus Florida and Iowa, Johnson took matters into his own hands against ECU (4-5, 0-0 AAC), attacking the glass for boards, diving on the floor for loose balls, and throwing down "Jam"-burgers left and right. His energy permeated throughout the roster and, on-the-court, the Heels beat down the Pirates in every aspect of the game. But, the honey hole for the Heels Sunday afternoon was feeding the ball downlow. Carolina scored a massive 72 points in the paint, converting on 36 of its 49 shots in the lane. Johnson and the Heels were much more aggressive, dominating the backboards 51-30 over the Pirates. By halftime, Johnson had already posted a double-double of 13 points and 11 boards (first time a Heel has done that in a half since John Henson did it versus Elon on Dec. 29, 2011).
Johnson spoke, after the game, about what Coach Williams had been asking him to do. "Before shoot around he told me I needed to find my brain, so apparently I found it. I told him I found it in a corner somewhere, dusty," Johnson said. "I mean its been hiding from me. He's been telling me to keep going, play a little bit harder, stay a little more attentive to detail, just go out there and play the way that he knows I can play."
It's amazing what a team can do with brains!
The rest of Carolina fed off Brice's passion and attacked the opposition in an explosive manner which really weighed heavy on the Pirates, forcing them to heave up quick and awkward outside shots. The Pirates missed all 11 of its 3-point attempts in the first half and finished a measly 4 of 25 from downtown. Carolina would turn those missed shots into fast breaks and transition buckets with quite of few of those finishes being of the spectacular variety.
Tokoto has swiftly become the Carolina player that just knows how to get it done in all aspects of the game. His passing has been remarkable so far this season as he has totaled 38 assists already (4.3/game). "Toke" has led the Heels in assists six of its first eight games. Also, after last year's dismal percentage from the free-throw line, Tokoto has started to turn things around. Against the Pirates, Tokoto was 5-5 from the line which makes him 17-20 from the charity stripe the last four games. This star is on the rise and the sky is the limit for J.P.
I mentioned that the Carolina bench would need to rise to the occasion if the Heels were going to outperform the Pirates on Sunday. Looks like the team must be reading Clary's Carolina Corner! Because, step up and perform is what they did. The Heels' bench produced 44 points on 14-19 shooting, paced by Nate Britt's 10 points along with both Isaiah Hicks and Joel Berry II scoring eight apiece. When Carolina was down early in the first half, the Heels went to Hicks for a 7-point flurry that put them up 16-10 and led to the avalanche of points to follow. Britt's jumpshot has been right on the mark (remember he switched from a left-handed jumpshot to a right-handed one in the offseason) and Berry exhibited a nice touch, as well, along with a smooth driving ability to take it to the hole.
Carolina's superstar Marcus Paige really didn't need to score in this one, as the Heels were flexing its muscle in the paint all day long. However, he used his minutes to hand out a season-high six assists and also get into the action by driving to the basket for a couple of hoops. Carolina only shot 1-7 from the 3 point line in this game, with the lone three-pointer being made by freshman Theo Pinson. That broke Paige's streak of 20 games straight with at least one made 3-pointer.
The Pirates were just simply overwhelmed Sunday. Junior Florida State-transfer Terry Whisnant led ECU with 15 points. B.J. Tyson netted 13 points and Caleb White added 11. As I mentioned in my earlier blog, Tyson shoots extremely well from the foul line, as he did on Sunday (9-10). However, the rest of the Pirates only shot nine free throws and the Pirates were outscored at the foul line 17-13 by the Heels.
Carolina welcomed home a former Tar Heel great and now-ECU coach, Jeff Lebo. He received a rousing ovation during pre-game introductions but there was nothing to clap about for the Pirates on-the-court. In post-game comments, Lebo told it like it was. "Just their size and athleticism inside took its toll on us. Their class inside was off the chain."
"Off the chain" is such a cool phrase to use, wonder if Coach Williams could ever get by with using that. If so, it would probably go something like this, "Doggone it! That was so dadgum off the chain!"
Either way, Lebo's analysis of the Heels' post play descriptively summarized how overpowering it was on Sunday afternoon. Post play smothered the Pirates into submission and by the time Carolina had rolled off 60 points in the 2nd half (highest since game versus UAB in 2012) and the buzzer sounded, ECU was done in the water. Another impressive bounce back win after a defeat for the Heels. Now, Carolina must prove itself against a mighty group of non-conference giants in Kentucky and Ohio State. But, behind the confidence of a blow-out victory and a heaping of enthusiastic, aggressive play, Carolina can push onward with the overall confidence it needs to compete at the highest of levels against the nation's best.
East Carolina vs North Carolina Official Box Score
Next Game: #12 North Carolina (6-2, 0-0 ACC) vs #1 Kentucky Wildcats (9-0, 0-0 SEC)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 13, 2014 @ 12:00pm EST
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
"Needless to say, we played a heck of a lot better than we did Wednesday night," Coach Roy Williams opened with in his post-game news conference. "We invested a lot more in the last couple of days. Mentally, we were more in the game."
After a couple of sub-par performances versus Florida and Iowa, Johnson took matters into his own hands against ECU (4-5, 0-0 AAC), attacking the glass for boards, diving on the floor for loose balls, and throwing down "Jam"-burgers left and right. His energy permeated throughout the roster and, on-the-court, the Heels beat down the Pirates in every aspect of the game. But, the honey hole for the Heels Sunday afternoon was feeding the ball downlow. Carolina scored a massive 72 points in the paint, converting on 36 of its 49 shots in the lane. Johnson and the Heels were much more aggressive, dominating the backboards 51-30 over the Pirates. By halftime, Johnson had already posted a double-double of 13 points and 11 boards (first time a Heel has done that in a half since John Henson did it versus Elon on Dec. 29, 2011).
Johnson spoke, after the game, about what Coach Williams had been asking him to do. "Before shoot around he told me I needed to find my brain, so apparently I found it. I told him I found it in a corner somewhere, dusty," Johnson said. "I mean its been hiding from me. He's been telling me to keep going, play a little bit harder, stay a little more attentive to detail, just go out there and play the way that he knows I can play."
It's amazing what a team can do with brains!
