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University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Maggie Hobson
Lucas: Lehigh Rapid Reactions
November 12, 2023 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from Carolina's win over the Mountain Hawks.
By Adam Lucas
1. Carolina methodically took care of Lehigh on Sunday afternoon, 90-68.
2. Carolina's veteran stars, RJ Davis and Armando Bacot, were the centerpieces of the win. Davis shot an efficient 8-for-14 from the field, including 3-for-6 from three, to finish with 22 points.
3. Bacot just continues racking up numbers. The graduate student had his 70th career double-double before halftime, putting up 12 points and 12 rebounds in 14 minutes of first half playing time. He finished with 22 points and 20 rebounds in only 26 minutes, marking just the third 20/20 game of his Carolina career.
4. Bacot's production was part of Carolina dominating points in the paint, as Lehigh did most of its damage from beyond the three-point line. While the Mountain Hawks fired away from the perimeter (they made 11 trifectas, but only four in the second half), Carolina won points in the paint 38-16, outrebounded the visitors 49-30, and controlled second chance points 14-2.
5. Carolina didn't shoot the ball well from outside (below 30 percent from three, and one of the five made trifectas was from Rob Landry), but the above post/paint numbers made it meaningless. Cormac Ryan isn't going to have many 2-for-7, 0-for-3 nights as a Tar Heel.
6. The maturation of Elliot Cadeau continues. On multiple occasions in the first half, he brought the ball down the court and hoisted a jump shot without a pass. The Tar Heels are better when he's initiating the offense either with the pass (feeding Armando Bacot for an and-one, for example) or penetration. That was emblematic of a first half in which the Tar Heels had just six assists on 16 field goals. Cadeau was better in the second half, including pushing the tempo during a stretch when Carolina grew the lead with a 9-0 run, and finished with seven points and did not have an assist.
7. But this may be characteristic of this year's team: on an average night for Cadeau (which will happen for a freshman), Seth Trimble was very solid off the bench. The sophomore always makes a defensive impact, but he also did it on the offensive end on Sunday. He had nice penetration through the baseline before feeding Harrison Ingram for a three-pointer, which was one of his two assists. Most importantly, he did not have a turnover.
8. Pittsboro native and new Tar Heel signee Drake Powell was at the game and received a huge ovation from the Smith Center crowd.
9. He may have to wait for big minutes. But freshman Zayden High has a knack for making things happen in the minutes he receives. He set a hard screen and also forced a held ball that led to a Davis three-pointer in five first half minutes. Not coincidentally, he was part of the first second half substitution, entering with Cadeau 3:30 into the second half. High finished with five rebounds in just 12 minutes.
10. Carolina has announced the Tennessee game on Nov. 29 will be a white-out. That has the potential to be a very lively evening in the Smith Center against Rick Barnes and a good Volunteers squad. Tickets are available for several remaining home games.
11. Lehigh was an unusual visitor to the Smith Center. The Tar Heels have faced the Mountain Hawks just once in school history, and that came way back in 1941. Carolina got the win that day at Woollen Gym, 62-58.
1. Carolina methodically took care of Lehigh on Sunday afternoon, 90-68.
2. Carolina's veteran stars, RJ Davis and Armando Bacot, were the centerpieces of the win. Davis shot an efficient 8-for-14 from the field, including 3-for-6 from three, to finish with 22 points.
3. Bacot just continues racking up numbers. The graduate student had his 70th career double-double before halftime, putting up 12 points and 12 rebounds in 14 minutes of first half playing time. He finished with 22 points and 20 rebounds in only 26 minutes, marking just the third 20/20 game of his Carolina career.
4. Bacot's production was part of Carolina dominating points in the paint, as Lehigh did most of its damage from beyond the three-point line. While the Mountain Hawks fired away from the perimeter (they made 11 trifectas, but only four in the second half), Carolina won points in the paint 38-16, outrebounded the visitors 49-30, and controlled second chance points 14-2.
5. Carolina didn't shoot the ball well from outside (below 30 percent from three, and one of the five made trifectas was from Rob Landry), but the above post/paint numbers made it meaningless. Cormac Ryan isn't going to have many 2-for-7, 0-for-3 nights as a Tar Heel.
6. The maturation of Elliot Cadeau continues. On multiple occasions in the first half, he brought the ball down the court and hoisted a jump shot without a pass. The Tar Heels are better when he's initiating the offense either with the pass (feeding Armando Bacot for an and-one, for example) or penetration. That was emblematic of a first half in which the Tar Heels had just six assists on 16 field goals. Cadeau was better in the second half, including pushing the tempo during a stretch when Carolina grew the lead with a 9-0 run, and finished with seven points and did not have an assist.
7. But this may be characteristic of this year's team: on an average night for Cadeau (which will happen for a freshman), Seth Trimble was very solid off the bench. The sophomore always makes a defensive impact, but he also did it on the offensive end on Sunday. He had nice penetration through the baseline before feeding Harrison Ingram for a three-pointer, which was one of his two assists. Most importantly, he did not have a turnover.
8. Pittsboro native and new Tar Heel signee Drake Powell was at the game and received a huge ovation from the Smith Center crowd.
9. He may have to wait for big minutes. But freshman Zayden High has a knack for making things happen in the minutes he receives. He set a hard screen and also forced a held ball that led to a Davis three-pointer in five first half minutes. Not coincidentally, he was part of the first second half substitution, entering with Cadeau 3:30 into the second half. High finished with five rebounds in just 12 minutes.
10. Carolina has announced the Tennessee game on Nov. 29 will be a white-out. That has the potential to be a very lively evening in the Smith Center against Rick Barnes and a good Volunteers squad. Tickets are available for several remaining home games.
11. Lehigh was an unusual visitor to the Smith Center. The Tar Heels have faced the Mountain Hawks just once in school history, and that came way back in 1941. Carolina got the win that day at Woollen Gym, 62-58.
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