University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Maggie Hobson
Lucas: BC Rapid Reactions
January 2, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the visit to Chestnut Hill.
By Adam Lucas
1. One of Carolina's best all-around performances of the season, as the Tar Heels demolished Boston College, 91-65, on Sunday afternoon.
2. Carolina spent the last several days focusing defensively on keeping opponents out of the paint. That doesn't mean just preventing them from throwing the ball to a big man, but also on keeping penetrating guards out of the lane. Collectively, the Tar Heels did a better job in that category than they have at any point this season. Boston College managed just six points in the paint in the first half, and the Eagles were only 3-for-15 in the first 20 minutes on shots classified as layups.
3. In order to play that well and win by such a sizable margin on the road in the league, you have to get contributions from everyone. That's exactly what happened for the Tar Heels. Caleb Love (22 points), Brady Manek (17 points) and RJ Davis (17 points) all scored well to go with Armando Bacot's ninth double-double in 14 games this season. But consider that even Leaky Black, who did not attempt a shot, put up an impressive stat line, grabbing six rebounds to go with five assists. The Tar Heels shot over 50 percent from the field, turned it over just eight times, won the rebounding battle...in other words, they did most everything well.
4. Keep in mind that Carolina got a very fortunate draw in this regard in the early portion of the ACC season. But it's still a fact: since Michael Jordan left Carolina, only one other Tar Heel team has won both of its first two league road games by a double-digit margin. The 2015-16 squad did it, and now this year's team has done it. That's a span of nearly 40 years. Carolina's toughest road ACC games are still to come, but it doesn't hurt to get off to a good start.
5. Hubert Davis is fond of telling his players he has to be able to trust them to put them in the game. You got a window into that mindset in the final minute of the first half. With a 30-point lead, Davis was able to give some playing time to freshman Dontrez Styles, who has had an energetic couple of recent practices. But Styles immediately committed a foul and then gave up an offensive rebound that turned into a BC basket. Styles, who also had a turnover that led to a BC dunk in the second half, is going to be a very good player for the Tar Heels. But sometimes there's a reason why players don't see as much game action as the fans would prefer. These aren't supposed to be game-changing minutes that they get as freshmen. They're supposed to be minutes that get them acclimated to the speed of the ACC game, and his nine minutes on Sunday--which included a nice drive and score over a seven-foot defender--will help Styles down the road.
6. It wasn't necessarily rewarded with points, but Kerwin Walton's energy--coming off knocking in a couple three-pointers against Appalachian State--was as high or higher than it's been this season. Walton played solid defense and showed a willingness to be aggressive offensively instead of just taking three-point shots. The sophomore, who finished with five points and a couple of rebounds, may officially be out of his early-season funk.
7. Boston College is one of the very few Atlantic Coast Conference schools that plays with the Wilson basketball (better known as Marcus Paige's former favorite). The Tar Heels broke out a rack of Wilsons and used them in practice the last few days to get adjusted to the slightly different feel.
8. The Tar Heels played without Justin McKoy, who missed the game due to Covid protocols. McKoy's absence, combined with the early departure of Dawson Garcia--who was in an awkward-looking collision under the Carolina basket early in the game--juggled Carolina's rotation and occasionally had the Tar Heels with just one big man on the court. The big lead enabled both freshmen to get some ACC minutes, as D'Marco Dunn came into the game midway through the second half and knocked down the second three-pointer of his UNC career. Every available player participated for Carolina, as Rob Landry and Jackson Watkins did not travel.
9. The combination of a rescheduled game, Boston College students being out of town and an NFL Sunday meant that BC support was light at the Conte Forum. In fact, there might have been as much Carolina blue in the building as anything representing the home team. There was a sizable enough Carolina contingent to mount a noticeable "We want biscuits" chant when Armando Bacot made his first career three-pointer to give Carolina a 79-46 lead with eight minutes left.
10. Expect the next road game to be tougher. Carolina has a relatively fast turnaround before going to Notre Dame on Wednesday night. After one day at home, they'll be right back on the plane on Tuesday.