The rest of Carolina fed off Brice's passion and attacked the opposition in an explosive manner which really weighed heavy on the Pirates, forcing them to heave up quick and awkward outside shots. The Pirates missed all 11 of its 3-point attempts in the first half and finished a measly 4 of 25 from downtown. Carolina would turn those missed shots into fast breaks and transition buckets with quite of few of those finishes being of the spectacular variety.
Tokoto has swiftly become the Carolina player that just knows how to get it done in all aspects of the game. His passing has been remarkable so far this season as he has totaled 38 assists already (4.3/game). "Toke" has led the Heels in assists six of its first eight games. Also, after last year's dismal percentage from the free-throw line, Tokoto has started to turn things around. Against the Pirates, Tokoto was 5-5 from the line which makes him 17-20 from the charity stripe the last four games. This star is on the rise and the sky is the limit for J.P.
I mentioned that the Carolina bench would need to rise to the occasion if the Heels were going to outperform the Pirates on Sunday. Looks like the team must be reading Clary's Carolina Corner! Because, step up and perform is what they did. The Heels' bench produced 44 points on 14-19 shooting, paced by Nate Britt's 10 points along with both Isaiah Hicks and Joel Berry II scoring eight apiece. When Carolina was down early in the first half, the Heels went to Hicks for a 7-point flurry that put them up 16-10 and led to the avalanche of points to follow. Britt's jumpshot has been right on the mark (remember he switched from a left-handed jumpshot to a right-handed one in the offseason) and Berry exhibited a nice touch, as well, along with a smooth driving ability to take it to the hole.
Carolina's superstar Marcus Paige really didn't need to score in this one, as the Heels were flexing its muscle in the paint all day long. However, he used his minutes to hand out a season-high six assists and also get into the action by driving to the basket for a couple of hoops. Carolina only shot 1-7 from the 3 point line in this game, with the lone three-pointer being made by freshman Theo Pinson. That broke Paige's streak of 20 games straight with at least one made 3-pointer.
The Pirates were just simply overwhelmed Sunday. Junior Florida State-transfer Terry Whisnant led ECU with 15 points. B.J. Tyson netted 13 points and Caleb White added 11. As I mentioned in my earlier blog, Tyson shoots extremely well from the foul line, as he did on Sunday (9-10). However, the rest of the Pirates only shot nine free throws and the Pirates were outscored at the foul line 17-13 by the Heels.
Carolina welcomed home a former Tar Heel great and now-ECU coach, Jeff Lebo. He received a rousing ovation during pre-game introductions but there was nothing to clap about for the Pirates on-the-court. In post-game comments, Lebo told it like it was. "Just their size and athleticism inside took its toll on us. Their class inside was off the chain."
"Off the chain" is such a cool phrase to use, wonder if Coach Williams could ever get by with using that. If so, it would probably go something like this, "Doggone it! That was so dadgum off the chain!"
Either way, Lebo's analysis of the Heels' post play descriptively summarized how overpowering it was on Sunday afternoon. Post play smothered the Pirates into submission and by the time Carolina had rolled off 60 points in the 2nd half (highest since game versus UAB in 2012) and the buzzer sounded, ECU was done in the water. Another impressive bounce back win after a defeat for the Heels. Now, Carolina must prove itself against a mighty group of non-conference giants in Kentucky and Ohio State. But, behind the confidence of a blow-out victory and a heaping of enthusiastic, aggressive play, Carolina can push onward with the overall confidence it needs to compete at the highest of levels against the nation's best.
East Carolina vs North Carolina Official Box Score
Next Game: #12 North Carolina (6-2, 0-0 ACC) vs #1 Kentucky Wildcats (9-0, 0-0 SEC)
Date/Time: Saturday, December 13, 2014 @ 12:00pm EST
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV/Radio: CBS / Tar Heel Sports Network
Sunday, December 7, 2014
UNC Welcomes In-State Foe as ECU visits Chapel Hill; Lebo Returns to Alma Mater
Matchup: #12 North Carolina (5-2, 0-0 ACC) vs East Carolina (4-4, 0-0 AAC)
Date/Time: Sunday, December 7, 2014 @ 3:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPNU / Tar Heel Sports Network
North Carolina (5-2, 0-0 ACC) looks to shake off a listless effort from Wednesday's loss versus Iowa and use the defeat as fuel to the fire against East Carolina (4-4, 0-0 AAC) on Sunday afternoon. The Heels will host its second straight home game after four games away from the friendly confines of the Dean E. Smith Center. Carolina hopes to rebound from its second loss of the season by attaining victory over the Pirates as the Heels are on the cuff of embarking on an extremely tough road-trip (Kentucky-Dec. 13, UNCG-Dec. 16 & Ohio State-Dec. 20 in Chicago at the CBS Sports Classic). Sunday afternoon's contest will bring back one of the all-time best Tar Heel basketball players and a true student of the game, ECU coach Jeff Lebo.
From 1985-1989, Jeff Lebo played ball for the Tar Heels under Coach Dean Smith (received his recruiting letter from Smith when he was a ninth-grader!). During his career, Lebo earned second-team All-ACC honors in '88 and All-ACC Tournament honors three times ('87, '88, '89). Even with all the talent North Carolina has produced since '89, Lebo still ranks 24th on the UNC all-time scoring list and trails only Hubert Davis (current UNC assistant coach) in UNC career three-point shooting percentage at 42.8% (Davis shot 43.5% from 3-pt range). On top of all that, Lebo stands fifth in Tar Heels history in career free-throw percentage at 83.9%. Needless to say, Lebo enjoyed his time as a player at Carolina, but it was his knack for understanding the game that has led him down the road to coaching.
UNC Coach Roy Williams, when serving as Dean Smith's assistant coach, immediately sensed Lebo had a coaching way about him as he evaluated his innate ability to grasp basketball concepts. "A week into practice, you could see that he understood the game," Williams stated. "I was not going to be surprised at all if he ended up being a coach because he understood what it was all about."
And, that's where Lebo landed. But, it's been a long, winding coaching road that has led him to ECU. Lebo has been assistant coach at East Tennessee State, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina. Time spent as an assistant finally paid off with head coaching jobs at Tennessee Tech, Auburn, and now East Carolina.
So, here we are. Lebo brings his third team into Chapel Hill (once before with ECU in 2012 and he coached Tennesse Tech against UNC in 1999-2000 season, losing 85-59). Now, Lebo directs his ECU squad into a building that he once called home. But, on Sunday afternoon, Lebo and his Pirates are complete opposition.
