Photo by: J.D. Lyon Jr.
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
December 17, 2017 | General, Men's Basketball, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the visit to Tennessee.
By Adam Lucas
1. That will be a hugely beneficial game in February and March. As you might expect in front of a sold-out crowd, Tennessee started the game on fire, and rebounded every shot that they missed. But the Tar Heels kept playing and somehow gutted out a win, with big contributions from everyone who saw action. You had to be in the building to understand what a tough environment that was. But Carolina played through it, got a win, and as Roy Williams often says, they got to enjoy hearing the crowd go silent...except for a vocal chant of "Tar!" "Heels!" from the UNC contingent.
2. Overall, Carolina competed much better than they did against Michigan State, which of course has players that are more skilled at some positions than Tennessee. But the Vols play with an intensity that is reminiscent of the Spartans, and the Tar Heels showed some progress since the blowout over Thanksgiving weekend.
3. Remember that it's late December. It'll be interesting to watch the evolution of Carolina, and specifically the players in go-to roles, over the next three months. Luke Maye had a great second half and tried to post up on Grant Williams with two minutes left in a one-point game. He might have had an opening but didn't see enough daylight, and the Tar Heels ended up forcing a shot by Joel Berry. A couple months from now, it wouldn't be a surprise if Maye figures out a way to get that ball to the rim in the same situation.
4. You never know when a key stretch might happen. After Carolina closed the deficit to two points at 64-62 with 6:30 remaining, Tennessee looked a little tired and was struggling offensively. But the Tar Heels took three quick three-pointers on the next three possessions, missing all three and failing to cut into the deficit.
5. Garrison Brooks has been racking up defensive player of the game awards from the coaches early in his freshman campaign. He showed why on Sunday, helping limit Tennessee star Grant Williams to just 3-of-9 in the second half. Brooks also then made a terrific play out of a timeout with under four minutes left, as he had to guard the hot-shooting James Daniel and forced Daniel to give up the ball rather than taking advantage of the mismatch. Tennessee didn't score on the possession, and Carolina took the lead on the other end--on a hoop by Brooks. Two minutes later, Brooks knocked the ball away and forced a shot clock violation with 1:25 remaining in a one-point game.
6. Terrific first half performance from Sterling Manley. At one point, the freshman had as many rebounds in five minutes (three) as the rest of the Tar Heels had in 43 combined minutes (three). In a physical, tough game, Manley capped his very good showing by grabbing a big offensive rebound with two seconds left and sticking it back in to trim the halftime deficit to six points.
7. Manley was part of a group of reserves that kept Carolina close at the end of the first half. With Joel Berry limited by foul trouble and Luke Maye ineffective, Roy Williams got good minutes from Manley, Andrew Platek, Brandon Robinson and Jalek Felton to keep the Volunteers close during a time period when they could've stretched the lead into double figures. Another sub, Brandon Robinson, gave the Tar Heels some good minutes late in the game.
8. First half turnovers were a big part of Carolina's struggles. The Tar Heels turned it over a whopping dozen times in the first 20 minutes (the Vols had six early steals), and the Vols--a team that is not proficient offensively--turned those miscues into 15 of their 38 points in the first period. Carolina was much more judicious with the ball in the second half, turning it over just three times. Not coincidentally, Tennessee's offense had a much tougher time producing points in the final 20 minutes (shooting just 31.4 percent from the field in the final half).
9. As you would expect, Sunday's atmosphere was lively. The Vols were doing on-court promotions with fans over 90 minutes before tipoff, and the courtside student section was full nearly two hours before the 3 p.m. local start. To get to play an ACC-type road game before ACC play is a great bonus.
10. As discouraging as the loss to Michigan State in Portland might have been, this one was equally encouraging. That's a competitive Tar Heel team that wants to fight. Williams has proven over the last several years that he's one of the best in the nation at molding a squad through conference play--especially if that team will play the way he wants, which this one will. This group is going to be fun to watch, and this is a win Williams will be able to reference over the next couple of months.
11. You may not love it when Theo Pinson shoots a three-pointer. But man, there's no one better to have on the free throw line in the final seconds of a close game. Pinson swished two clutch shots with 15.9 seconds left, then made a steal with 11.8 seconds left before he made two more charity tosses.
