2019-20 Tar Heel Basketball Season Review

SEASON SUMMARY
• Carolina went 14-19 overall, including 6-14 in regular-season ACC play and 1-1 in the ACC Tournament.
• The 19 losses were the second most in UNC history (8-20 in 2001-02).
• The 14 losses were the most in ACC play in UNC history (12 in a 16-game schedule in 2001-02).
• Carolina tied for 13th place in the ACC. This was just the second time in 17 seasons a Roy Williams team finished out of the top five in ACC play (tied 11th in 2010).
• This was UNC's fourth sub-.500 season in all games since the ACC began play in 1953-54 (1954-55, 1961-62, 2001-02 and 2019-20) and the 11th in school history.
• Carolina began the season with a 76-65 ACC home win over Notre Dame behind a record-breaking, 34-point debut by freshman point guard Cole Anthony.
• The Tar Heels won their first five games and stood 6-3 when Anthony was sidelined for the next 11 games due to a right knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery on Dec. 16.
• Carolina started the most point guards (4) and lineups (10) in any of Roy Williams' 17 seasons as head coach.
• Eleven scholarship players combined to miss 104 games due to injury and illness, by far the most in the Roy Williams Era (previous was 64 in 2008-09).
• Carolina's field goal percentage of .420 was its lowest since 1959-60, and its three-point percentage of .304 was the lowest in UNC history (previous was .327 in 2015-16).
• Carolina averaged 72.2 points and allowed 72.8 per game; this was the first season the Tar Heels averaged fewer points than the opponents since 2001-02.
• Carolina lost seven games in a row (all ACC games) from Feb. 1-22, the second-longest streak overall in UNC history and the longest in school history in ACC games. UNC also had five-game and four-game losing streaks, the first time UNC ever had three streaks in the same season of four or more.
• Carolina lost six games by three points or less, tying the most losses by three or fewer in school history (1940-41).
• The Tar Heels had 19 games with at least 40 rebounds and finished the season second in the nation in rebounds per game (41.9), fifth in offensive rebounds (13.8) and ninth in rebound margin (+7.6). Carolina led the nation in rebounds per game in each of the previous three seasons.
• Carolina came into the season 384-66 under Roy Williams when it out-rebounded the opponents, a winning percentage of .853. This season, Carolina went 12-14 when it has more rebounds (.462).
• UNC was 12th in the nation in offensive rebound percentage.

ROY FOURTH ALL-TIME IN WINS
• Carolina's win over Miami on Jan. 25 was the 880th career win for Roy Williams, surpassing Dean Smith for fourth place in NCAA wins by a Division I head coach.
• Williams is now 885-253.
• Williams is also third in wins by an ACC head coach with 467.
• Williams passed Jim Calhoun (873) and Adolph Rupp (876) and Smith (879) this season in wins by a Division I head coach.

MOST WINS BY A DIVISION I HEAD COACH
1157 Mike Krzyzewski
963 Jim Boeheim
902 Bob Knight
885 Roy Williams
879 Dean Smith

MOST WINS AS ACC HEAD COACH, ALL GAMES
1084 Mike Krzyzewski Duke
879 Dean Smith North Carolina
467 Roy Williams North Carolina
461 Gary Williams Maryland
360 Leonard Hamilton Florida State

• The Feb. 25 win over NC State was Williams' 200th regular-season ACC win. He reached 200 wins in the second-fewest games ever. Williams won his 200th in 287 games; Dean Smith won his 200th in 278 games and Mike Krzyzewski won his 200th in 296.

TAR HEEL PLAYER NOTES
• Garrison Brooks was a second-team All-ACC selection and was voted the league's Most Improved Player. He averaged 16.8 points and led UNC in rebounding (8.5 per game) and field goal percentage (.535).
• Brooks was the third Tar Heel to earn Most Improved Player honors in the seven years the award has been given. Marcus Paige (2014) and Luke Maye (2018) also won the award. No other school has won the award more than once.
• Brooks led the ACC in scoring in conference games at 18.8 points per game and was second in rebounding and field goal percentage. He was the fifth Tar Heel to lead the league in scoring in conference play since 1988 and the first to do so since Tyler Hansbrough in 2008 (Antawn Jamison in 1998, Joseph Forte in 2001, Rashad McCants in 2004, Hansbrough in 2008 and Brooks in 2020).
• Brooks became the first Tar Heel to score 20 or more points in seven straight games since Tyler Hansbrough did it nine in a row in 2008-09 and was the first to score 25 or more points in four straight games since Antawn Jamison in 1998.
• Brooks won UNC's defensive player of the game award 13 times this season and 33 times in three seasons.