"It's the one game I never look down at the other end," Lebo admitted this week. "I don't know if they look at me or not, because I'm not looking down there. I just try to focus on the game."
The Tar Heels bench will be, as well. One can be assured that Coach Williams and his staff are locked in and completely focused on righting the wrongs from UNC's stunning defeat to Iowa, 60-55, on Wednesday night. Carolina's lack of intensity throughout has been dissected by media outlets across the country and even had Coach Williams baffled after the game. A strong rebounding effort in the first half of the Iowa game succumbed to an abysmal performance in the second half that did the Tar Heels in. Carolina's ability to bounce back, just as it did after the Butler loss in the Bahamas during Thanksgiving weekend, will be a giant stepping stone for this year's team.
It wasn't just the inability to crash the boards against Iowa; in fact, the problem mainly stemmed from a particularly poor shooting performance by the Heels. Carolina must shoot the ball much better than the 27.9% showing versus Iowa, which means junior Marcus Paige definitely needs to rise to the occasion. Paige is currently averaging a 35.3% field-goal percentage (the lowest of the Heels who play more than 15.5 minutes/game) and he has seemed to force a number of shots throughout the games. And, the rush to shoot, hinges on a few things. The rest of the UNC lineup must be able to set solid screens and work the ball around better on offense to free up more open shots for Paige. In order for Paige, and the Tar Heels team to blossom on offense, all cylinders must be a go and that means not just watching someone shoot, but making good offensive moves to get teammates open.
Getting out and running will be especially key for the Heels offense and would greatly increase the chances of a Heels victory. Coach Williams' up-tempo style of play will come in handy against the Pirates. ECU has not shown itself to be a quick team this season. The Pirates are one of the slowest teams in the nation, placing 329th in adjusted tempo. Carolina's defense should be aggressive forcing turnovers such as getting its hands up to deflect passes and create havoc for the Pirates' offense. Faster is better, notably versus ECU.
On offense, Carolina will once again try to return to building a foundation in the post versus the Pirates. This will be a great gameplan for the Heels. Carolina is much bigger on paper than ECU, so that should lend itself to an area that can be exploited. ECU will dress only three players listed at 6-8 or taller, whereas North Carolina has six players on its depth chart listed at over 6-8. Kennedy Meeks has been the standout among the UNC big men and comes off another strong double-double. Meeks is averaging 14 points and 10 rebounds a game and look for Carolina to feed him the ball early and often to try to set a tone for the rest of the game. Brice Johnson has been stifled lately. Not necessarily by opposing defenses, but by his own foul trouble. Johnson started the season hot, but lately his foul problems have taken away his capability to positively affect the game. If Brice can limit his fouls and stay on the court, his height and length could pay tremendous dividends for the Tar Heels.
For the Heels, limiting ECU's free throws would be very beneficial. Carolina has already been burnt by teams who have shot a high percentage from the charity stripe and ECU has two of the best players in the nation at, both, getting to and converting from the line. B.J. Tyson ranks 10th in the nation with 44 free throws made (44-54 for 81.5%) and Caleb White has made 24-26 free throws (92.3%). This puts ECU at 12th in the nation with 140 free throws made this season (right ahead of Carolina who has made 133). Keeping the Pirates from the freebies could be quite indicative of Carolina's success.
ECU's Tyson and White also lead their team in scoring at 16.0 and 14.4, respectively. The third leading scorer on this Pirates team is a Florida State transfer, Terry Whisnant, who has played UNC on five different occasions as a freshman and sophomore for the Seminoles. Now, Whisnant brings his experience of suiting up in the Dean Dome to ECU whom, quite frankly, is looking for any advantage it can get. Whisnant scores 11.5 pts/gm and is another viable points producer for the Pirates. Interestingly enough, it's not just the ECU starters that contribute to its point production. The ECU starting lineup averages 34.8 pts/gm, but the reserves follow closely behind by averaging 29.1 pts/gm. Why is this stat important?
Well, the stat blatantly demonstrates that the ECU bench contributes immensely to its offensive numbers and Carolina's bench play will have to match and exceed expectations to control the outcome of this one. So far this season, the UNC bench is averaging 19.2 pts/gm. Not that bad, except when comparing that to a whole 10 points below ECU's bench performance. Given this statistic, UNC reserves Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt, Joel Berry II, Joel James and others must give their best effort to ensure a Carolina victory. If the Carolina bench can produce offense and important defensive minutes, it could take some of the heat off Paige, Meeks and the other starters, allowing the Heels to spread the wealth better offensively.
East Carolina is 0-3 all-time versus North Carolina (losing in 1953, 1993 - 1st Rd of NCAA, and 2012). The Pirates are new to the American Athletic Conference this season which will offer up a tough slate of competition (UConn, Cincinnati, Temple, Memphis, and SMU). ECU has never won a road-game versus a ranked opponent in its history and it has never beaten a "Big 4" (UNC, Dook, State, Wake) team on the road.
Yes, it's nice to welcome back an old friend, Jeff Lebo, to Chapel Hill. But, Nothing's Finer than a win by Carolina!
Date/Time: Sunday, December 7, 2014 @ 3:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPNU / Tar Heel Sports Network
North Carolina (5-2, 0-0 ACC) looks to shake off a listless effort from Wednesday's loss versus Iowa and use the defeat as fuel to the fire against East Carolina (4-4, 0-0 AAC) on Sunday afternoon. The Heels will host its second straight home game after four games away from the friendly confines of the Dean E. Smith Center. Carolina hopes to rebound from its second loss of the season by attaining victory over the Pirates as the Heels are on the cuff of embarking on an extremely tough road-trip (Kentucky-Dec. 13, UNCG-Dec. 16 & Ohio State-Dec. 20 in Chicago at the CBS Sports Classic). Sunday afternoon's contest will bring back one of the all-time best Tar Heel basketball players and a true student of the game, ECU coach Jeff Lebo.
From 1985-1989, Jeff Lebo played ball for the Tar Heels under Coach Dean Smith (received his recruiting letter from Smith when he was a ninth-grader!). During his career, Lebo earned second-team All-ACC honors in '88 and All-ACC Tournament honors three times ('87, '88, '89). Even with all the talent North Carolina has produced since '89, Lebo still ranks 24th on the UNC all-time scoring list and trails only Hubert Davis (current UNC assistant coach) in UNC career three-point shooting percentage at 42.8% (Davis shot 43.5% from 3-pt range). On top of all that, Lebo stands fifth in Tar Heels history in career free-throw percentage at 83.9%. Needless to say, Lebo enjoyed his time as a player at Carolina, but it was his knack for understanding the game that has led him down the road to coaching.