1. One of Carolina's best all-around performances of the season, as the Tar Heels demolished Boston College, 91-65, on Sunday afternoon.
2. Carolina spent the last several days focusing defensively on keeping opponents out of the paint. That doesn't mean just preventing them from throwing the ball to a big man, but also on keeping penetrating guards out of the lane. Collectively, the Tar Heels did a better job in that category than they have at any point this season. Boston College managed just six points in the paint in the first half, and the Eagles were only 3-for-15 in the first 20 minutes on shots classified as layups.
3. In order to play that well and win by such a sizable margin on the road in the league, you have to get contributions from everyone. That's exactly what happened for the Tar Heels. Caleb Love (22 points), Brady Manek (17 points) and RJ Davis (17 points) all scored well to go with Armando Bacot's ninth double-double in 14 games this season. But consider that even Leaky Black, who did not attempt a shot, put up an impressive stat line, grabbing six rebounds to go with five assists. The Tar Heels shot over 50 percent from the field, turned it over just eight times, won the rebounding battle...in other words, they did most everything well.
4. Keep in mind that Carolina got a very fortunate draw in this regard in the early portion of the ACC season. But it's still a fact: since Michael Jordan left Carolina, only one other Tar Heel team has won both of its first two league road games by a double-digit margin. The 2015-16 squad did it, and now this year's team has done it. That's a span of nearly 40 years. Carolina's toughest road ACC games are still to come, but it doesn't hurt to get off to a good start.
5. Hubert Davis is fond of telling his players he has to be able to trust them to put them in the game. You got a window into that mindset in the final minute of the first half. With a 30-point lead, Davis was able to give some playing time to freshman Dontrez Styles, who has had an energetic couple of recent practices. But Styles immediately committed a foul and then gave up an offensive rebound that turned into a BC basket. Styles, who also had a turnover that led to a BC dunk in the second half, is going to be a very good player for the Tar Heels. But sometimes there's a reason why players don't see as much game action as the fans would prefer. These aren't supposed to be game-changing minutes that they get as freshmen. They're supposed to be minutes that get them acclimated to the speed of the ACC game, and his nine minutes on Sunday--which included a nice drive and score over a seven-foot defender--will help Styles down the road.
6. It wasn't necessarily rewarded with points, but Kerwin Walton's energy--coming off knocking in a couple three-pointers against Appalachian State--was as high or higher than it's been this season. Walton played solid defense and showed a willingness to be aggressive offensively instead of just taking three-point shots. The sophomore, who finished with five points and a couple of rebounds, may officially be out of his early-season funk.
7. Boston College is one of the very few Atlantic Coast Conference schools that plays with the Wilson basketball (better known as Marcus Paige's former favorite). The Tar Heels broke out a rack of Wilsons and used them in practice the last few days to get adjusted to the slightly different feel.
8. The Tar Heels played without Justin McKoy, who missed the game due to Covid protocols. McKoy's absence, combined with the early departure of Dawson Garcia--who was in an awkward-looking collision under the Carolina basket early in the game--juggled Carolina's rotation and occasionally had the Tar Heels with just one big man on the court. The big lead enabled both freshmen to get some ACC minutes, as D'Marco Dunn came into the game midway through the second half and knocked down the second three-pointer of his UNC career. Every available player participated for Carolina, as Rob Landry and Jackson Watkins did not travel.
9. The combination of a rescheduled game, Boston College students being out of town and an NFL Sunday meant that BC support was light at the Conte Forum. In fact, there might have been as much Carolina blue in the building as anything representing the home team. There was a sizable enough Carolina contingent to mount a noticeable "We want biscuits" chant when Armando Bacot made his first career three-pointer to give Carolina a 79-46 lead with eight minutes left.
10. Expect the next road game to be tougher. Carolina has a relatively fast turnaround before going to Notre Dame on Wednesday night. After one day at home, they'll be right back on the plane on Tuesday.
Players Mentioned
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