• Freshman point guard Cole Anthony was voted to the All-ACC third team and the All-Freshman team.
• Anthony is the sixth point guard to play for Williams to earn All-Freshman team honors (Bobby Frasor 2006, Ty Lawson 2007, Kendall Marshall 2011, Marcus Paige 2013, Coby White 2019 and Anthony).
• Anthony led the Tar Heels in scoring at 18.5 points per game, the second-highest average by a UNC freshman (18.9 by Tyler Hansbrough in 2005-06).
• Anthony scored 25 or more points five times, equaling the second most by a UNC freshman. Rashad McCants had six 25-point games in 2002-03. Hansbrough and Coby White each had five. McCants and White both played 35 games, Hansbrough played 31 and Anthony played in 22 games.
• Anthony scored 25 points and had seven assists at Syracuse and scored 28 points with seven assists against Wake Forest. He became the first Tar Heel ever to have 25 or more points and at least seven assists in consecutive games.
• Anthony set ACC freshman and UNC all-time debut scoring records with 34 points against Notre Dame on 11/6/19.
• The 34 points were the most by an ACC freshman in his first game (previous was 33 by Duke's RJ Barrett in 2018). They were the most points by any Tar Heel in his first game (previous was 30 by sophomore Lennie Rosenbluth vs. Clemson in 1954) and the most points by a Tar Heel freshman in his debut (28 by Rashad McCants vs. Penn State in 2002)
• Anthony's 11 rebounds against the Irish on 11/6/19 tied the UNC single-game record for point guards with Raymond Felton (2005), Ed Cota (1998) and Harvey Salz (1958)
• Anthony averaged 5.7 rebounds, highest in at least 50 years by a Tar Heel point guard.

• Senior guard Brandon Robinson led Carolina in three-pointers with 59 and three-point percentage (.369).
• Robinson missed nine games due to injuries.
• Robinson set his career scoring high six times and scored 20 or more points three times – 20 against Yale on Dec. 30, 27 vs. Clemson on Jan. 11 and 27 vs. Miami on Jan. 25.
• He made a career-high six three-pointers against Miami, which was one of five times he made at least five threes.

• Freshman forward Armando Bacot started all but one game and averaged 9.6 points and 8.2 rebounds.
• Bacot had 11 double-doubles, the second most by a Tar Heel freshman (Antawn Jamison set the freshman record with 13 in 1995-96).
• Bacot's 8.2 rebounds per game were the most by a Tar Heel freshman since Jamison averaged 9.7 in 1996.
• Bacot twice registered double-doubles in three consecutive games, becoming the third freshman in Carolina history to have three straight double-doubles in points and rebounds (with Mike O'Koren in 1976-77 and Jamison in 1995-96).
• Bacot led UNC to its only win of the season over a ranked opponent, scoring 23 points with 12 rebounds and six blocks vs. No. 11 Oregon. He was the second Tar Heel (and only freshman) to post 23/12/6 in a game (Rasheed Wallace had the same numbers as a sophomore vs. Virginia in 1995).

NOTABLE
• Cole Anthony scored 25 in the Carrier Dome and netted 28 against Wake Forest; Garrison Brooks had 26 points at Syracuse and 25 against the Deacons. They became the first Tar Heel duo to score 25 or more points in consecutive games since Larry Miller and Bobby Lewis accomplished the feat in 1965-66 against Ohio State and Richmond.
• Carolina's win over Syracuse was the Tar Heels' ninth in a row over the Orange. UNC is the first team to defeat Syracuse nine consecutive times; Cornell beat the Orange eight straight in the 1920s.
• Carolina's home win over NC State, coupled with its win in Raleigh on Jan. 27, gave the Tar Heels their 13th regular-season sweep over the Wolfpack in Roy Williams' 17 seasons.
• It also meant the Tar Heels have won home and away games against at least one ACC opponent in every season since the league was formed in 1953-54.
• Carolina's ACC Tournament second round game vs. Syracuse was only the 13th time in 33 games the team's three leading scorers – Cole Anthony, Garrison Brooks and Brandon Robinson – all played. It was the eighth game the trio played together since the middle of December.
• UNC shot 50 percent or better from the floor just five times in 33 games (Miami, Duke, home vs. Virginia, at Syracuse and home vs. Wake Forest). The Tar Heels went 3-2 in those games and are 214-9 in the Roy Williams Era when shooting 50 percent.
• The five games shooting 50 percent or better were the fewest in the Roy Williams Era (six times, all wins, in 2012-13).
• By contrast, UNC shot 50 percent or better from the floor 10 times in 2018-19, 14 times in 2017-18, 15 times in 2016-17 and 23 times in 2015-16.
• Carolina's two most efficient offensive halves of the season came in the second half at Syracuse on Feb. 29 (52 points on 39 possessions) and the second half against Wake Forest on March 3 (58 points on 40 possessions).
• The Tar Heels shot better than 50 percent from the floor in beating Syracuse and Wake Forest (.516 vs. the Orange and .508 against the Deacons), the first time this season UNC did that in consecutive games.
• Carolina shot 50 percent from the floor in the second half 10 times in 33 games, including five of the last eight games (.517 at Notre Dame, .500 vs. NC State, .567 at Syracuse, .643 against Wake Forest and .548 vs. Virginia Tech). UNC out-scored the Irish, Pack, Orange, Deacs and Hokies by a combined 38 points in the second half in those games.
• Carolina was 283rd in the country in two-point percentage (.468), 306th in three-point shooting (.304) and 265th at the free throw line (.682).
• Carolina's scoring average of 72.2 points per game was its lowest since averaging 72.1 in 2002-03.
• The Tar Heels were eighth in the ACC in scoring. In Roy Williams' previous 16 seasons, Carolina has led the ACC in scoring eight times, finished second five times and third three times.
• No Roy Williams-coached team in 16 previous seasons at UNC averaged fewer than 74.5 points (in 2009-10). The lowest scoring average in his 15 seasons at Kansas (1988-2003) was 72.1 in 1998-99. Williams' teams averaged 80 or more points in 23 of his previous 31 seasons as a head coach.
• Carolina scored under 50 points in consecutive games (49 vs. Ohio State and 47 at Virginia) for the first time since 1948.
• Carolina scored less than 60 points seven times. It scored under 60 seven times in the previous six seasons combined.
• Carolina did not score 80 points in a game until it scored 81 in a loss at Gonzaga in the 11th game. That was the longest UNC went to open a season without an 80-point game since 1949-50.
• Carolina went 4-3 when scoring 80 or more points. It was the fewest games with 80 or more points in the Roy Williams Era (previously the fewest was 11 in 2012-13). By contrast, UNC scored 80 or more 26 times in 2015-16 and 2016-17 and 23 times in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
• This was the first season since 2002-03 in which the Tar Heels didn't score 100 points in a game.
• Eleven scholarship players combined to miss 104 games due to injury and illness, by far the most in the Roy Williams Era (previous was 64 in 2008-09).