UNC Coach Roy Williams, when serving as Dean Smith's assistant coach, immediately sensed Lebo had a coaching way about him as he evaluated his innate ability to grasp basketball concepts. "A week into practice, you could see that he understood the game," Williams stated. "I was not going to be surprised at all if he ended up being a coach because he understood what it was all about."
And, that's where Lebo landed. But, it's been a long, winding coaching road that has led him to ECU. Lebo has been assistant coach at East Tennessee State, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina. Time spent as an assistant finally paid off with head coaching jobs at Tennessee Tech, Auburn, and now East Carolina.
So, here we are. Lebo brings his third team into Chapel Hill (once before with ECU in 2012 and he coached Tennesse Tech against UNC in 1999-2000 season, losing 85-59). Now, Lebo directs his ECU squad into a building that he once called home. But, on Sunday afternoon, Lebo and his Pirates are complete opposition.
"It's the one game I never look down at the other end," Lebo admitted this week. "I don't know if they look at me or not, because I'm not looking down there. I just try to focus on the game."
The Tar Heels bench will be, as well. One can be assured that Coach Williams and his staff are locked in and completely focused on righting the wrongs from UNC's stunning defeat to Iowa, 60-55, on Wednesday night. Carolina's lack of intensity throughout has been dissected by media outlets across the country and even had Coach Williams baffled after the game. A strong rebounding effort in the first half of the Iowa game succumbed to an abysmal performance in the second half that did the Tar Heels in. Carolina's ability to bounce back, just as it did after the Butler loss in the Bahamas during Thanksgiving weekend, will be a giant stepping stone for this year's team.
It wasn't just the inability to crash the boards against Iowa; in fact, the problem mainly stemmed from a particularly poor shooting performance by the Heels. Carolina must shoot the ball much better than the 27.9% showing versus Iowa, which means junior Marcus Paige definitely needs to rise to the occasion. Paige is currently averaging a 35.3% field-goal percentage (the lowest of the Heels who play more than 15.5 minutes/game) and he has seemed to force a number of shots throughout the games. And, the rush to shoot, hinges on a few things. The rest of the UNC lineup must be able to set solid screens and work the ball around better on offense to free up more open shots for Paige. In order for Paige, and the Tar Heels team to blossom on offense, all cylinders must be a go and that means not just watching someone shoot, but making good offensive moves to get teammates open.
Getting out and running will be especially key for the Heels offense and would greatly increase the chances of a Heels victory. Coach Williams' up-tempo style of play will come in handy against the Pirates. ECU has not shown itself to be a quick team this season. The Pirates are one of the slowest teams in the nation, placing 329th in adjusted tempo. Carolina's defense should be aggressive forcing turnovers such as getting its hands up to deflect passes and create havoc for the Pirates' offense. Faster is better, notably versus ECU.
On offense, Carolina will once again try to return to building a foundation in the post versus the Pirates. This will be a great gameplan for the Heels. Carolina is much bigger on paper than ECU, so that should lend itself to an area that can be exploited. ECU will dress only three players listed at 6-8 or taller, whereas North Carolina has six players on its depth chart listed at over 6-8. Kennedy Meeks has been the standout among the UNC big men and comes off another strong double-double. Meeks is averaging 14 points and 10 rebounds a game and look for Carolina to feed him the ball early and often to try to set a tone for the rest of the game. Brice Johnson has been stifled lately. Not necessarily by opposing defenses, but by his own foul trouble. Johnson started the season hot, but lately his foul problems have taken away his capability to positively affect the game. If Brice can limit his fouls and stay on the court, his height and length could pay tremendous dividends for the Tar Heels.
For the Heels, limiting ECU's free throws would be very beneficial. Carolina has already been burnt by teams who have shot a high percentage from the charity stripe and ECU has two of the best players in the nation at, both, getting to and converting from the line. B.J. Tyson ranks 10th in the nation with 44 free throws made (44-54 for 81.5%) and Caleb White has made 24-26 free throws (92.3%). This puts ECU at 12th in the nation with 140 free throws made this season (right ahead of Carolina who has made 133). Keeping the Pirates from the freebies could be quite indicative of Carolina's success.
ECU's Tyson and White also lead their team in scoring at 16.0 and 14.4, respectively. The third leading scorer on this Pirates team is a Florida State transfer, Terry Whisnant, who has played UNC on five different occasions as a freshman and sophomore for the Seminoles. Now, Whisnant brings his experience of suiting up in the Dean Dome to ECU whom, quite frankly, is looking for any advantage it can get. Whisnant scores 11.5 pts/gm and is another viable points producer for the Pirates. Interestingly enough, it's not just the ECU starters that contribute to its point production. The ECU starting lineup averages 34.8 pts/gm, but the reserves follow closely behind by averaging 29.1 pts/gm. Why is this stat important?
Well, the stat blatantly demonstrates that the ECU bench contributes immensely to its offensive numbers and Carolina's bench play will have to match and exceed expectations to control the outcome of this one. So far this season, the UNC bench is averaging 19.2 pts/gm. Not that bad, except when comparing that to a whole 10 points below ECU's bench performance. Given this statistic, UNC reserves Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt, Joel Berry II, Joel James and others must give their best effort to ensure a Carolina victory. If the Carolina bench can produce offense and important defensive minutes, it could take some of the heat off Paige, Meeks and the other starters, allowing the Heels to spread the wealth better offensively.
East Carolina is 0-3 all-time versus North Carolina (losing in 1953, 1993 - 1st Rd of NCAA, and 2012). The Pirates are new to the American Athletic Conference this season which will offer up a tough slate of competition (UConn, Cincinnati, Temple, Memphis, and SMU). ECU has never won a road-game versus a ranked opponent in its history and it has never beaten a "Big 4" (UNC, Dook, State, Wake) team on the road.
Yes, it's nice to welcome back an old friend, Jeff Lebo, to Chapel Hill. But, Nothing's Finer than a win by Carolina!
