University of North Carolina Athletics
Boston College Game Guide
February 17, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 17, 2007
By Lauren Brownlow
The Basics
The No. 4 (22-4, 8-3) Tar Heels look to rebound from an 81-80 overtime loss to Virginia Tech as they travel to face No. 21 Boston College (18-7, 9-3). The Eagles are coming off a 78-70 loss to Duke at home on Wednesday night. The Tar Heels are ½ game behind Boston College for first place in the ACC. Carolina is 2-3 against Boston College all-time, with the Tar Heels' last victory coming in the NCAA Tournament in the 1975 consolation round. Boston College has won the last three games against Carolina, beating the Tar Heels twice last season and knocking the 1994 Carolina team out of the NCAA Tournament. Saturday's game marks the first time Carolina will face Boston College in Chestnut Hills.
Game Time: North Carolina at Boston College, 9 p.m.
Last Time: The Tar Heels fell 85-82 to Boston College in the ACC Tournament semifinals on March 11, 2006. The Eagles shot 66.7% from the floor in the first half and finished the game shooting 61.1%. They outrebounded the Tar Heels 36-28. A David Noel lay-up with 4.1 seconds left brought the Tar Heels within three, and Tyrese Rice missed a free throw with 2.7 seconds left, but Craig Smith got one of his three offensive rebounds the Eagles ran the clock out.
Tyler Hansbrough led the way for the Tar Heels with 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting and added 11 rebounds (eight offensive). David Noel added 18 points (including 4-of-9 from the three-point line) and added three assists and two steals. Reyshawn Terry had 17 points and Wes Miller added 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the three-point line.
Craig Smith paced Boston College with 23 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and three steals. Jared Dudley had 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 3-of-5 from behind the arc. Sean Marshall had 14 points and Tyrese Rice added 10 points.
Radio Coverage: Tar Heel Sports Network coverage begins at 8 p.m.
Injury report: Quentin Thomas is sick and has not practiced since the Virginia Tech game. He is doubtful for Saturday. Brandan Wright injured his shoulder in practice on Thursday and did not practice Friday. He will be a game-time decision on Saturday.
Storylines
Rebounding: Though the Tar Heels still rank as the No. 1 rebounding team in the league with a +9.6 margin, in their last five games they have struggled with the No. 11 (Virginia Tech) and No. 12 (NC State) rebounding teams in the conference. NC State actually outrebounded the Tar Heels 31-25, and the Hokies began the first half with a 22-20 rebounding edge, including an 8-4 edge on the offensive glass. Deron Washington alone already had nine rebounds and four offensive rebounds.
"The other night we just weren't into it the first 3-4 possessions and that's when they had their huge rebounding advantage. We gave up two offensive rebounds for baskets in the second half, but we got some for baskets too. We were going to continue doing all the things we've always done," Coach Williams said. "A huge thing for us was keeping Deron Washington off the boards. The first play of the game, the guy that's supposed to be boxing him out was 11 feet, three inches away from him. We've got to be tougher at the start of the game. They kicked our tails."
"I think they went to the boards harder than us and they got some rebounds that we didn't. In the second half, Coach come into the locker room and said something about it and we tried to change it when we came back out in the second half," Tyler Hansbrough said.
In the second half, the Tar Heels outrebounded the Hokies 25-21, and held a 10-7 edge on the offensive glass. But in the end, the Tar Heels woke up too late. The Tar Heels have three players in the top 20 in the league in rebounding: Tyler Hansbrough (7.8), Brandan Wright (6.6), and Reyshawn Terry (5.9).
Boston College is the No. 5 rebounding team in the league with a +3.1 rebounding margin and is averaging 36.2 rebounds a game. In conference play only, Boston College is averaging 34.8 rebounds and its rebounding margin is slightly higher at +3.3. The Eagles are No. 7 in offensive rebounding in the league (12.4 a game) and sixth in defensive rebounding (23.76 a game). There are two Eagles in the top 20 in rebounding - Jared Dudley (8.8 a game) and Shamari Spears (5.7 a game).