1. That will be a hugely beneficial game in February and March. As you might expect in front of a sold-out crowd, Tennessee started the game on fire, and rebounded every shot that they missed. But the Tar Heels kept playing and somehow gutted out a win, with big contributions from everyone who saw action. You had to be in the building to understand what a tough environment that was. But Carolina played through it, got a win, and as Roy Williams often says, they got to enjoy hearing the crowd go silent...except for a vocal chant of "Tar!" "Heels!" from the UNC contingent.
2. Overall, Carolina competed much better than they did against Michigan State, which of course has players that are more skilled at some positions than Tennessee. But the Vols play with an intensity that is reminiscent of the Spartans, and the Tar Heels showed some progress since the blowout over Thanksgiving weekend.
3. Remember that it's late December. It'll be interesting to watch the evolution of Carolina, and specifically the players in go-to roles, over the next three months. Luke Maye had a great second half and tried to post up on Grant Williams with two minutes left in a one-point game. He might have had an opening but didn't see enough daylight, and the Tar Heels ended up forcing a shot by Joel Berry. A couple months from now, it wouldn't be a surprise if Maye figures out a way to get that ball to the rim in the same situation.
4. You never know when a key stretch might happen. After Carolina closed the deficit to two points at 64-62 with 6:30 remaining, Tennessee looked a little tired and was struggling offensively. But the Tar Heels took three quick three-pointers on the next three possessions, missing all three and failing to cut into the deficit.
5. Garrison Brooks has been racking up defensive player of the game awards from the coaches early in his freshman campaign. He showed why on Sunday, helping limit Tennessee star Grant Williams to just 3-of-9 in the second half. Brooks also then made a terrific play out of a timeout with under four minutes left, as he had to guard the hot-shooting James Daniel and forced Daniel to give up the ball rather than taking advantage of the mismatch. Tennessee didn't score on the possession, and Carolina took the lead on the other end--on a hoop by Brooks. Two minutes later, Brooks knocked the ball away and forced a shot clock violation with 1:25 remaining in a one-point game.
6. Terrific first half performance from Sterling Manley. At one point, the freshman had as many rebounds in five minutes (three) as the rest of the Tar Heels had in 43 combined minutes (three). In a physical, tough game, Manley capped his very good showing by grabbing a big offensive rebound with two seconds left and sticking it back in to trim the halftime deficit to six points.
7. Manley was part of a group of reserves that kept Carolina close at the end of the first half. With Joel Berry limited by foul trouble and Luke Maye ineffective, Roy Williams got good minutes from Manley, Andrew Platek, Brandon Robinson and Jalek Felton to keep the Volunteers close during a time period when they could've stretched the lead into double figures. Another sub, Brandon Robinson, gave the Tar Heels some good minutes late in the game.
8. First half turnovers were a big part of Carolina's struggles. The Tar Heels turned it over a whopping dozen times in the first 20 minutes (the Vols had six early steals), and the Vols--a team that is not proficient offensively--turned those miscues into 15 of their 38 points in the first period. Carolina was much more judicious with the ball in the second half, turning it over just three times. Not coincidentally, Tennessee's offense had a much tougher time producing points in the final 20 minutes (shooting just 31.4 percent from the field in the final half).
9. As you would expect, Sunday's atmosphere was lively. The Vols were doing on-court promotions with fans over 90 minutes before tipoff, and the courtside student section was full nearly two hours before the 3 p.m. local start. To get to play an ACC-type road game before ACC play is a great bonus.
10. As discouraging as the loss to Michigan State in Portland might have been, this one was equally encouraging. That's a competitive Tar Heel team that wants to fight. Williams has proven over the last several years that he's one of the best in the nation at molding a squad through conference play--especially if that team will play the way he wants, which this one will. This group is going to be fun to watch, and this is a win Williams will be able to reference over the next couple of months.
11. You may not love it when Theo Pinson shoots a three-pointer. But man, there's no one better to have on the free throw line in the final seconds of a close game. Pinson swished two clutch shots with 15.9 seconds left, then made a steal with 11.8 seconds left before he made two more charity tosses.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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