Friday, December 5, 2014
MUST READ!!! From Inside Carolina Message Board...Academic not Athletic "Scandal"
I thank my fellow alum, Mr. Worsley, for passing this along from the Inside Carolina message board. Feel free to send others to my blogspot and read this piece. I wholeheartedly agree and I am glad someone wrote this with specific examples that directly show how the "scandal" is completely an academic issue. The NCAA should 100% recognize this. Please read the following:
"It’s amazing the level of sheer ignorance, and misunderstanding, and sheer bullcrap spouted by a bunch of idiot-faced talking heads about the so-called AFAM –cough cough – “scandal” at UNC.
Take that bumbling blabbermouth Dickie Vitale, and his ill-informed, off-based and ignorant idiotic potshot at UNC during the basketball game against Iowa on Wednesday night. Vitale claimed, foolishly and ignorantly, that credit was given even though no work was done in these classes, a claim that was absolutely refuted by the Wainstein Report.
In fact, here’s what the report says, refuting the slobbering Mr. Vitale:
“Assigning a passing grade for no paper: Crowder was adamant in our interviews that
she never gave a passing grade in a paper class if the student failed to submit a paper. We tested that contention and found no evidence to contradict her statement. To the contrary, we found abundant evidence that Crowder would give a grade only upon submission of a paper.”
Stick that in your big, blabbering mouth Mr. Vitale.
And Bubba, if you’re reading this, you should register a strong complaint with ESPN and with Vitale, personally, and make it clear that until Vitale clears up his bullcrap, and apologizes for misspeaking, that he won’t broadcast any more UNC games in Chapel Hill.
Back on point.
It’s also amazing what we can learn if we really pay attention to details, ask the right questions, and tune out the ignorant crap in the public domain.
For example, did you know that advisers for the Morehead Scholarship, the most prestigious academic scholarship on campus, advised Morehead Scholars, excuse me … “steered” … Morehead Scholars, sometimes, to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM, as a means of “boosting” their GPA so they could keep the Morehead Scholarship?
Did you know that advisers for the well-publicized Carolina Covenant also advised.. excuse me… “steered” students to Crowder/Nyrango AFAM for the same reason?
Did you know that we had professors… that’s right professors in the Chemistry and Romance Language Departments “steering” kids to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM to help those kids with their grades?
Let’s take a look at what the Wainstein Report says about all this.
Look at what we find, buried inconspicuously at footnote 132, way deep in the bowels of the report:
“132 As explained above, referrals to the AFAM paper classes were also made by the Morehead-Cain and Carolina Covenant advisers. We have seen nothing to suggest that those advisers knew any more about the workings of the AFAM paper classes than their colleagues at the Steele Building.”
Note the language. “Referrals”… plural..by Morehead and Carolina Covenant “advisers,” again, plural.
So why is it okay for advisers for the most prestigious scholarship in the State of North Carolina, one of the most prestigious in American Academia, to refer kids to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM courses, but it’s somehow a “scandal” if an academic advisor for a football player does the same thing?
Oh. I get it. Because you say the football player needs to “boost” his average to keep him eligible? And you think that makes the difference?
Well if that’s the case, then how do you reconcile that with the fact that the Morehead Advisers have also used AFAM to “boost” the averages of the Morehead scholars to stay academically eligible for the scholarship?
Oh? That comes as a surprise does it?
Well consider this little nugget from page 53 of the report:
“For example, we heard of one Morehead-Cain Scholar who was referred to Crowder for placement in a paper class when his GPA started to slip and he was in danger of losing his scholarship. Crowder placed him in a paper class, he got an A, and was able to keep his scholarship.”
Well now. Let me see if I can get this straight.
It’s somehow okay for a Morehead scholar to take a crip course to keep his/her GPA high enough to keep getting paid money on a very lucrative scholarship, but it’s somehow a “scandal” as a “GPA booster” if an academic advisor from the athletic department refers a black kid from the football team to the same course to help the kid keep his grades up so he can stay eligible, even though the football player, unlike the Morehead guy, he can’t receive a damn dime in spending money for it?
See the hypocrisy in that?
Guess what. Despite some of the nose-in-the air academic snobbery from some of these self-anointed academic “elitists,” many who can’t walk and chew gum at the same time, that Morehead Scholar is not a dang bit better than the black kid with cornrows that plays on the football team. Yet somehow, for some reason, they try to sell this as an “athletic” scandal, and conveniently ignore the fact that non-athletes take crip courses to help with their GPAs too.
Well that’s the biggest bunch of hogwash this side of the Roanoke River.
But there’s more hypocrisy. Like fraternities and sororities enrolling in AFAM as … gasp … an “academic booster!”
Oh the devious intent of it all! Imagine that. A kid taking a crip course to help his/her overall GPA. Who ever heard of such a thing?
Certainly none of us who ever graduated from college did such a thing!
But that’s exactly what the Greeks did with the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM courses.
Check this, also from the Wainstein Report, at page 53:
“Besides the individual fraternity brothers’ desire for an easy class, the fraternities themselves had an incentive to direct their members to these classes. Like the athletic teams whose members
need to maintain a minimum GPA to compete under NCAA eligibility rules, fraternity and sorority houses are subject to minimum GPA requirements to retain institutional recognition.96 We
understand that the need to meet these requirements played a role in the decision among fraternity
members to take these classes.”
Can you imagine that? A college kid taking a crip course to keep his average up!
Say it ain’t so!
So I ask again. Why is it okay for these non-athletes, these frat boys and the Morehead Scholars, even, to take a crip course to keep their grades up, but if an athlete does it, it becomes “UNC-cheat,” and the biggest “scandal” in the latest “gate” since Watergate?
Bottom line, as I’ve said, is that it’s perfectly legitimate for an academic advisor to steer kids to classes to help the kid succeed. That’s their job.
1. More non-athletes than athletes were enrolled in these courses, meaning that AFAM wasn’t even primarily geared toward athletes. In fact, basketball players accounted for only 6 per cent of the classes, while football players accounted for only 26 percent.
2. Non-Athletes, constituting the majority of students in these classes, had higher grades (3.62) in the classes than athletes.
3. Both University and National Academic Procedure and policy actually allowed Nyrango to delegate proxy grading power to Crowder, as a staff member, subject to grade finalization and veto power by the professor. Therefore, contrary to initial ignorant assumption, nothing was wrong with this procedure under academic policy.