The Tar Heels are playing on the road and have shown some questionable aggression in the last few games on the glass early on. They will need to go hard and often for rebounds, especially if Brandan Wright is unable to play, against a tough and physical Boston College team.
"Team" concept: In the Virginia Tech game Tuesday night, the Tar Heels had just 11 assists on 26 field goals, or 42.3% assisted field goals. Carolina has had just six games with 50% or fewer assisted field goals, and the Tar Heels are 2-4 in such games.
"That has a lot to do with sharing the ball and making that extra play or making a play to get a teammate a better shot. I don't think we're a selfish team by any means, but I think sometimes we get in modes where we feel like we have to do it ourselves, or one guy has to go get a bucket by himself to help bring us back or help make a big play," Wes Miller said. "A lot of times, it's just making that extra pass or making that easy play or doing what we're supposed to do in our secondary break or one of our set plays to get somebody else a shot. When we play that way, we're a better team. You see more assists and you see a more fluid team offensively. When we don't, I think we struggle a little bit more."
An increase in assists likely won't come unless the Tar Heels stop settling for jump shots. Tyler Hansbrough put in quite a day's work on Tuesday evening, but the Tar Heels couldn't seem to get him the ball down the stretch. Brandan Wright was already sitting on the bench because of his match-up problems with Deron Washington.
"We haven't been doing a good enough job of getting the ball inside. Tyler's got to get more touches; Brandan's got to get more touches to get those high-percentage shots down low. When those guys are getting double-and-triple-teamed and they kick it back out, it opens things up from the perimeter. You'll see more assists there and I think you'll see better basketball," Miller said.
From the Tennessee game on, Carolina had a 12-game stretch of higher than 50% assisted field goals and from Kentucky on had a ten-game streak of 60% or higher assisted field goals. Since those streaks were snapped at Virginia Tech, the Tar Heels have assisted on 50% or fewer field goals in four of those nine games. In Carolina's two blowouts, they posted 70% or higher assisted field goals.
The Gonzaga loss was a season low in percent-assisted field goals, just nine assists on 25 field goals (36%). The second-lowest percentage was 15 assists on 39 field goals (38.5%) against Arizona in a blowout win. The other win came against Duke when just 45.2% of Carolina's field goals were assisted (14 assists on 31 field goals). Two of Carolina's losses were a result of 50% assisted field goals - Virginia Tech on the road (16 assists on 32 field goals, and many of those assists came in the final minutes) and NC State (15 assists on 30 field goals).
"I feel like we had a stretch where we were playing so well, and we kind of got away from that `team first' thing. The sooner everybody gets back into that mindset of team first, and everything else follows after that, I think we'll be back on track. It's definitely a big thing that needs to be changed," Marcus Ginyard said. "That covers so many things; that covers people being accountable for their individual actions out there on the court. Those boxing out, that one person carrying out that assignment is putting the team first, and them thinking anything other than that is wrong. So `team first' is a really big thing for us right now."
One tends to forget watching these freshmen to go work on the court that they are, in fact, freshmen. They have not been in many late-game situations, and in high school, they likely would have been called upon to carry their team to victory in a similar situation. This loss will likely help the team as a whole learn to stay with the team's game plan and trust it, no matter how dire the situation seems.
"I think we can take away a lot (from the loss): how important it is to box every possession, how important it is to stay in front of our man, a lot of things down the stretch. Now we've got to step up as a team and execute better," Wayne Ellington said.
At The Game
Listening to the Tar Heel Sports Network at the game: The in-stadium frequency in the Conte Forum will likely be on or around FM 92.7.
Watching At Home
Turn down the sound: If you're watching at home while listening to the radio or over the computer via Carolina All-Access, there will inevitably be some delay. For the reason - and a possible solution - click here.
A full list of THSN affiliates can be found here.
ESPN coverage: The game will be available on ESPN.
Names To Know
Wayne Ellington: Ellington shot 4-of-13 from the field and 1-of-6 from the three-point line for 14 points. He had some great moments in the first half, taking the ball aggressively to the basket on quite a few occasions and making a three-pointer on a very well-executed play at the halftime buzzer for three of his 11 first-half points. But in the second half, he shot 0-of-6 from the field and 0-of-4 from the three-point line.
