University of North Carolina Athletics
Luke Maye
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
December 20, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the loss to Wofford.
By Adam Lucas
1. Thank goodness for the Ohio State game. Otherwise, sitting on this one over Christmas would be painful.
2. The game was stunning for several reasons, one of which is that this type of game has very, very rarely happened to a good team in the Roy Williams era at Carolina. Given the quality of the Carolina team (we think) and the setting (home), it might be the most stunning loss of the last decade-plus.
3. Things Williams is certain to mention to his team over the next couple of days: Carolina outrebounded Wofford, a poor rebounding team, by only four. Several of Carolina's 14 turnovers were of the completely careless variety (Joel Berry and Theo Pinson combined for eight turnovers). The Tar Heels were 7-of-25 from three-point range. But the one that might bug him the most? Wofford had 28 points in the paint and Carolina had just 22. The Terriers are a team that came into the game scoring nearly half their points from three-point range...and they had more points in the paint than the Tar Heels.
4. Don't bash the crowd for this one. The fact that Carolina put over 16,000 people in the Smith Center for a 9 p.m. Wednesday game against Wofford five days before Christmas is almost as remarkable as the outcome. The crowd was loud throughout the second half and did everything they could to bring the Tar Heels back. Tonight, it just wasn't there.
5. One of the most startling things about the game was how out of it the Tar Heels looked almost from the very beginning. This has been a team that has trademarked a tough, intense style. On Wednesday, there was very little diving on the floor, no charges taken, and just a general lack of enthusiasm. Good chance that will be corrected between now and Saturday. Carolina just didn't play very smart throughout the 40 minutes. "That team outworked us," Roy Williams said after the game, and he was right.
6. Great to see Cam Johnson make his Tar Heel debut. The biggest challenge over the next few weeks will be he and his teammates simply learning each other as basketball players. Where do they like the ball in order to score most effectively, where do they tend to go on the fast break, what's that one sweet spot on the floor where they're virtually automatic...these are questions most of the Tar Heels already know about each other. With Johnson, there's a limited body of work that will require some on-court learning in the days and weeks to come. Johnson did most of his damage from the free throw line, hitting 7-of-8, and finishing with ten points.
7. Minus Johnson, the Tar Heels were just 21-for-30 at the line on a night when they really needed a strong performance from the charity stripe in order to counteract the offensive doldrums. Carolina was in the bonus less than seven minutes into the second half, and the lack of UNC fouls eventually actually worked against the Heels when they had to foul just to get in the bonus with under a minute to go.
8. Defending Wofford will be a nice warmup for ACC play, when several schools will prefer to play at the Terriers' slower tempo. Wofford made some tough jumpers and the really scary part is that although he had 27 points, Fletcher Magee really didn't go off in the way he is capable of doing. He was just 4-of-12 from the three-point line and easily could have scored 35.
9. Missing three layups in the first half was a big contributor to the one-point halftime deficit. Those are shots that will typically go down.
10. If you missed your chance to order online but now need a great gift for your favorite Carolina basketball fan, there are several locations where you can buy signed copies of Redemption in person. Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill Sportswear on Franklin Street, or Park Road Books in Charlotte all have signed copies available for walk-in purchase.
1. Thank goodness for the Ohio State game. Otherwise, sitting on this one over Christmas would be painful.
2. The game was stunning for several reasons, one of which is that this type of game has very, very rarely happened to a good team in the Roy Williams era at Carolina. Given the quality of the Carolina team (we think) and the setting (home), it might be the most stunning loss of the last decade-plus.
3. Things Williams is certain to mention to his team over the next couple of days: Carolina outrebounded Wofford, a poor rebounding team, by only four. Several of Carolina's 14 turnovers were of the completely careless variety (Joel Berry and Theo Pinson combined for eight turnovers). The Tar Heels were 7-of-25 from three-point range. But the one that might bug him the most? Wofford had 28 points in the paint and Carolina had just 22. The Terriers are a team that came into the game scoring nearly half their points from three-point range...and they had more points in the paint than the Tar Heels.
4. Don't bash the crowd for this one. The fact that Carolina put over 16,000 people in the Smith Center for a 9 p.m. Wednesday game against Wofford five days before Christmas is almost as remarkable as the outcome. The crowd was loud throughout the second half and did everything they could to bring the Tar Heels back. Tonight, it just wasn't there.
5. One of the most startling things about the game was how out of it the Tar Heels looked almost from the very beginning. This has been a team that has trademarked a tough, intense style. On Wednesday, there was very little diving on the floor, no charges taken, and just a general lack of enthusiasm. Good chance that will be corrected between now and Saturday. Carolina just didn't play very smart throughout the 40 minutes. "That team outworked us," Roy Williams said after the game, and he was right.
6. Great to see Cam Johnson make his Tar Heel debut. The biggest challenge over the next few weeks will be he and his teammates simply learning each other as basketball players. Where do they like the ball in order to score most effectively, where do they tend to go on the fast break, what's that one sweet spot on the floor where they're virtually automatic...these are questions most of the Tar Heels already know about each other. With Johnson, there's a limited body of work that will require some on-court learning in the days and weeks to come. Johnson did most of his damage from the free throw line, hitting 7-of-8, and finishing with ten points.
7. Minus Johnson, the Tar Heels were just 21-for-30 at the line on a night when they really needed a strong performance from the charity stripe in order to counteract the offensive doldrums. Carolina was in the bonus less than seven minutes into the second half, and the lack of UNC fouls eventually actually worked against the Heels when they had to foul just to get in the bonus with under a minute to go.
8. Defending Wofford will be a nice warmup for ACC play, when several schools will prefer to play at the Terriers' slower tempo. Wofford made some tough jumpers and the really scary part is that although he had 27 points, Fletcher Magee really didn't go off in the way he is capable of doing. He was just 4-of-12 from the three-point line and easily could have scored 35.
9. Missing three layups in the first half was a big contributor to the one-point halftime deficit. Those are shots that will typically go down.
10. If you missed your chance to order online but now need a great gift for your favorite Carolina basketball fan, there are several locations where you can buy signed copies of Redemption in person. Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill Sportswear on Franklin Street, or Park Road Books in Charlotte all have signed copies available for walk-in purchase.
Players Mentioned
F/G
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