4. Both University and National Academic Procedure and policy actually allowed Nyrango to delegate power to Crowder, as a staff member, to actually design courses, which she did, subject to grade finalization and veto power by the professor. Therefore, contrary to initial ignorant assumptions made, nothing was wrong with this procedure, either.
5. There are many, many other crip courses around the university and around the country, as we have now seen, such as NC State’s “Introduction to Textiles” (average class GPA of 3.65 for the course) and “Pollution Prevention” ET 203 (Average Grade Reported 4.0) with grades higher than this crip course. So we know the score given in the AFAM Crip courses, at 3.62 being a high B +, was not even the highest score among dozens and dozens of other crip courses at NC State or UNC, let alone a national average.
6. We now know that even advisors for the Morehead Scholarship program and the Carolina Covenant “steered” kids to these AFAM crip courses, for the purpose of “boosting” GPAs to keep the Morehead and the spending money that goes along with it. Thus, non-athletes actually can benefit more from these courses than athletes.
Bottom line, this is all purely an academic matter, and in the big picture, is much ado about nothing.
Time to move on."
"It’s amazing the level of sheer ignorance, and misunderstanding, and sheer bullcrap spouted by a bunch of idiot-faced talking heads about the so-called AFAM –cough cough – “scandal” at UNC.
Take that bumbling blabbermouth Dickie Vitale, and his ill-informed, off-based and ignorant idiotic potshot at UNC during the basketball game against Iowa on Wednesday night. Vitale claimed, foolishly and ignorantly, that credit was given even though no work was done in these classes, a claim that was absolutely refuted by the Wainstein Report.
In fact, here’s what the report says, refuting the slobbering Mr. Vitale:
“Assigning a passing grade for no paper: Crowder was adamant in our interviews that
she never gave a passing grade in a paper class if the student failed to submit a paper. We tested that contention and found no evidence to contradict her statement. To the contrary, we found abundant evidence that Crowder would give a grade only upon submission of a paper.”
Stick that in your big, blabbering mouth Mr. Vitale.
And Bubba, if you’re reading this, you should register a strong complaint with ESPN and with Vitale, personally, and make it clear that until Vitale clears up his bullcrap, and apologizes for misspeaking, that he won’t broadcast any more UNC games in Chapel Hill.
Back on point.
It’s also amazing what we can learn if we really pay attention to details, ask the right questions, and tune out the ignorant crap in the public domain.
For example, did you know that advisers for the Morehead Scholarship, the most prestigious academic scholarship on campus, advised Morehead Scholars, excuse me … “steered” … Morehead Scholars, sometimes, to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM, as a means of “boosting” their GPA so they could keep the Morehead Scholarship?
Did you know that advisers for the well-publicized Carolina Covenant also advised.. excuse me… “steered” students to Crowder/Nyrango AFAM for the same reason?
Did you know that we had professors… that’s right professors in the Chemistry and Romance Language Departments “steering” kids to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM to help those kids with their grades?
Let’s take a look at what the Wainstein Report says about all this.
Look at what we find, buried inconspicuously at footnote 132, way deep in the bowels of the report:
“132 As explained above, referrals to the AFAM paper classes were also made by the Morehead-Cain and Carolina Covenant advisers. We have seen nothing to suggest that those advisers knew any more about the workings of the AFAM paper classes than their colleagues at the Steele Building.”
Note the language. “Referrals”… plural..by Morehead and Carolina Covenant “advisers,” again, plural.
So why is it okay for advisers for the most prestigious scholarship in the State of North Carolina, one of the most prestigious in American Academia, to refer kids to the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM courses, but it’s somehow a “scandal” if an academic advisor for a football player does the same thing?
Oh. I get it. Because you say the football player needs to “boost” his average to keep him eligible? And you think that makes the difference?
Well if that’s the case, then how do you reconcile that with the fact that the Morehead Advisers have also used AFAM to “boost” the averages of the Morehead scholars to stay academically eligible for the scholarship?
Oh? That comes as a surprise does it?
Well consider this little nugget from page 53 of the report:
“For example, we heard of one Morehead-Cain Scholar who was referred to Crowder for placement in a paper class when his GPA started to slip and he was in danger of losing his scholarship. Crowder placed him in a paper class, he got an A, and was able to keep his scholarship.”
Well now. Let me see if I can get this straight.
It’s somehow okay for a Morehead scholar to take a crip course to keep his/her GPA high enough to keep getting paid money on a very lucrative scholarship, but it’s somehow a “scandal” as a “GPA booster” if an academic advisor from the athletic department refers a black kid from the football team to the same course to help the kid keep his grades up so he can stay eligible, even though the football player, unlike the Morehead guy, he can’t receive a damn dime in spending money for it?
See the hypocrisy in that?
Guess what. Despite some of the nose-in-the air academic snobbery from some of these self-anointed academic “elitists,” many who can’t walk and chew gum at the same time, that Morehead Scholar is not a dang bit better than the black kid with cornrows that plays on the football team. Yet somehow, for some reason, they try to sell this as an “athletic” scandal, and conveniently ignore the fact that non-athletes take crip courses to help with their GPAs too.
Well that’s the biggest bunch of hogwash this side of the Roanoke River.
But there’s more hypocrisy. Like fraternities and sororities enrolling in AFAM as … gasp … an “academic booster!”
Oh the devious intent of it all! Imagine that. A kid taking a crip course to help his/her overall GPA. Who ever heard of such a thing?
Certainly none of us who ever graduated from college did such a thing!
But that’s exactly what the Greeks did with the Crowder/Nyrango AFAM courses.
Check this, also from the Wainstein Report, at page 53:
“Besides the individual fraternity brothers’ desire for an easy class, the fraternities themselves had an incentive to direct their members to these classes. Like the athletic teams whose members
need to maintain a minimum GPA to compete under NCAA eligibility rules, fraternity and sorority houses are subject to minimum GPA requirements to retain institutional recognition.96 We
understand that the need to meet these requirements played a role in the decision among fraternity
members to take these classes.”
Can you imagine that? A college kid taking a crip course to keep his average up!
Say it ain’t so!
So I ask again. Why is it okay for these non-athletes, these frat boys and the Morehead Scholars, even, to take a crip course to keep their grades up, but if an athlete does it, it becomes “UNC-cheat,” and the biggest “scandal” in the latest “gate” since Watergate?