"Wayne has gotten better defensively. He has not shot the ball as well lately, but every time he shoots it I still think it's going in," Coach Williams said.
Ellington has the best assist-turnover ratio on the team in league games only with 31 assists to just nine turnovers (3.4 ratio). Eight of his 20 steals have come in league play. In league play only, Ellington is shooting 42-of-106 (39.6%) from the field, worse among all averaging double-figure minutes except Wes Miller (34.5%). He is shooting 15-of-52 (28.8%) from the three-point line in league play, which is worse than anyone in the normal rotation except Bobby Frasor (1-of-10). From two-point range, he is shooting 27-of-54 (50%) in league play.
Teams are showing a tendency to collapse on the interior defensively and attempting to force the Tar Heels to shoot lower-percentage jump shots. But Ellington is so skilled a player that he does not need to fall into the trap of only shooting jump shots. He showed in the first half against Virginia Tech that if he penetrates and gets into the lane, he is difficult to stop.
Marcus Ginyard: Ginyard is one of the toughest players on this team, and with a leadership void on this team, some are starting to wonder if Ginyard can be that guy.
"I just feel like every time we lose these close games, it's always like somebody else just wanted it more, somebody else could take the bump that much better, somebody else was willing to shove us and we were backing off from them. It's difficult to say really what it's going to take, but we've got to get it together, some way, somehow," Ginyard said after Carolina's loss on Tuesday.
On Friday, Ginyard pointed to leadership as an obvious solution to the problem. Of the current members of the rotation, Ginyard seems like the most likely candidate to fill this role . But the problem remains, and someone needs to step up.
"It needs to happen soon; it needs to happen tomorrow, but it's not where it needs to be now yet. Whoever is going to step up tomorrow; whoever shows that they're ready for it now, tomorrow, the next day and after that, I think it will be pretty obvious," Ginyard said on Friday.
"Is that something that is in your fiber?" a reporter asked him.
"Yes, sir," Ginyard responded matter-of-factly.
Also, though Ginyard is not widely perceived to be an offensive-minded player, Ginyard is one of the most efficient on the team, shooting 51.4% in conference play and averaging 4.3 points a game. He also has the second-highest assist-turnover ratio on the team in league play only (2.3).
Deon Thompson: If Brandan Wright is unable to go on Saturday, Thompson could start again like he did at Arizona and will definitely see substantial minutes. On the season, he had yet to see 20 minutes or more before the Arizona game and has done so one more time since (the Wake Forest game). The only league game Thompson failed to see double-figure minutes in was the Duke game, when the Tar Heels were forced to go small. He played 13 minutes against Virginia Tech on Tuesday but just four of those were in the second half.
In non-conference games before league play began, he averaged 11.5 minutes a game and 4.6 points. In league play, he is averaging 13.4 minutes and 4.3 points. He shot 52.1% in out-of-conference games and is shooting 55.3% in-conference.
The Arizona game, Thompson's best, was not included in the non-conference totals since it took place in the middle of the ACC season. Carolina needed Thompson and Stepheson to step up and fill the void with Wright out, and he did it. He shot 7-of-8 from the field on his way to 14 points and added six rebounds.
Jared Dudley: Dudley is the best player the Tar Heels have faced arguably since Sean Singletary, whom they held to 14 points in 32 minutes. Dudley is No. 1 in the conference in scoring (19.6 points a game) and rebounding (8.8 a game). He is third in both offensive rebounding (3.09 a game) and defensive rebounding (5.68 a game). He ranks third in field-goal percentage (59.3%) and tenth in free-throw percentage (75.7%).
"Playing against him last year, what impressed me was just him hitting big shots and making big plays. It just seemed to me that whenever they needed a bucket, whenever they needed a rebound or a big defensive play, he was the guy to do it for them, especially in the games against us," Wes Miller said.
