University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
February 7, 2015 | Men's Basketball
By Adam Lucas
1. Two different versions of Isaiah Hicks played in Saturday's game. There was the Hicks who started the game, getting a spot in the starting lineup along with Nate Britt in place of J.P. Tokoto and Kennedy Meeks. That Hicks looked a little overwhelmed with a start in a league game. But after taking a quick early break, Hicks came back with his best ACC effort ever, scoring a career-high 21 points. Boston College often tried to defend Hicks with Patrick Heckmann, who simply didn't have the size to compete with the Tar Heel sophomore.
2. The Boston College statkeepers eventually credited Carolina with a whopping two fast break points, a total that seems incredibly low. The Tar Heels did indeed go scoreless in transition in the first half. But improved Carolina defense resulted in more running opportunities in the final 20 minutes, and the Tar Heels should've had more than two fast break points. As always, the UNC offense looked much more efficient (66.7 percent from the field in the second half) when it was able to get out and run.
3. A storyline to watch in the coming days is the status of Kennedy Meeks. The Tar Heel big man played through a 101-degree fever against Virginia on Monday night and managed 11 points on 28 minutes. But Meeks appeared to be healthy against Boston College and was ineffective. Meeks was replaced in the starting lineup by Hicks and had just four points and two rebounds in 12 minutes.
Part of that lack of playing time was simply due to the Eagles' personnel, which is very shallow in the paint. But even in the minutes he received, Meeks didn't have a ton of energy.
4. Not an easy way to welcome back Joel Berry II, who had missed seven games with a groin injury. The freshman returned to the rotation against Boston College and immediately had to guard one of the toughest covers in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Olivier Hanlan. Virginia head coach Tony Bennett recently called BC "the toughest team in the ACC to prepare for," largely because of how many different ways they use Hanlan.
5. The whole second-half exploits of Marcus Paige issue has been well chronicled over the past two seasons. But part of his first half struggles (Paige didn't score in the first 20 minutes on Saturday) has to do with the shots he's choosing not to take. The junior passed up two wide-open three-pointers in the first half against the Eagles.
Paige did come back and score 13 points in the second half, including a big driving hoop that essentially put the game away.
6. A little cherry-picking from Brice Johnson, perhaps? The Carolina big man snagged a last-second rebound over Justin Jackson. It wasn't just an insignfiicant board. It gave Johnson a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double.
