University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
December 15, 2018 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from Carolina's matchup with Gonzaga.
By Adam Lucas
1. That's a great win, both for now and for March, with an impressive 103-90 win over Gonzaga in a pulsating Smith Center.
2. The last time we saw these Tar Heels, Roy Williams was extremely frustrated with their defensive effort. Carolina was markedly better against Gonzaga in almost every facet defensively, from communication, to rotations, to on-ball intensity. It wasn't great defense, but it was improved defense, and that's the main goal in December.
3. On paper, this appeared to be a matchup of two teams that haven't been very good defensively but could both score in a hurry. Carolina took advantage of the Bulldogs' defense, dominating in virtually every category. This Tar Heel team can really, really score--especially when they're hitting 13 of 25 three-point attempts.
4. Admittedly, Gonzaga was playing without a big post presence, as Killian Tillie was out with an injury. Still, the UNC big men played one of their best combined games of the year. Garrison Brooks, especially, was terrific, simply because he didn't try to do too much. Brooks had nine rebounds in 23 minutes, and five of his boards were offensive.
5. The Tar Heels got some terrific minutes from reserves in the first half. Coby White had been aggressive offensively when Roy Williams began substituting for the first time, and it looked like Carolina might get caught without a lot of offensive production on the court. But the subs, led by Seventh Woods, actually stretched the lead out to double figures before White reentered. Leaky Black had a big steal and dunk, and then Woods continued to be productive in the second half, to the point that Williams inserted him with 2:30 left to calm things down when the Tar Heels were having a rash of turnovers.
6. As you would expect, a nice cross-section of Carolina lettermen were on hand, including Lennie Rosenbluth, Mitch Kupchak, Antawn Jamison, Mickey Bell and Phil Ford.
7. It's a nice feeling when you beat the fourth-ranked team in the country, 103-90, and still leave feeling like you've got plenty to work on. Carolina turned it over a whopping 23 times, some of which were simply tossing the ball away. The Tar Heels also looked periodically perplexed by a Gonzaga switch to a zone, to the point that Williams had to burn a rare timeout with five minutes remaining just to provide some structure.
8. But again, making baskets covers up quite a bit of issues. Cameron Johnson scored 25 points, and Luke Maye was terrific with 20 points and 17 rebounds. Coby White added 15 and Seventh Woods had a career-high 14 to complete the four Tar Heels in double figures.
9. Maye's 17 rebounds were almost as many as the entire Gonzaga team had (21) put together. The Tar Heels completely dominated the glass, 42-21, and put up a whopping 27 second chance points while limiting the Bulldogs to zero. Essentially, that's the entire story of the game right there.
10. Maye's final free throw, which gave him 20 for the game, gave him 1,000 for his career. He becomes the 78th Tar Heel to score 1,000 points.
11. Interesting that Kenny Williams had the ball in his hands a little more in this game than he has the last couple of weeks. Williams came into the game with a team-high 44 assists; he had four against Gonzaga, while White had six. If White continues to be dynamic offensively, it wouldn't be surprising to see Williams initiate the offense a little more frequently--as Theo Pinson did for Joel Berry last year.
12. Credit to both of these coaches for playing this series. College basketball needs more home-and-home series between great programs in front of loud, sellout crowds. The Tar Heels will have a tough one next year when they go to Spokane, but they're supposed to be tough in December. It's more fun to watch a game like this on a home court rather than at a tepid neutral site.
13. Mack Brown got a well-deserved great hand at halftime when he was introduced along with the rest of his coaching staff. If you closed your eyes for just a minute, as Brown encouraged students and fans to buy tickets and fill Kenan Stadium, it was almost 1997 and Brown was telling you to Come Early, Wear Blue, Be Loud, and Stay Late.
1. That's a great win, both for now and for March, with an impressive 103-90 win over Gonzaga in a pulsating Smith Center.
2. The last time we saw these Tar Heels, Roy Williams was extremely frustrated with their defensive effort. Carolina was markedly better against Gonzaga in almost every facet defensively, from communication, to rotations, to on-ball intensity. It wasn't great defense, but it was improved defense, and that's the main goal in December.
3. On paper, this appeared to be a matchup of two teams that haven't been very good defensively but could both score in a hurry. Carolina took advantage of the Bulldogs' defense, dominating in virtually every category. This Tar Heel team can really, really score--especially when they're hitting 13 of 25 three-point attempts.
4. Admittedly, Gonzaga was playing without a big post presence, as Killian Tillie was out with an injury. Still, the UNC big men played one of their best combined games of the year. Garrison Brooks, especially, was terrific, simply because he didn't try to do too much. Brooks had nine rebounds in 23 minutes, and five of his boards were offensive.
5. The Tar Heels got some terrific minutes from reserves in the first half. Coby White had been aggressive offensively when Roy Williams began substituting for the first time, and it looked like Carolina might get caught without a lot of offensive production on the court. But the subs, led by Seventh Woods, actually stretched the lead out to double figures before White reentered. Leaky Black had a big steal and dunk, and then Woods continued to be productive in the second half, to the point that Williams inserted him with 2:30 left to calm things down when the Tar Heels were having a rash of turnovers.
6. As you would expect, a nice cross-section of Carolina lettermen were on hand, including Lennie Rosenbluth, Mitch Kupchak, Antawn Jamison, Mickey Bell and Phil Ford.
7. It's a nice feeling when you beat the fourth-ranked team in the country, 103-90, and still leave feeling like you've got plenty to work on. Carolina turned it over a whopping 23 times, some of which were simply tossing the ball away. The Tar Heels also looked periodically perplexed by a Gonzaga switch to a zone, to the point that Williams had to burn a rare timeout with five minutes remaining just to provide some structure.
8. But again, making baskets covers up quite a bit of issues. Cameron Johnson scored 25 points, and Luke Maye was terrific with 20 points and 17 rebounds. Coby White added 15 and Seventh Woods had a career-high 14 to complete the four Tar Heels in double figures.
9. Maye's 17 rebounds were almost as many as the entire Gonzaga team had (21) put together. The Tar Heels completely dominated the glass, 42-21, and put up a whopping 27 second chance points while limiting the Bulldogs to zero. Essentially, that's the entire story of the game right there.
10. Maye's final free throw, which gave him 20 for the game, gave him 1,000 for his career. He becomes the 78th Tar Heel to score 1,000 points.
11. Interesting that Kenny Williams had the ball in his hands a little more in this game than he has the last couple of weeks. Williams came into the game with a team-high 44 assists; he had four against Gonzaga, while White had six. If White continues to be dynamic offensively, it wouldn't be surprising to see Williams initiate the offense a little more frequently--as Theo Pinson did for Joel Berry last year.
12. Credit to both of these coaches for playing this series. College basketball needs more home-and-home series between great programs in front of loud, sellout crowds. The Tar Heels will have a tough one next year when they go to Spokane, but they're supposed to be tough in December. It's more fun to watch a game like this on a home court rather than at a tepid neutral site.
13. Mack Brown got a well-deserved great hand at halftime when he was introduced along with the rest of his coaching staff. If you closed your eyes for just a minute, as Brown encouraged students and fans to buy tickets and fill Kenan Stadium, it was almost 1997 and Brown was telling you to Come Early, Wear Blue, Be Loud, and Stay Late.
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