University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
January 19, 2015 | Men's Basketball
By Adam Lucas
1. That was one of the most active games of Justin Jackson's UNC career. The freshman finished with 16 points on 5-for-10 shooting and also hauled down seven rebounds to go with four assists and a pair of blocks. The Tar Heels are now 8-0 when Jackson scores in double figures.
2. Carolina crushed the Hokies on the backboards, winning the overall rebounding battle 49-22 and capturing the victory on the offensive glass, 16-4. Not surprisingly, that led to a 15-4 Tar Heel advantage in second chance points. The solid rebounding work was led by Brice Johnson, who pulled down 11 boards, six of them offensive. In addition to Justin Jackson's seven (see below), Marcus Paige also managed to get six.
3. The Tar Heels were scheduled to have an off day on Monday in advance of Wednesday's game at Wake Forest. But based on Roy Williams' frustration level during the game, it's entirely possible that off day might vanish. High on the list of problems: Carolina's 17 turnovers against a 2-3 Virginia Tech zone.
4. Buzz Williams is an entertaining addition to the Atlantic Coast Conference. The former Marquette head coach spent most of his time on the Smith Center court, eventually earning a warning for straying (far) from the coaching box by official Michael Stuart. There will be no lack of energy in Blacksburg as long as Williams is around. He shares some mannerisms with longtime Maryland coach Lefty Driesell. In addition, Williams can coach--his depleted team, which was missing its leading scorer due to injury, had no business being that close to the Tar Heels on the road.
5. Carolina is now 4-1 in the ACC, the first time in three seasons the Tar Heels are off to such a hot start in the league. It will be interesting to see how Carolina handles the early success. They weren't exactly crisp against the Hokies, but it's hard to argue with 4-1, and there are some winnable games on the immediate horizon.
6. Video coordinator Eric Hoots should do the world a favor and burn the video from the first half of that game. Between two referee corrections and multiple stoppages for blood, the first 20 minutes clocked in at 55 minutes of real time.
