University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Carolina Basketball Notebook
December 16, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 16, 2011
By Adam Lucas
Any time Kendall Marshall and Roy Williams share the podium at a Carolina basketball press conference, hilarity is certain to follow. Williams enjoys poking at his point guard just enough to make it entertaining, and Marshall is savvy and self-deprecating enough to keep it lighthearted.
Recalling Marshall's middle school fame as the best sixth-grader in basketball, which earned the 11-year-old Marshall a spot in a Rick Reilly column, Williams said, "When you're declared the best sixth grader in the country, everything is downhill after that. All the sixth grade girls want to share their lunch with you."
Told of his coach's comment, Marshall grinned. "They're still not sharing their lunch with me now," he said.
Mac Can Do: James Michael McAdoo is playing the most minutes of any Carolina freshman, contributing 5.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. Williams believes those numbers will improve as McAdoo's college adjustment continues.
"A lot of kids catch their breath and naturally get better in the second semester," the head coach said. "I hope that will happen with him."
If it does, one of the key areas of improvement will be McAdoo's aggressiveness around the rim. After one finger-roll too many in a recent game, Williams turned to the Carolina bench and declared, "If he doesn't dunk the ball before this game is over, I'm going to run every one of you extra sprints."
As Marshall pointed out, the scary thing for the players on the bench was that the coach didn't repeat the sentiment to McAdoo, so he had no incentive to dunk. As it turned out, though, McAdoo dunked on a subsequent possession, and his teammates were spared extra running.
Head coaching debut: Carolina eyes will be on Greensboro tonight, where Wes Miller makes his head coaching debut. The 28-year-old Miller is the interim coach for the Spartans, and his first head coaching experience will come against a familiar face--fellow Tar Heel Jeff Lebo, the head coach at East Carolina. The Pirates are off to a 4-4 start.
Miller, who wrote a book about his UNC playing experience, transferred to Carolina partially to prepare for a career in coaching. "The very first day I met him, he and his dad and I sat in my office and talked, and he said one of the big reasons he wanted to come here was because he wanted to coach," Williams said. "He didn't want it to happen this way, but I knew he would be a really good coach."
Miller learned of the possible opportunity last week and spent some time in Chapel Hill during UNCG exams to prepare for his new role. Free online audio and video is available of tonight's game.
Briefly: Traditionally, the game coming off exams can be somewhat unpredictable. The Tar Heels had a lighter practice schedule this week, including two days off, two days of run and shoots (more lightly structured workouts), and full practices on Thursday and Friday. Under Williams, the only time the Tar Heels have lost after a week-long exam break came last year, when Texas held on for a 78-76 win in Greensboro...Fans attending Monday's game against Nicholls are encouraged to participate in the basketball program's Toys for Tots initiative. New, unwrapped toys can be dropped off at the park and ride location or outside of the Smith Center...Tickets are available for four of the next five home games...
Marshall had an interesting take on Carolina's improved shooting percentage, as the Tar Heels are hitting 48.7% from the field and 42.7% from the three-point line after succeeding just 45.0% of the time from the field and 32.8% from the three-point line last season. "Last year we'd get great looks but they weren't falling," the point guard said. "This year, we're shooting with more confidence and we're making more shots."...A scary thought for opponents about John Henson, the reigning ACC Player of the Week. "John is doing some nice things," Williams said. "His shooting percentage can go up, he can block more shots, he can get stronger and he can rebound more. He's having a good year, and he has a chance to have a great year." At 15.0 points per game, Henson is Carolina's second-leading scorer, and his 56.9% shooting from the field leads the Tar Heel regulars.
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly. He is also the author or co-author of six books on Carolina basketball, including the official chronicle of the first 100 years of Tar Heel hoops, A Century of Excellence, which is available now. Get real-time UNC sports updates from the THM staff on Twitter and Facebook.