At home, Dudley is averaging 20.8 points per game and 9.0 rebounds. In the last six ACC home contests, Dudley has scored 20.7 points a game, shot 60.3% from the floor, 50% from the three-point line and 72.4% from the free-throw line, pulled down 8.3 rebounds and 3.2 offensive rebounds, dished out 2.7 assists and turned it over 2.7 times a game, and averaged 38.7 minutes.
Against Duke, Dudley was held to 11 points, tied for his lowest of the season, on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 from the free-throw line. His four rebounds also tied a season low. Despite foul trouble, Dudley played 39 minutes.
Dudley is No. 1 in the league in minutes played (38.36 a game) and he is just nine minutes shy of establishing the Boston College record for minutes played.
Last season against the Tar Heels, Dudley averaged 28 minutes a game against the Tar Heels and 13.5 points on 9-of-19 shooting (3-of-6 from the three-point line; 6-of-13 from the free-throw line). He also averaged 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.5 steals, and 2.5 turnovers.
Tyrese Rice: The sophomore point guard is the second-leading scorer on Boston College's team this season and ranks eighth in the league with 17.1 points per game. He also leads the league in assists with 5.76 a game and ranks eighth in assist-turnover ratio (1.67). He is tenth in conference in three-pointers made (1.68 a game) and eighth in free-throw percentage (78%). He also ranks No. 3 in the ACC in minutes played (35.48 a game). Rice leads his team in steals with 1.32 a game.
Rice has scored 20 or more points in the last four games. In Boston College's last 6 ACC home games, Rice is shooting 49.3% from the field and averaging 18.2 points a game. He is averaging 6.0 assists, 3.0 turnovers and 1.3 steals. He is also playing 38 minutes per game.
He will be a tough match-up for the young Ty Lawson to deal with on both ends of the court. He did not start last season but got valuable experience spelling starter Louis Hinnant.
Last season against Carolina, Rice averaged 21.0 minutes and 13.0 points on 10-of-18 shooting (4-of-8 from beyond the arc), 2.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.0 steals and 2.5 turnovers.
Sean Marshall: The senior guard is steady and durable, playing in 125 straight games in his college career. Though he is often overshadowed on his own team by the scoring contributions of Jared Dudley and Tyrese Rice, Marshall ranks No. 13 the league in scoring (15.1 points per game). He also ranks No. 2 on his team in steals (1.16 a game).
In the Eagles' last six ACC home games, Marshall is averaging 31.5 minutes played, 17.0 points on 45.5% shooting from the field, 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.8 turnovers, and 1.0 steals.
Last season against Carolina, Marshall averaged 27.5 minutes a game and 12.5 points on 10-of-21 shooting (3-of-9 from beyond the arc). He also added 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 turnovers.
Quotables
"Well, the only game we lost at home this year we didn't have the frickin' song. I don't care if they dance around on top of their frickin' heads as long as they come out there and play. We had some mechanical difficulties and we didn't have the song, so we didn't see them dance around against Virginia Tech. So my guess is that will never happen in my lifetime again." -Roy Williams on "Jump Around" intro music
"When they say, `Have you thought of...?' I always say, `Yes,' regardless of what they say. It's like I explained to them, they may be a pharmacist or a real-estate guy, but it's not something that they think about all day every day, and not only myself but four other assistants, that's all we think about." -Roy Williams on the types of questions he gets on his weekly radio show
"In 2004 with the Olympic team, we beat Germany on a last-second shot by Allen Iverson. Allen Iverson said it was the first game-winning shot he'd ever made. He'd been in the NBA for 10 years. I said, `You've got to be kidding me.' He said, `No, Coach, that's the first last-second shot I've ever made to win a game.' And he's pretty good." -Roy Williams on Ty Lawson being able to bounce back from not hitting the game-winner on Tuesday
"He may have held the ball a split second too long, but if we've got a slow clock operator, we win the game. Regardless of what has gone on in the civilized or uncivilized world - if the clock operator is four-tenths of a second to five-tenths of a second slower, Wayne Ellington makes one of the most unbelievable shots ever to win a game." -Roy Williams
Lauren Brownlow is the managing editor of Tar Heel Monthly.
