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University of North Carolina Athletics
Caleb Love
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Lucas: Pitt Rapid Reactions
February 16, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the matchu with Pitt.
By Adam Lucas
1. A very damaging loss for Carolina's postseason hopes, ACC hopes, and just the overall feel of the season. It took the Tar Heels about 30 minutes to wake up, and by that point it was too late.
2. A very rough first half resulted in a 40-23 halftime deficit. The Tar Heels turned it over ten times in the first 20 minutes, and Pittsburgh was very efficient with those miscues, turning them into 20 points. The 17-point deficit was the third biggest halftime deficit in Smith Center history.
3. The game turned on a four-point play by John Hugley with 14:08 left. The Tar Heels had played 28 seconds of solid defense in a 13-point game. But Armando Bacot fouled Hugley--the big man's fourth--and Hugley managed to bank in a three-pointer and convert the free throw for a four-point play. Without that sequence, it felt like the Tar Heels were about to build some momentum.
4. For most of the season, Pitt's primary offense has come from the free throw line. On Wednesday, though, they did it from the three-point line, converting 10-of-17 three-point shots. That was too much to overcome for a Tar Heel team that made just 7-for-26 three-point shots.
5. An inadvertent whistle by Ted Valentine helped create the attempted Carolina comeback. Valentine's whistle stopped play when Hugley likely had an uncontested dunk. Instead of that dunk, Hugley drew his fourth foul later in the possession when Brady Manek drew a charge.
6. That led to the Kerwin Walton sequence of the game, as the sophomore swished a pair of three-pointers. For just a second, as he had scored eight straight UNC points, it felt like Walton might carry the Heels all the way back. He did not take another shot the rest of the game until the final seconds, a span of seven minutes, and finished with 11 points on 4-for-7Â shooting.
7. Carolina took better care of the ball in the second half, committing just three turnovers, but by then the damage had been done. Three different Tar Heels (Brady Manek, Caleb Love and Armando Bacot) had at least three miscues. Pitt actually committed five more turnovers than Carolina (18 to 13), but the Heels turned those into just 24 points. Carolina got just five fast break points as Pitt did a very good job of getting back on defense.
8. Having Jason Capel on the Panther bench helped Pittsburgh weather the UNC comeback attempt. As the Tar Heels tried to ratchet up the defensive pressure, the younger Capel was calling out every defense the Tar Heels called, making sure his guards were aware that a trap was coming.
9. Pitt very clearly was coached to just let the ball sit on the endline after Carolina baskets in the closing minutes. It might feel like gamesmanship, but it was a very effective way of letting precious seconds melt away without having to face any defensive pressure.
10. Carolina was without Justin McKoy, who was not in uniform due to left knee soreness.
11. It was great to have the entire Durham family in Chapel Hill for the formal announcement of the Woody Durham Media and Communications Center. If you were watching on television, you already know Wes Durham was calling the game, but Woody's wife, Jean, and youngest son, Taylor, were also in town. For more on how and why the building was named in his honor, click here.
1. A very damaging loss for Carolina's postseason hopes, ACC hopes, and just the overall feel of the season. It took the Tar Heels about 30 minutes to wake up, and by that point it was too late.
2. A very rough first half resulted in a 40-23 halftime deficit. The Tar Heels turned it over ten times in the first 20 minutes, and Pittsburgh was very efficient with those miscues, turning them into 20 points. The 17-point deficit was the third biggest halftime deficit in Smith Center history.
3. The game turned on a four-point play by John Hugley with 14:08 left. The Tar Heels had played 28 seconds of solid defense in a 13-point game. But Armando Bacot fouled Hugley--the big man's fourth--and Hugley managed to bank in a three-pointer and convert the free throw for a four-point play. Without that sequence, it felt like the Tar Heels were about to build some momentum.
4. For most of the season, Pitt's primary offense has come from the free throw line. On Wednesday, though, they did it from the three-point line, converting 10-of-17 three-point shots. That was too much to overcome for a Tar Heel team that made just 7-for-26 three-point shots.
5. An inadvertent whistle by Ted Valentine helped create the attempted Carolina comeback. Valentine's whistle stopped play when Hugley likely had an uncontested dunk. Instead of that dunk, Hugley drew his fourth foul later in the possession when Brady Manek drew a charge.
6. That led to the Kerwin Walton sequence of the game, as the sophomore swished a pair of three-pointers. For just a second, as he had scored eight straight UNC points, it felt like Walton might carry the Heels all the way back. He did not take another shot the rest of the game until the final seconds, a span of seven minutes, and finished with 11 points on 4-for-7Â shooting.
7. Carolina took better care of the ball in the second half, committing just three turnovers, but by then the damage had been done. Three different Tar Heels (Brady Manek, Caleb Love and Armando Bacot) had at least three miscues. Pitt actually committed five more turnovers than Carolina (18 to 13), but the Heels turned those into just 24 points. Carolina got just five fast break points as Pitt did a very good job of getting back on defense.
8. Having Jason Capel on the Panther bench helped Pittsburgh weather the UNC comeback attempt. As the Tar Heels tried to ratchet up the defensive pressure, the younger Capel was calling out every defense the Tar Heels called, making sure his guards were aware that a trap was coming.
9. Pitt very clearly was coached to just let the ball sit on the endline after Carolina baskets in the closing minutes. It might feel like gamesmanship, but it was a very effective way of letting precious seconds melt away without having to face any defensive pressure.
10. Carolina was without Justin McKoy, who was not in uniform due to left knee soreness.
11. It was great to have the entire Durham family in Chapel Hill for the formal announcement of the Woody Durham Media and Communications Center. If you were watching on television, you already know Wes Durham was calling the game, but Woody's wife, Jean, and youngest son, Taylor, were also in town. For more on how and why the building was named in his honor, click here.
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