University of North Carolina Athletics
Harrison Ingram
Photo by: Maggie Hobson
Lucas: NC State Rapid Reactions
January 10, 2024 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the visit to Raleigh.
By Adam Lucas
1. That was fun. Carolina stretched it out late and beat NC State in Raleigh, 67-54.
2. No, it wasn't pretty. But if someone had told you two weeks ago Carolina could go 3-0 in this road ACC stretch, but the one at State wouldn't be pretty, would you have taken it? Heck yes. The Tar Heels are 4-0 overall in the league and in first place in the conference after a wild ACC night that saw multiple upsets.
3. Harrison Ingram is such an asset. He didn't shoot well, but he still hauled down a career-high 19 rebounds. RJ Davis led the Heels with 16 points.
4. Armando Bacot spent the last six minutes of the first half on the bench after drawing a flagrant foul following an interaction in the backcourt. That foul eventually turned into a three-point State possession, with one free throw and a jumper. That cut a five-point Tar Heel lead--that felt like it was about to grow--back down to two, where it essentially stayed for the rest of the half.
5. Once Bacot went to the bench with zero rebounds in ten first half minutes, Carolina showed some defensive wrinkles. Not wanting to leave Jalen Washington alone on DJ Burns, the Tar Heels sent a double-team at him, and forced a couple shaky possessions for the big man. They used that double-team even more in the second half, and it significantly limited Burns' effectiveness. Washington wasn't spectacular, but he did have eight rebounds in his 11 minutes and gave Carolina what it needed defensively--despite the weight class difference--against Burns.
6. Depth is such a luxury. Elliot Cadeau had a bad stretch early in the second half, so Hubert Davis turned to Seth Trimble. The sophomore promptly gave Carolina six points and helped ignite the game-sealing run. Then the Heels went back to Cadeau, who sealed the win by dominating the tempo and putting State in bad spots defensively on pick-and-rolls. The freshman had a game-high six assists and also had 11 points.
7. Zayden High gave Carolina 90 good seconds of energy at the end of the first half. With Bacot on the bench, the Tar Heels needed depth from their big guys, and High provided it. He wasn't spectacular, but he didn't hurt, either. He's going to be a player eventually.
8. Carolina struggled to get to the free throw line in the first half and attempted just two free throws while State was taking 15 of them. But the Tar Heels were more aggressive going to the rim in the second half, got into the bonus, and then spent the final minutes in the double minutes. The Heels finished 11-for-18 from the line in the second half even after missing a front end of a one-and-one.
9. Carolina is now 5-1 when scoring less than 80 points this year after being 22-20 in that category the last two seasons. Improved defense is a major asset this year. State shot 26.9 percent from the field and 9.5 percent from the three-point line.
10. Another nice gesture from a longtime Atlantic Coast Conference foe: State athletic director Boo Corrigan left flowers and a very nice note at the Tar Heel Sports Network broadcast position in honor of Eric Montross.
11. Pick your favorite historical stat: Carolina is now 37-6 in the last 43 games against State, 54-13 in the last 32 seasons, 19-6 against State at PNC Arena--19-6 in their own home arena!--and 23-6 in PNC Arena overall. The victory was also Carolina's 165th all-time against NC State, breaking a tie with Wake Forest for the most wins against an opponent in UNC history.
12. Carolina is finally back in the Smith Center on Saturday against Syracuse. That should be an electric crowd, as the Tar Heels have been at home just once in six weeks.
1. That was fun. Carolina stretched it out late and beat NC State in Raleigh, 67-54.
2. No, it wasn't pretty. But if someone had told you two weeks ago Carolina could go 3-0 in this road ACC stretch, but the one at State wouldn't be pretty, would you have taken it? Heck yes. The Tar Heels are 4-0 overall in the league and in first place in the conference after a wild ACC night that saw multiple upsets.
3. Harrison Ingram is such an asset. He didn't shoot well, but he still hauled down a career-high 19 rebounds. RJ Davis led the Heels with 16 points.
4. Armando Bacot spent the last six minutes of the first half on the bench after drawing a flagrant foul following an interaction in the backcourt. That foul eventually turned into a three-point State possession, with one free throw and a jumper. That cut a five-point Tar Heel lead--that felt like it was about to grow--back down to two, where it essentially stayed for the rest of the half.
5. Once Bacot went to the bench with zero rebounds in ten first half minutes, Carolina showed some defensive wrinkles. Not wanting to leave Jalen Washington alone on DJ Burns, the Tar Heels sent a double-team at him, and forced a couple shaky possessions for the big man. They used that double-team even more in the second half, and it significantly limited Burns' effectiveness. Washington wasn't spectacular, but he did have eight rebounds in his 11 minutes and gave Carolina what it needed defensively--despite the weight class difference--against Burns.
6. Depth is such a luxury. Elliot Cadeau had a bad stretch early in the second half, so Hubert Davis turned to Seth Trimble. The sophomore promptly gave Carolina six points and helped ignite the game-sealing run. Then the Heels went back to Cadeau, who sealed the win by dominating the tempo and putting State in bad spots defensively on pick-and-rolls. The freshman had a game-high six assists and also had 11 points.
7. Zayden High gave Carolina 90 good seconds of energy at the end of the first half. With Bacot on the bench, the Tar Heels needed depth from their big guys, and High provided it. He wasn't spectacular, but he didn't hurt, either. He's going to be a player eventually.
8. Carolina struggled to get to the free throw line in the first half and attempted just two free throws while State was taking 15 of them. But the Tar Heels were more aggressive going to the rim in the second half, got into the bonus, and then spent the final minutes in the double minutes. The Heels finished 11-for-18 from the line in the second half even after missing a front end of a one-and-one.
9. Carolina is now 5-1 when scoring less than 80 points this year after being 22-20 in that category the last two seasons. Improved defense is a major asset this year. State shot 26.9 percent from the field and 9.5 percent from the three-point line.
10. Another nice gesture from a longtime Atlantic Coast Conference foe: State athletic director Boo Corrigan left flowers and a very nice note at the Tar Heel Sports Network broadcast position in honor of Eric Montross.
11. Pick your favorite historical stat: Carolina is now 37-6 in the last 43 games against State, 54-13 in the last 32 seasons, 19-6 against State at PNC Arena--19-6 in their own home arena!--and 23-6 in PNC Arena overall. The victory was also Carolina's 165th all-time against NC State, breaking a tie with Wake Forest for the most wins against an opponent in UNC history.
12. Carolina is finally back in the Smith Center on Saturday against Syracuse. That should be an electric crowd, as the Tar Heels have been at home just once in six weeks.
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