Lucas: UNC Asheville Rapid Reactions

By Adam Lucas

1. Carolina got what it needed--a win--against UNC Asheville. The Tar Heels prevailed, 72-53, and now will enter a very important week of practice leading into the Michigan game (tickets are available). Remember, you're not going to see a dramatic change after one day of practice.

2. Carolina's defense, or lack thereof, was deservedly a big topic after the two losses this weekend. The Tar Heels weren't perfect in that category, but they were much better. UNC Asheville made just 26.5% of its shots and only 18.9% from three-point range. Had the Bulldogs been much better from three-point range, the second half could have been dicey.

3. You could see some noticeable effort from the Tar Heels to try and implement some of the areas Hubert Davis has emphasized since Sunday. Some of those efforts were misplaced, as when Carolina took a shot clock violation and Armando Bacot fired the ball out of bounds on the first two possessions of the game. But those were errors of too much effort--too many attempts to make the extra pass--rather than errors of omission. Davis can live with those.

4. Caleb Love had a big impact on the game without a ton of scoring. Love had a steal that turned into his only first half basket and a deflection in the first ten minutes of the game, and got Davis off the bench with his on the ball defense later in the period. He also contributed six rebounds and five assists with two turnovers, and he could have had two more first half assists on great passes to Dawson Garcia that didn't turn into hoops. His commitment to playing with his head up was a big reason why Carolina had 13 fast break points (11 in the first half) after mustering just eight against Tennessee. That version of Love is one who can change games.

5. Carolina passed the ball better than it has all season, at least in the first half, but there's still room for improvement. The Tar Heels had 22 assists on 53 baskets in two games in Uncasville. Tuesday night, they handed out 15 assists on 27 baskets. The second half clearly wasn't quite as productive and UNC finished with more turnovers than assists.

6. Justin McKoy had one of his best stretches of the season in the first half. He had a very nice defensive stop on the ball, then drove the lane and kicked to Brady Manek for a three-pointer. Later in the half, he dove into the Bulldog bench to save a Tar Heel offensive rebound.

7. Carolina simply has to figure out a way to force more turnovers. UNC Asheville committed just six, and with Carolina's overpassing issues, the Bulldogs led the points off turnovers category 19-6. The Tar Heels committed 18 turnovers, and not all were the errors of effort from item 3 above.

8. That particular version of Leaky Black is one who can be a key for the Tar Heels. The senior had a career-high 11 rebounds to go with his nine points and 5-6 from the free throw line.

9. Carolina went through a bad stretch in the second half and solved it by feeding Armando Bacot for a powerful post move. Bacot finished with 22 points and seven rebounds. If Bacot can be that type of run-stopping player against the tougher upcoming competition, and Carolina can remember to feed him, that's an important offensive asset.

10. If you felt an urge to hand out the Holly Farms Player of the Game award on Tuesday night, it was probably because legendary broadcaster Marty Brennaman was at the Smith Center. Brennaman, the iconic radio play by play voice of the Cincinnati Reds, is best known to a generation of ACC fans as the voice of games on Raycom. Among many others, he did Carolina's last game at Carmichael Auditorium and first game at the Smith Center.

11. Now begins what could eventually be an important stretch of the season. Not because Carolina has important games, but precisely because they don't. Davis has tweaked Carolina's planned schedule over Thanksgiving to give him even more time to practice, and indicated at Monday's practice that these will be key sessions for this year's team. The Tar Heels have a week before they host Michigan next Wednesday night in a big game at the Smith Center.

12. It was tremendous to see LewLew Whayne at Tuesday night's game. The current Carolina student is a close friend of the Davis family and has worked in the Tar Heel basketball office. You might remember her from two years ago when Roy Williams made an unscheduled stop by her hospital room. LewLew has had a rough month, during which the one constant was that she watched every single Carolina game, and to have her back in the Smith Center was a nice reminder of what's actually important.

Players Mentioned

Armando Bacot

Leaky Black

Dawson Garcia

Caleb Love

Brady Manek

Justin McKoy

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