Bottom line, as I’ve said, is that it’s perfectly legitimate for an academic advisor to steer kids to classes to help the kid succeed. That’s their job.
1. More non-athletes than athletes were enrolled in these courses, meaning that AFAM wasn’t even primarily geared toward athletes. In fact, basketball players accounted for only 6 per cent of the classes, while football players accounted for only 26 percent.
2. Non-Athletes, constituting the majority of students in these classes, had higher grades (3.62) in the classes than athletes.
3. Both University and National Academic Procedure and policy actually allowed Nyrango to delegate proxy grading power to Crowder, as a staff member, subject to grade finalization and veto power by the professor. Therefore, contrary to initial ignorant assumption, nothing was wrong with this procedure under academic policy.
4. Both University and National Academic Procedure and policy actually allowed Nyrango to delegate power to Crowder, as a staff member, to actually design courses, which she did, subject to grade finalization and veto power by the professor. Therefore, contrary to initial ignorant assumptions made, nothing was wrong with this procedure, either.
5. There are many, many other crip courses around the university and around the country, as we have now seen, such as NC State’s “Introduction to Textiles” (average class GPA of 3.65 for the course) and “Pollution Prevention” ET 203 (Average Grade Reported 4.0) with grades higher than this crip course. So we know the score given in the AFAM Crip courses, at 3.62 being a high B +, was not even the highest score among dozens and dozens of other crip courses at NC State or UNC, let alone a national average.
6. We now know that even advisors for the Morehead Scholarship program and the Carolina Covenant “steered” kids to these AFAM crip courses, for the purpose of “boosting” GPAs to keep the Morehead and the spending money that goes along with it. Thus, non-athletes actually can benefit more from these courses than athletes.
Bottom line, this is all purely an academic matter, and in the big picture, is much ado about nothing.
Time to move on."
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Offense Sputters, Heels Stunned by Iowa in Chapel Hill
The Iowa Hawkeyes pulled off a signature win, Wednesday night in Chapel Hill, stunning the Tar Heels 60-55 behind an aggressive offensive rebounding performance in the second half. A listless Carolina squad missed easy offensive opportunities time and time again and the Hawkeyes capitalized on another head-scratching low effort game for the Heels. Mike Gesell scored 16 points for Iowa, including a crucial driving layup and free throws late in the game to seal the Hawkeye victory. UNC's Marcus Paige misfired on a late three-pointer that would have tied the game and Iowa completed its remarkable defeat of the 12th-ranked Tar Heels, which was part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. After holding Iowa to one offensive rebound in the first half, Carolina completely crumbled on the glass in the second half giving up 16 offensive boards. Credit Iowa for attacking the Heels and pouring out all of its energy in tracking down loose balls and just getting after it on a night where both teams could not buy a bucket.
UNC (5-2, 0-0 ACC) shot 27.9% from the floor for the game, by far its worst shooting performance of the season. The rim seemed to have a lid on it as balls were rolling around and dropping out all night long. Kennedy Meeks led the Heels with a solid double-double of 15 points, 12 rebounds; however, the rest of the team lacked the passion, heart, and toughness, tonight, that it will take to obtain the goal of a banner season. Iowa (6-2, 0-0 Big Ten) defended well by forcing UNC to heave up more three point shots than the Heels have been accustomed to taking this year. And, those shots were not falling. A miserable 17.4% 3-pt percentage (4 of 23) was another sign that Carolina's offense experienced major problems putting the ball in the basket. Tar Heel superstar Paige had a night to forget from the field. Paige shot 4-16 from the field, including 3-12 from 3-pt range. And, even when his shots don't fall, the junior from Marion, Iowa usually can get others involved. Very strangely, Paige finished with zero assists.
Now, Iowa did not have a great shooting performance, either. The Hawkeyes only shot 32.7% from the field in this one, but it was its offensive rebounding prowess in the second half that gave the Black and Gold the advantage in the end. Starters Jared Uthoff, Aaron White, and Adam Woodbury combined for 26 rebounds against the Heels, 9 of those were on the offensive end. And they usually were followed up by a strong move to the basket, forcing Carolina to foul. And, that is where Iowa excelled as well. The Hawkeyes were extremely efficient from the free-throw line, making 21 of 24 free throws (87.5%). Even though Carolina had its best night from the free throw line (76.5%), it was the free-throws made advantage of Iowa that played a huge role in the Hawkeyes' upset victory.
After the loss to Butler in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas and being dominated on the offensive glass in that game, Carolina challenged its toughness and desire for loose balls and came back hungry to aggressively beat UCLA and Florida. But, the meek and not-so-tough side of the Tar Heels showed up in Chapel Hill Wednesday and paid the ultimate price...defeat. UNC Coach Roy Williams expressed his concern for the toughness of his team at this point.
When asked about this, Coach Williams said, "Yeah. They (Iowa) wanted it more than we did and that's a sorry thing to say. It's a sad thing to say. We gave up 12 points on offensive rebounds...(Iowa had) 16 offensive rebounds in the second half. And, again, we still had opportunities, and we missed some opportunities."
A bright spot for the Heels was the play of J.P. Tokoto, especially in the first half when nothing was going right for Carolina. Tokoto basically put the Heels on his shoulders as he scored, rebounded and dished out assists when no one else on the team was even close to performing at a high level. Tokoto had 7 pts, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists at the half and he was instrumental in a 9-0 Carolina 2nd half run that put Carolina on top 45-40 with 8 minutes to go in the game. But, the story of the game, Carolina could not finish. Period.
Multiple times the Heels would have a point-blank chance at a layup and the ball just would not drop through the net. Frustrated at times, Carolina seemed to slack up on the backboards and get lazy. Brice Johnson had a horrible night. The Carolina junior picked up three quick fouls in the first half relegating him to the bench and being a non-factor through the whole contest. He finished with only 2 points and 4 rebounds in just 12 minutes of on-court action. Johnson will have to dig deep and find a way to stay on the court to contribute or Carolina's depth in the post will not have the same bite as it should. Brice spoke about his foul trouble woes after the game.
"I try to stay aggressive as possible. But at the end of the day I still have to remember that they're looking at me. I try to stay within myself and just play the game I know how to play, but ultimately you have to alter that a little just a bit because you are in foul trouble. You can't do some things."
