Lucas: In The Trenches

By Adam Lucas

ATLANTA—Hubert Davis identified a very specific downfall in Saturday's 87-83 loss to Kentucky.

"In the trenches is loose balls, boxing out, finishing when you go to the basket, talking on defense," he said on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the game. "Those are the little things, the discipline and details, that allow you to become successful."

He's right, of course. And some of the action in the trenches was truly in the trenches during a physical game with the Wildcats. Kentucky held a 42-32 overall rebounding lead. Carolina's leading rebounder was RJ Davis, who stands 6-foot-0, the smallest player on the court, and had seven boards. Davis also tied for the team lead in offensive boards, grabbing two, the same number as co-leader Armando Bacot.

Kentucky missed 42 shots and recovered 18 of them, meaning they grabbed 42.9 percent of their misses. Carolina missed 50 shots and rebounded six of them, an offensive rebound percentage of 12 percent.

Maybe we could stop here. That paragraph, by itself, is enough to determine the winner in a game like this.

Two of the most critical Wildcat offensive boards—both of which happened in the final 2:15—weren't even credited to an individual. They went down as "team rebounds," a nice way of saying the Tar Heels simply muffed the ball out of bounds. One came when a Tar Heel couldn't corral a board that rolled off his leg. The other came when two Tar Heels bid for the same ball, knocking it out of bounds on a key sequence with no pressure at all on the rebounders.

That last miscue came in a two-point game. Grab the ball, finish the defensive possession, get up the court and have a chance to tie or take the lead. It's something Carolina has worked on since September. Together, those two plays led to four Kentucky points. Carolina lost by four. It isn't a coincidence. Those miniscule plays matter in these games.

Ultimately, when the Tar Heels think about this game—and it's going to be hard not to think about this game—they will think about unforced errors. Those two missed rebounding opportunities. The 17 turnovers in the game, two of which came from stepping on the sideline and three of which came on offensive fouls (two while setting a screen), which led to 19 Kentucky points.

And, of course, the turnover with seconds to play. We all saw it. The two players involved will lie awake thinking about it tonight. It wasn't a play that took place in the trenches, but it was very much a discipline and details play. Carolina had just called timeout, had just talked about how they wanted to execute.

And then…that.

Unfortunately, that play will become the story of the game when it really shouldn't.

In an intense week of practice, it would be difficult to identify anything the Tar Heels talked about more than rebounding. Every single missed box out in every single drill was punished with running.

"Put a name on it, Coach," Hubert Davis encouraged his assistant coaches when they blew the whistle in practice to denote a missed box out. He wanted accountability and he wanted close to perfection in such an important area of the game.

Saturday, Carolina didn't play to that standard. They still played well enough to win some games. RJ Davis was terrific yet again, leading the team in scoring, rebounding and assists. Cormac Ryan's offense returned, as he went an efficient 8-for-12 from the field on his way to 20 points. Some reserves provided some nice moments, including Jalen Washington hitting a clutch both ends of a one-and-one with 6:47 left, and Jae'Lyn Withers providing some size and athleticism (and a couple of steals) the Tar Heels needed to match up with UK, and Seth Trimble playing turnover-free on a day when turnovers were rampant and knocking down a three-pointer.

In this type of game, though, that's not enough. Not in front of an electric crowd split nearly 50-50 between Kentucky and Carolina, in one of the best nonconference rivalries in college basketball, with both head coaches pleading with the officials and hard fouls and no layups.

This type of game demands just a little more execution and a little more precision. And, of course, a little more rebounding.

"Rebounding is an attitude and toughness," Davis said. "It just is. That's what has to change. I talked to the team before the game about living in the trenches and doing the things we had to do to put ourselves in position. In a two-point game, we missed two rebounds and didn't get the rebound. We have to credit Kentucky for making a few more plays than us, and that's why they won."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Armando Bacot

RJ Davis

Cormac Ryan

Seth Trimble

Jalen Washington

Jae'Lyn Withers

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