Lucas: FSU Rapid Reactions

By Adam Lucas

1. What an afternoon of Carolina basketball in the Smith Center. As you thought might happen at some point during this very difficult part of the schedule, the Tar Heels simply didn't have a lot of energy in the first 30 minutes of the game. But a 22-0 run--yes, 22-0--completely changed the game and led to a 78-70 Carolina win.

2. That big run was sparked largely by the Tar Heels turning up the defensive pressure and picking up full court, which forced Florida State to scramble to get into their offense. The free-flowing jumpers that had been going in early suddenly weren't quite as simple, and the pressure also created some easy Tar Heel hoops. As the bench shortened in the second half, Seth Trimble was also an important part of the surge, as he was the only reserve to see significant minutes in the final half. Trimble left with what appeared to be a back or hip injury but eventually returned to the bench.

3. The Seminole lead was as big as 14 in the second half, as they led 45-31 at the 17:30 mark. So it wasn't quite George Lynch and the 1993 Tar Heels against FSU, but it was close enough to be a whole lot of fun.

4. As you feared might happen during this stretch, there were too many first half examples of the Tar Heels standing and watching. One allowed Jamir Watkins to get a wide open three-pointer, as no one picked up the ball. Watkins, of course, made it. Another came a few minutes later, when two Tar Heels stood around and watched what would have been an offensive rebound bounce and then go to the Seminoles.

5. Watkins' three-pointer was one of seven the Seminoles made in the first half, as they went 7-for-14 from the arc. They came into the game averaging 7.7 made three-pointers per game, and nearly reached that mark in the first 20 minutes. Things cooled off in the second half, as they finished 11-for-27 from three.

6. Carolina opened the game going inside to Armando Bacot for two quick baskets in the first minute of play. But the Tar Heels then diverted from that plan and fired up 11 first half three-pointers while only making two--and Bacot got just three more field goal attempts in his next 13 minutes of playing time. Bacot eventually finished with his 72nd double-double, getting 13 points to go with 13 rebounds, but he had to work hard to get there. Bacot was also 5-for-5 from the line. His improvement there has been an important part of Carolina's success.

7. When the momentum of the game was changing, the ball was largely in Elliot Cadeau's hands. Cadeau's numbers weren't spectacular--he finished with seven points, three assists and one turnover--but he was an important part of the comeback. Cadeau now has 16 assists and two turnovers in the last three games, all of which have been starts.

8. RJ Davis led Carolina in scoring for the fourth straight game, the first time he has achieved that feat. Davis had 27 points, which means 107 points in the last four games. He didn't shoot the ball perfectly (he was 3-for-9 from three) but he was successful going to the basket and in the mid-range and also had five assists. The three-pointer he sank at the end of the shot clock with 1:30 left to stretch the lead to nine felt like a game-clincher.

9. The ACC officiating crew correctly handled the incorrect goaltend call in the first half...but it's a bad rule. They reviewed the play three minutes after it happened, and it was incorrectly originally whistled as a goaltend on FSU. OK, that's fine, so Carolina's two points were taken away. But the way the rule allows it to happen, it completely negated the fact that Bacot had grabbed the offensive rebound off the shot attempt. At minimum, since FSU had the arrow, the arrow should have been switched and that play should have been their alternating possession.

10. It's going to feel good to sit on 1-0 in the ACC for the next month. Safe to say the opening month of this season--with resume-building wins over Arkansas and Tennessee, plus a victory in the league opener--has gone quite a bit more successfully than last year. The Tar Heels are now 62-9 all-time in ACC home openers and 57-14 overall in ACC openers.

11. Carolina quietly has had good success against Leonard Hamilton's Seminoles. The Heels have now won four of the last five against FSU and 12 of the last 16.

12. Tuesday night's showdown at Madison Square Garden against UConn was TBA on some early versions of the schedule; it's a 9 p.m. start in what should be a great environment.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Armando Bacot

Elliot Cadeau

RJ Davis

Seth Trimble

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