The takeaway from this game for Carolina is that it does not want to get in the habit of being a Jekyll and Hyde type of team (one game full of toughness and desire, the next full of laziness and mistakes). Nothing good can come of that. This team must buckle down, focus, practice, practice, practice. The first step is recognizing the issue...then, correcting the issue...then, making that correction a habit. The Heels are searching for that almighty Heart and, being early in the season, Carolina has just enough time to reel it in.
UNC Freshman Justin Jackson (who shot only 3 of 9 from the field versus Iowa) hit the nail on the head in his interview by responding with, "Right now it's just a gut check. We've all got to look inside ourselves and figure out if we want to be a good team or not, and I think we'll be able to turn it around." Jackson finishes with, "But right now it's nothing to do with the offense, it's just inside of us, the heart that we need to show."
With gigantic non-conference games versus Kentucky and Ohio State on the horizon along with the ACC slate beginning soon, Carolina must toughen up and find its Mo-Jo right away or be swallowed up by the other sharks. Today marks a defining moment in the Tar Heels' season, I believe, and whether the Heels can summon its true grit and determination for every single game moving forward. As a Tar Heel alum and fan of the game, I have a sneaky suspicion the coaches and players will find a way to keep that fire burning inside.
Next Game: #12 North Carolina (5-2, 0-0 ACC) vs East Carolina (4-4, 0-0 AAC)
Date/Time: Sunday, December 7, 2014 @ 3:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPNU / Tar Heel Sports Network
UNC (5-2, 0-0 ACC) shot 27.9% from the floor for the game, by far its worst shooting performance of the season. The rim seemed to have a lid on it as balls were rolling around and dropping out all night long. Kennedy Meeks led the Heels with a solid double-double of 15 points, 12 rebounds; however, the rest of the team lacked the passion, heart, and toughness, tonight, that it will take to obtain the goal of a banner season. Iowa (6-2, 0-0 Big Ten) defended well by forcing UNC to heave up more three point shots than the Heels have been accustomed to taking this year. And, those shots were not falling. A miserable 17.4% 3-pt percentage (4 of 23) was another sign that Carolina's offense experienced major problems putting the ball in the basket. Tar Heel superstar Paige had a night to forget from the field. Paige shot 4-16 from the field, including 3-12 from 3-pt range. And, even when his shots don't fall, the junior from Marion, Iowa usually can get others involved. Very strangely, Paige finished with zero assists.
Now, Iowa did not have a great shooting performance, either. The Hawkeyes only shot 32.7% from the field in this one, but it was its offensive rebounding prowess in the second half that gave the Black and Gold the advantage in the end. Starters Jared Uthoff, Aaron White, and Adam Woodbury combined for 26 rebounds against the Heels, 9 of those were on the offensive end. And they usually were followed up by a strong move to the basket, forcing Carolina to foul. And, that is where Iowa excelled as well. The Hawkeyes were extremely efficient from the free-throw line, making 21 of 24 free throws (87.5%). Even though Carolina had its best night from the free throw line (76.5%), it was the free-throws made advantage of Iowa that played a huge role in the Hawkeyes' upset victory.
After the loss to Butler in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas and being dominated on the offensive glass in that game, Carolina challenged its toughness and desire for loose balls and came back hungry to aggressively beat UCLA and Florida. But, the meek and not-so-tough side of the Tar Heels showed up in Chapel Hill Wednesday and paid the ultimate price...defeat. UNC Coach Roy Williams expressed his concern for the toughness of his team at this point.
When asked about this, Coach Williams said, "Yeah. They (Iowa) wanted it more than we did and that's a sorry thing to say. It's a sad thing to say. We gave up 12 points on offensive rebounds...(Iowa had) 16 offensive rebounds in the second half. And, again, we still had opportunities, and we missed some opportunities."
A bright spot for the Heels was the play of J.P. Tokoto, especially in the first half when nothing was going right for Carolina. Tokoto basically put the Heels on his shoulders as he scored, rebounded and dished out assists when no one else on the team was even close to performing at a high level. Tokoto had 7 pts, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists at the half and he was instrumental in a 9-0 Carolina 2nd half run that put Carolina on top 45-40 with 8 minutes to go in the game. But, the story of the game, Carolina could not finish. Period.
Multiple times the Heels would have a point-blank chance at a layup and the ball just would not drop through the net. Frustrated at times, Carolina seemed to slack up on the backboards and get lazy. Brice Johnson had a horrible night. The Carolina junior picked up three quick fouls in the first half relegating him to the bench and being a non-factor through the whole contest. He finished with only 2 points and 4 rebounds in just 12 minutes of on-court action. Johnson will have to dig deep and find a way to stay on the court to contribute or Carolina's depth in the post will not have the same bite as it should. Brice spoke about his foul trouble woes after the game.
"I try to stay aggressive as possible. But at the end of the day I still have to remember that they're looking at me. I try to stay within myself and just play the game I know how to play, but ultimately you have to alter that a little just a bit because you are in foul trouble. You can't do some things."
The takeaway from this game for Carolina is that it does not want to get in the habit of being a Jekyll and Hyde type of team (one game full of toughness and desire, the next full of laziness and mistakes). Nothing good can come of that. This team must buckle down, focus, practice, practice, practice. The first step is recognizing the issue...then, correcting the issue...then, making that correction a habit. The Heels are searching for that almighty Heart and, being early in the season, Carolina has just enough time to reel it in.
UNC Freshman Justin Jackson (who shot only 3 of 9 from the field versus Iowa) hit the nail on the head in his interview by responding with, "Right now it's just a gut check. We've all got to look inside ourselves and figure out if we want to be a good team or not, and I think we'll be able to turn it around." Jackson finishes with, "But right now it's nothing to do with the offense, it's just inside of us, the heart that we need to show."
With gigantic non-conference games versus Kentucky and Ohio State on the horizon along with the ACC slate beginning soon, Carolina must toughen up and find its Mo-Jo right away or be swallowed up by the other sharks. Today marks a defining moment in the Tar Heels' season, I believe, and whether the Heels can summon its true grit and determination for every single game moving forward. As a Tar Heel alum and fan of the game, I have a sneaky suspicion the coaches and players will find a way to keep that fire burning inside.
Next Game: #12 North Carolina (5-2, 0-0 ACC) vs East Carolina (4-4, 0-0 AAC)
Date/Time: Sunday, December 7, 2014 @ 3:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPNU / Tar Heel Sports Network
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