Lucas: Senior Speech

By Adam Lucas

SOUTH BEND, Ind.—A crowd of 9,149 had gone completely silent. T.J. Gibbs' follow shot at the buzzer had gone part of the way in the basket, then somehow came out, and Carolina escaped with a 69-68 road victory over Notre Dame, a brownie-taker if there's ever been one.

Some of the Tar Heels ran off the floor with a still-incredulous look on their faces. Freshman Jalek Felton, having just earned his first Atlantic Coast Conference road win, grinned and shook his head side to side. "Wow," he said.

The Tar Heels ran through the tunnel across from their bench, herded into the tiny visiting locker room, and found…more silence.

Everyone knew what was coming, and they were right. When Roy Williams addressed the team, it sounded more like a post-defeat speech than a post-victory celebration. He told his players they had to play better, had to execute better and execute smarter, but his harshest words were reserved for the coaching staff.

"I've got to do a better job," he said over and over again, emotion creeping into his voice.

Usually, when the head coach talks, the floor is completely his. You could probably count on one time during his tenure at Chapel Hill when a player has interrupted him. This time, however, someone else wanted to speak.

As you'd expect, it was senior Joel Berry II, the same player who'd just drained the two eventual game-winning free throws with under ten seconds to play.

"Coach, it's not you," he said. "It's us. We've got to play better."

The Tar Heels dressed in a mostly quiet locker room. You learn to read postgame moods. Usually, it's not difficult. After a win, there is joking and ribbing each other and laughing. This one was unlike any winning locker room all season. This one, for the most part, was quiet.

Even after showering and putting on his suit for the ride home, Berry was still shaking his head about the postgame message. You almost felt sorry for him; ten days ago he'd been very hard on himself after missing the potential game-winning shot at Florida State. Now, he'd made two clutch free throws, but wasn't able to enjoy it.

"Usually, out of respect, after the game I just let Coach talk and say what he has to say," Berry said. "But he was saying it was his fault and I said, 'No, Coach. You have to stop blaming it on yourself. We have to change. We have to buy in to what you want us to do.'

"I felt at that time it was time for me to say something. He has to stop blaming himself. We're the ones who go out and play. He gives us the tools we need to have a little advantage. It's up to us to have the effort and intensity. We have to change."

When Berry says the Tar Heels have to change, there are a couple factors at work. They have to prepare more effectively, but they also have to execute more efficiently. Keeping Notre Dame off the offensive glass was on the scouting report throughout Carolina's game preparation. Without star post player Bonzie Colson, the Tar Heels knew the Irish were going to have to crash the boards to have any opportunity for second chances.

That's exactly what happened, and Carolina suffered multiple breakdowns in allowing 20 offensive rebounds. Notre Dame missed 43 shots, which meant they were recovering the rebound nearly half the time they shot it. That's a statistic Williams is accustomed to imposing on opponents, not having it done to him, and it will be a major point of emphasis between now and Tuesday night's game against Clemson.

Cam Johnson and Theo Pinson both immediately admitted they'd been personally responsible for failing to box out on a couple of those second chances; other Tar Heels likely knew they'd suffered similar breakdowns.

"I made a lot of mistakes," Johnson said.

"We can't have that," Pinson said of his own box-out efforts, despite his seven boards and overall stellar performance, including 13 points, four assists, zero turnovers, and a crucial drawn charge in the game's final minute.

Carolina simply wasn't as engaged in the game—there were multiple defensive mix-ups on which Tar Heel player was assigned to which Irish player, a communication and preparation issue which shouldn't happen at this point in the season—as Notre Dame. That's why Williams was frustrated, and why he'll leave this particular win with perhaps more areas to work on with his team than he did after, for example, the loss at Florida State.

That's why the unusual mood hung among the Carolina players after the game. They know. They're out there. They see it better than you do, so if you're frustrated, imagine how they feel.

Pinson is a senior and has seen every possible kind of postgame locker room. He's seen the raucous ones, the stone silent ones…and now this one. But he's also seen enough to know how to ultimately react to a 69-68 ACC road victory.

The senior sat down at his locker, still in full uniform. He kicked out his legs to their full length and let out a long sigh. He said only three words:

"I'll take it."

Players Mentioned

Joel Berry II

Jalek Felton

Theo Pinson

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