University of North Carolina Athletics
Luke Maye
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Lucas: Rapid Reactions
March 16, 2019 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from Carolina's ACC Tournament matchup with Duke.
By Adam Lucas
1. What a game in Charlotte. That's how Carolina-Duke became Carolina-Duke.
2. The outcome shouldn't be a big surprise. As Dean Smith consistently said, it's very difficult to beat a good team three times--and even more difficult to do it three times in essentially three weeks. Give these two teams a couple weeks' break from seeing each other, and we'll see if they end up in Minneapolis together.
3. Carolina's final possession will doubtless be the subject of much conversation. Roy Williams elected not to call a timeout after Duke missed two free throws and left the Blue Devils with a one-point lead and 12 seconds remaining. But the Tar Heels never got the ball inside the three-point line and settled for an off-balance Coby White jumper. Lost in all the discussion will be the fact that White darn near made the shot.
4. It also looked like Carolina might have had Duke caught in a switch very briefly on that final possession, but could never take advantage of it. No one will be more frustrated than White, who you have to think will learn from that sequence. As he said afterward, the play was designed for Luke Maye to set the screen and then receive a pass from White.
5. Most of the attention will go to the final minutes. But you could make a strong case that Carolina lost the game in the first half, when they couldn't take advantage of a hot start and Cam Reddish sitting for the final ten minutes of the half. Instead, Duke got a boost from its bench and went into the locker room tied, which felt like a Blue Devil win. Carolina should have had an eight to ten point cushion at half.
6. Part of the reason the game was tied was Duke's work on the boards in the first 20 minutes. They held a 20-18 advantage overall and 7-5 on the offensive glass as the Tar Heels lost a ten-point lead in the final six minutes of the period.
7. The rebounding effort was much better in the second half. Carolina ended the game with a 44-39 edge, and Luke Maye had a game-high 13.
8. The Tar Heels shot 4-for-27 from the three-point line, nearly as poor as their 2-for-20 effort at Cameron. White, Luke Maye and Kenny Williams combined to go 1-for-15 from the arc.
9. Carolina took 26 two-point shots in the second half but made just four trips to the free throw line. Duke took 20 two-point shots and took seven free throws in the half. White, no doubt, will also beat himself up over an uncharacteristic missed front end of a one-and-one late in the second half.
10. Brandon Robinson played another quality ACC Tournament game. He forced Reddish to the bench by drawing a charge against him, and also nailed a couple of his buckets to go with his two assists.
11. Carolina missed Garrison Brooks in the final minutes. Brooks fouled out after guarding Williamson for most of the game.
12. Great turnout from the Carolina basketball family in Charlotte. Among others, Phil Ford, Al Wood, Jeff McInnis, Ed Cota, Donald Williams, Melvin Scott, Jackie Manuel, Mike Copeland, Terrence Newby, Shammond Williams and Philip McLamb were at the Spectrum Center.
13. The more you look at the stats, the more you wonder how Carolina was in the game. No player who took more than two shots from the field shot 50 percent. The three-point struggles have already been documented. Carolina shot 33 percent from the field in the second half. Zion Williamson scored 31 points. And yet there the Tar Heels were, with the ball and a chance to win on the final possession. It's hard to leave Charlotte feeling too negatively about that effort.
14. Carolina didn't play for the ACC championship in 2005, 2009 or 2017. Those seasons turned out just fine. This one still can, too.
1. What a game in Charlotte. That's how Carolina-Duke became Carolina-Duke.
2. The outcome shouldn't be a big surprise. As Dean Smith consistently said, it's very difficult to beat a good team three times--and even more difficult to do it three times in essentially three weeks. Give these two teams a couple weeks' break from seeing each other, and we'll see if they end up in Minneapolis together.
3. Carolina's final possession will doubtless be the subject of much conversation. Roy Williams elected not to call a timeout after Duke missed two free throws and left the Blue Devils with a one-point lead and 12 seconds remaining. But the Tar Heels never got the ball inside the three-point line and settled for an off-balance Coby White jumper. Lost in all the discussion will be the fact that White darn near made the shot.
4. It also looked like Carolina might have had Duke caught in a switch very briefly on that final possession, but could never take advantage of it. No one will be more frustrated than White, who you have to think will learn from that sequence. As he said afterward, the play was designed for Luke Maye to set the screen and then receive a pass from White.
5. Most of the attention will go to the final minutes. But you could make a strong case that Carolina lost the game in the first half, when they couldn't take advantage of a hot start and Cam Reddish sitting for the final ten minutes of the half. Instead, Duke got a boost from its bench and went into the locker room tied, which felt like a Blue Devil win. Carolina should have had an eight to ten point cushion at half.
6. Part of the reason the game was tied was Duke's work on the boards in the first 20 minutes. They held a 20-18 advantage overall and 7-5 on the offensive glass as the Tar Heels lost a ten-point lead in the final six minutes of the period.
7. The rebounding effort was much better in the second half. Carolina ended the game with a 44-39 edge, and Luke Maye had a game-high 13.
8. The Tar Heels shot 4-for-27 from the three-point line, nearly as poor as their 2-for-20 effort at Cameron. White, Luke Maye and Kenny Williams combined to go 1-for-15 from the arc.
9. Carolina took 26 two-point shots in the second half but made just four trips to the free throw line. Duke took 20 two-point shots and took seven free throws in the half. White, no doubt, will also beat himself up over an uncharacteristic missed front end of a one-and-one late in the second half.
10. Brandon Robinson played another quality ACC Tournament game. He forced Reddish to the bench by drawing a charge against him, and also nailed a couple of his buckets to go with his two assists.
11. Carolina missed Garrison Brooks in the final minutes. Brooks fouled out after guarding Williamson for most of the game.
12. Great turnout from the Carolina basketball family in Charlotte. Among others, Phil Ford, Al Wood, Jeff McInnis, Ed Cota, Donald Williams, Melvin Scott, Jackie Manuel, Mike Copeland, Terrence Newby, Shammond Williams and Philip McLamb were at the Spectrum Center.
13. The more you look at the stats, the more you wonder how Carolina was in the game. No player who took more than two shots from the field shot 50 percent. The three-point struggles have already been documented. Carolina shot 33 percent from the field in the second half. Zion Williamson scored 31 points. And yet there the Tar Heels were, with the ball and a chance to win on the final possession. It's hard to leave Charlotte feeling too negatively about that effort.
14. Carolina didn't play for the ACC championship in 2005, 2009 or 2017. Those seasons turned out just fine. This one still can, too.
Players Mentioned
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