Missed games due to injury:
33 by Sterling Manley (left knee)
28 by Anthony Harris (left and right knees)
11 by Cole Anthony (right knee)
11 by Jeremiah Francis (left knee)
9 by Brandon Robinson (right ankle, neck)
6 by Brandon Huffman (left knee)
2 by Andrew Platek (left ankle)
1 by Armando Bacot (right ankle)
1 by Leaky Black (turf toe)
1 by Garrison Brooks (illness)
1 by Justin Pierce (left ankle)

• The 104 missed games are the most in a season by scholarship players in the Roy Williams Era. The previous highs were 64 in 2008-09 and 63 in 2011-12.
• In 2008-09, Marcus Ginyard (34), Tyler Zeller (23), Tyler Hansbrough (4) and Ty Lawson (3)totaled 64 missed games, previously the most in the Williams Era.
• Only six players missed a total of 12 games in Williams' first three seasons (2003-06).

SECOND-HALF LEADS
• The Tar Heels lost five ACC games in which they led by double figures in the second half.
• Those games included: a 41-30 lead over Pittsburgh with 17:55 to play; a 68-58 lead over Clemson with 1:56 to play; a 49-37 lead in Blacksburg over the Hokies with 12:59 to play; a 77-64 lead at home over Duke with 3:56 to play; and a 64-49 lead at Notre Dame with 8:15 to play.
• On nine occasions beginning with the Jan. 22 double-overtime loss at Virginia Tech, the opponents scored the tying or winning points in the last 27 seconds of the second half or an overtime period – six of those nine came with three seconds or less and four came with under a second remaining:
– on Jan. 11, Clemson's Aamir Simms hit a three with three seconds to play in regulation and the Tigers went on win, 79-76 in overtime;
– on Jan. 22, Virginia Tech's P.J. Horne made two free throws with 13 seconds to play in the second half to tie the game at 60, Landers Nolley hit two free throws to even the game at 67 with 27 seconds to play in the first overtime and Tyrece Radford made a driving layup with 0.4 seconds to play in the second overtime to lift the Hokies to a 79-77 victory;
– on Feb. 1, Jared Hamilton was awarded three free throws with 17 seconds to play (he made two) in Boston College's 71-70 win;
– on Feb. 8, Duke's Tre Jones sent the game to overtime with a 17-footer as time expired and Wendell Moore won the game with an offensive rebound put back of a Jones miss as time expired in overtime in Duke's 98-96 win;
– on Feb. 15, Virginia's Tomas Woldetensae made a go-ahead 3FG with 0.8 seconds to play in Virginia's 64-62 win;
– on Feb. 17, Notre Dame's Nate Laszewski hit a winning three-pointer with 2.4 seconds to play in the Irish's 77-76 victory.

MEDIA POLLING
• Carolina was not ranked in the final Associated Press poll (March 18) for the 14th week in a row, its longest streak out of the poll since a 21-week stretch that covered the final 18 polls in 2001-02 and the first three polls in 2002-03.
• UNC was ranked in each of the first six weeks of the 2019-20 AP poll.
• The December 16th poll marked the first time in 107 polls the Tar Heels were not ranked in the AP poll.
• UNC has finished the season in the top 10 in each of the last four seasons (3 in 2015-16, 5 in 2016-17, 10 in 2017-18 and 3 in 2018-19).
• Carolina has been ranked in 922 AP polls, the most rankings of any school in the country.
• Carolina's 106-week streak of being ranked in the AP poll was the third longest in UNC history and the sixth longest in ACC history.

Players Mentioned

Cole Anthony

Armando Bacot

Leaky Black

Garrison Brooks

Jeremiah Francis

Anthony Harris

Brandon Huffman

Sterling Manley

Luke Maye

Justin Pierce

Andrew Platek

Brandon Robinson

Coby White

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