Lucas: Self Induced

By Adam Lucas

Somewhere within every great Carolina comeback is, by definition, a Carolina team that played very, very poorly to get in that hole in the first place. The Tar Heels certainly fit that criteria on Wednesday night.

Pittsburgh did not have an elaborate gameplan. This was not a schematic triumph. This was simply a Panther team that came into Chapel Hill intent on roughing up the Tar Heels, determined to be the more physical team…and they did it.

"The tougher team won," Hubert Davis said very simply in his postgame Tar Heel Sports Network interview.

Prosperity has been a consistent problem for these Tar Heels. Every time there's even a hint of some positive consistency, a Pitt game happens. They've played for a share of the conference lead twice and lost both handily. Wednesday, they took the court knowing that a win could help solidify a top-four ACC spot and an ACC Touranment double bye going into Saturday's key road game at Virginia Tech.

They responded by playing, statistically at least, one of the worst halves in the 36-year history of the Smith Center. It was the third-biggest halftime deficit for Carolina in the building's history. The 27.6 percent field goal shooting in the first half was the second-lowest Tar Heel effort in any half in Smith Center history. You get the idea.

"I said at halftime, 'I don't understand not playing hard and not competing,'" Davis said. "That's something I've never experienced as a player, as a husband, as a dad. We had a great opportunity, we had played extremely well, and when we've done that throughout the year, we go backwards for a game or two."

Within the span of approximately 49 court minutes on the Smith Center floor, the Tar Heels in the last two games went from leading an ACC opponent by 40 points to trailing an ACC opponent by 21 points. That's a simply incredible 61-point turnaround on your home court.

That's also the type of inconsistency you can expect from a team that hasn't really proven anything yet. Prior to the final few minutes, it never felt like the Tar Heels had much urgency on Wednesday night. In fact, in the first half it looked suspiciously like several Tar Heels believed the North Carolina uniforms were going to beat the Pittsburgh uniforms. That isn't how it works, of course.

In his wider media availability, Davis described many of Carolina's problems as "self-induced." That's what eventually short circuited the comeback attempt. Those great Tar Heel comebacks of the past have featured an opponent making some timely mistakes, yes. But they also almost always include a sequence of Carolina doing the right thing at every possible moment.

The Tar Heels simply couldn't be that flawless on Wednesday.  It was self-induced to dig the big hole in the first place, and then to make such errors as reaching in to foul a three-point shooter or committing a turnover after somewhat incredibly closing the gap to just six points with a couple minutes to play.

The team's NCAA Tournament resume, certain to be much discussed over the next 48 hours, is likewise self-induced…just as any substantial changes will have to be.

"I told the team after the game that the only way our reputation and narrative can change is if we change it," Davis said. "You have to compliment Pittsburgh. They came in with a tough mindset ready to compete and fight on both ends of the floor. Especially in the first half, our mindset wasn't that."

Scoreboard Slider

University of North Carolina Athletics

Related Videos