Carolina just simply fell apart when it looked as if the Heels would roll over Louisville in an impressive ACC road showing.
But, if you know basketball, you could see the potential demise coming as the fouls began to increase for the Carolina frontcourt. The Heels charged out of the gate early controlling every single bit of the game from the get-go. Paige and Jackson were hitting their jumpers, J.P. Tokoto was scoring and making good passes, and all the Heels were crashing the boards. However, the bad vibes were building and building as the foul trouble began to surface. Brice Johnson had been sensational in the last few games stacking up double-double after double-double, so it was crucial for the Heels to get Johnson involved early. That was never able to occur as Brice picked up two quick fouls before the first official timeout and was a non-factor for the rest of the game fouling out and only scoring two points. And, it wasn't just Brice that was hacking away. Kennedy Meeks (held to just nine points and four rebounds), the other Carolina big man that had been so dominant recently, had his own problems with fouls which had him saddled with three by the time the buzzer sounded for halftime. Tokoto, Nate Britt, and Isaiah Hicks had compiled two fouls apiece by halftime, as well, and you somehow could sense this might catch up with them by the end of the game.
It caught up with the Heels much sooner than that. When Carolina pushed its 11-point halftime lead to 18 with just under 18 minutes left to play, Louisville coach Rick Pitino called two timeouts to steady his team's ship. And from then on, the Heels were obliterated in all aspects of the game. Harrell became much more aggressive in the paint, carving out his position downlow and, in turn, changing the whole momentum of the game. Carolina had lost its edge by fouling so much (the Heels were whistled for 20 fouls to only 5 Louisville fouls in the first half) and the wind had suddenly been swept from its sails. The Cardinals, who had shot so poorly in the first half (25.9%), ignited the crowd by showing more passion and effort which subsequently led to more makes and second-chance opportunities.
Unable to be as aggressive as it wanted to be, the Heels found themselves hanging on for dear life as the Cardinals stormed back. For all the good rebounding and shot selection the Heels put up in the first half (26-17 rebounding edge and 42.3 percent shooting), the effort was not where it needed to be for UNC to keep the lead and win this tough road game. Harrell, Rozier, and Chris Jones (17 points) were the three-headed monster for the Cardinals down the stretch rallying their team back and forcing overtime. Louisville outscored the Heels 53-25 over the last 22 1/2 minutes (including OT) of the game stunning the Tar Heels and pulling the Cardinals closer to the ACC top spot.
"They kicked our rear ends," UNC head coach Roy Williams exclaimed after the game. "The second half was not a very good basketball game on our side."
Carolina had 19 turnovers (13 in the second half) and that was another reason the Cardinals were able to fuel the comeback. The Heels reverted back to their giving ways becoming much more sloppy with the ball and somewhat lackluster with their energy. Frustrated by foul trouble, Carolina was never able to grab its footing once Louisville began the comeback. In a statistical category that UNC has overwhelmingly excelled at in previous games, the Cardinals effectively shut down the Carolina rebounding production in the second half. As I mentioned earlier, the Heels held a 26-17 rebounding margin over the Cardinals at halftime but, as was the case on many fronts, the second half told quite a different story. Sure, the Heels haven't done as well with defensive rebounding than it has with offensive boards this season. But, it was astounding the overall domination the Cardinals had over the Heels in this category. After leading the Cards 11-9 in second chance points in the first half, UNC would not garner another second chance point the rest of the game. Louisville would blitz UNC by a 17-0 margin in second chance points through the second half and overtime and, in turn, beat the Heels in overall rebounds 46-44.
"They just competed harder than we did on both ends of the floor," said Preseason ACC Player of the Year Paige. "They just stepped up to the challenge. The competed harder than us. We thought we had the game."
Harrell put the Cards on his back, playing out of his mind when his team needed him most. His monster jam, an extremely difficult one-handed grab to finish a high alley-oop, cut the Heels lead to single digits, set the Yum! Center on fire, and forced Carolina to burn a time-out to regroup.
"He was possessed," said Pitino. "He played a lot of minutes, he was possessed, but it doesn't surprise me."
"It was like we were desperate for a bucket, desperate to get something going," said teammate Rozier. "Trez got us going. We fed off his energy. He did a good job of just talking to us, bringing us in. His energy was just through the roof."
The Tar Heels almost had built enough of a lead to hold on, but the Cards were able to tie it up in the final minute to force OT and Carolina was spent. With Johnson, Britt, and Isaiah Hicks fouled out along with four fouls hanging over Meeks, Tokoto, and Jackson, the energy, toughness, and fierceness had been sucked out of the Heels. Rozier picked up his pace in overtime and Wayne Blackshear chose the perfect placement of his first points by draining a three-pointer to put the Cards up 69-64 and cap a 10-0 Louisville run that put the nail in the Heels' coffin.
With the victory, it was the first time Rick Pitino had ever won a game coaching against the Tar Heels. He is now 1-6 in games versus UNC. Carolina still has not been able to defeat the Cardinals in Louisville. The Heels are 0-3 all-time in Louisville.
Carolina must revive itself quickly as it will play its second Saturday-Monday turn-around in as many weeks when it hosts #2 Virginia Monday night in a crucial game for the Heels who are seeking to stay at the top of the conference regular-season standings.
Next Game: #13 North Carolina (17-5, 7-2 ACC)
vs
#2 Virginia Cavaliers (19-1, 7-1 ACC)
Date/Time: Monday, February 2, 2015 @ 7:00pm EST
Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, NC
TV/Radio: ESPN or ESPN3 / Tar Heel Sports Network
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