Gametime: Saturday, November 22, 2014 @ 2:00pm EST
Location: Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, NC
TV/Radio: Time Warner Cable Sports Channel - Digital Channel 323 in the Carolinas/
Tar Heel Sports Network
College basketball is Heaven in the state of North Carolina. Just the mention of ACC elicits a plethora of vivid memories of championships, hall of fame coaches, deep rooted rivalries, and all the nostalgia the great sport brings to this area. But, over the past decade-plus, there has been a team from North Carolina outside of the ACC that has sparked interest nationally by competing at a very high level. That squad is the Davidson Wildcats and it looks for a signature win Saturday afternoon in Charlotte as it faces the sixth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels.
Carolina and Davidson have played on 73 other occasions with the Tar Heels holding a 62-11 advantage. Their first meeting was held way back in February 1911 and the two in-state foes last met one year ago in a nail-biting thriller won by the Tar Heels 97-85 in Overtime.
Both teams come into the meeting sporting a 2-0 record and are focused on keeping the train rolling. Carolina (2-0, 0-0 ACC) has been impressive in its first two non-conference matchups utilizing its size advantage downlow and crisp passing from all positions. Junior forward Brice Johnson comes into the game leading the Heels in scoring with 17.5 ppg and his big-man sidekick, Kennedy Meeks, has showcased his slimmer body tone en route to averaging a double-double (15.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg). The effectiveness of the Tar Heels front-court has been eye-opening and more explosive this season in comparison to last year. Meeks is in much better shape to run the court on a Roy Williams-coached team that is always looking to get out in transition. And, Johnson has shown a knack for being more aggressive around the rim, whether its going up strong with the ball or fighting off the defender for an important rebound. The Carolina Faithful, especially Coach Williams, loves to see this type of play from the big men; but, he knows they must continue to work hard to put up similar numbers throughout the season.
"I thought last year those guys had some really good games every now and then," Williams stated. "But it's got to be on a consistent basis like (former Tar Heels) Tyler Zeller, John Henson, Tyler Hansbrough, Sean May. Those guys give it every night."
Davidson (2-0, 0-0 Atlantic 10) is coming off a superb season last year as it finished up its residency in the Southern Conference with a 15-1 regular-season record, blowing the conference up winning by three games. However, a disappointing loss to Western Carolina in the conference semi-finals relegated the Wildcats to only a NIT berth and left a sour taste in the mouth of Coach Bob McKillop's team. Davidson has moved to the Atlantic 10 Conference and joined a pretty impressive group of teams that did damage in the NCAA Tournament last year ( ie Dayton, St. Joseph's, Saint Louis). Playing with an even greater pool of talent, the Wildcats will have a lot of work to do (Davidson was picked in the preseason to finish 12th out of 14 teams in the A-10). SoCon Player of the Year De'Mon Brooks graduated last year and is no longer suiting up for the 'Cats and that becomes a big puzzle piece to replace. Brooks was the team's leading scorer and rebounder, so Davidson will have to rely on some other key contributors as this season continues. There are bright spots, no doubt, as captains Tyler Kalinoski (13.5 ppg) and Jack Gibbs (11.0 ppg) return to a lineup that can fill it up from the outside. Finnish freshmen Oskar Michelsen (13.5 ppg) adds another scoring punch to the squad. Also, back in the mix for the Wildcats is sharp-shooter Brian Sullivan.who all Tar Heels fans should remember from last year's game in the Smith Center. Sullivan lit the Heels up for 33 points, including 7 3's and was a big reason Davidson almost stole one in Chapel Hill. He has had a rough start to the season this year, shooting only 3-19 from the field, 2-10 from 3, but he is the type of scorer that brings energy and heart to the biggest of matchups.
The Wildcats have been at it again this year, shooting 53.5% from the field and a blistering 50% from behind the arc (25-50 from 3 pt range). That's an average of 12.5 made 3 pointers per game. Carolina will most definitely need to clamp down defensively on the perimeter so that the Wildcats shooters do not get comfortable from long-range. And, so far this young season, the Tar Heels have impressed with its perimeter defense. As I have discussed in previous posts, Marcus Paige, Nate Britt, and Joel Berry have delivered solid efforts on the defensive end from the guard position, with Britt gaining Team Defensive honors in the NC Central game. With the length of Johnson, J.P. Tokoto, and Theo Pinson in the forward positions, Carolina's 3-point defense has seen positive results. In the first two games, opponents are only shooting 29.7% (11-37) against the Heels from behind the 3-point line. Truth be said, their two opponents did not have the 3-point fire power as does Davidson. A key to the game for me will be how Carolina handles Davidson's outside shooting and can the Heels apply enough pressure to limit the Wildcats' success. Davidson has made at least one three-pointer in 640 consecutive games. The last time Davidson failed to make a 3 was on January 15, 1994 versus East Tennessee State. Not expecting the Heels to stop this streak, but capping Davidson at 1 or 2 would be nice.
Another key ingredient to the Heels beating Davidson is Carolina's ability to force turnovers, get out in transition, and score on the fast break. Against NC Central, Carolina never could push the ball like it wanted to but versus Robert Morris the Heels came alive. Jumping into passing lanes, rebounding well, and swift, accurate passing led to a ton of transition points for the Heels. Coach Williams is looking for more of the same Saturday afternoon. Tokoto has been amazing dishing the ball this season. He tallied 10 assists in the game versus Robert Morris, which was more than any Tar Heel produced all of last season. Sure, the guards will need to be efficient with their passes, but it's the big men that have been impressing everyone so far. Freshman Justin Jackson has turned some heads with his athletic play and ability to split defenders with his rocket passes while Johnson and Meeks have begun to perfect the High-Low passing game that is a pleasant nuance to the Carolina game this year. Crisp, clean passing (no turnovers) from the Heels, whether it be on the fast-break or in half-court offensive sets, could serve as a tremendous asset to Carolina's championship hopes this campaign.
Time Warner Cable Arena will be rocking on Saturday at 2pm EST as these two teams butt heads once again in front of a capacity crowd of 20,000. The Heels will attempt to speed up the game, dominate downlow, and get its perimeter shooting going a bit more (only 22.2% from 3 so far on 6-27 shooting). Preseason ACC Player of the Year Marcus Paige is looking for his first true standout game of the season. Davidson will need to combat Carolina's front-court dominance with some outside flair. It will be key for Davidson to continue splashing the threes with regularity because, if the threes don't fall, Davidson could be in for a world of hurt. Bench play will be important as the Heels need to match or outplay a Davidson bench that has been aggressive and feisty. The Wildcats bench has contributed almost half (48%) of its scoring production, so the Heels' bench of Isaiah Hicks, Britt, Berry, Pinson, Joel James, and Desmond Hubert need to bring their A-game.
Carolina hopes to continue its winning ways over Davidson as it will prepare to head to the Bahamas in a Thanksgiving holiday season Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament that will include the likes of powerhouses Wisconsin, Florida, UCLA, Butler, and Georgetown. However, first things first, bring on the Wildcats!
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