University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Jerome M. Ibrahim
Lucas: Evolution
January 18, 2024 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Two players--and the Tar Heels--used Wednesday night to show what they're becoming.
By Adam Lucas
It's OK if you don't remember this one.
Carolina's 86-70 victory over Louisville isn't likely to be identified as a signature moment of the 2023-24 season. The Heels weren't necessarily good, but they were good enough. They weren't especially sharp, but they were sharp enough. They were crisp enough early to build a double-digit lead, and that was enough to withstand a hot second half Louisville shooting performance and cruise to a sixth straight Atlantic Coast Conference win.
Beneath the surface, though, there were some signs of what they're becoming. They're not the caterpillar anymore. But they're not quite the butterfly yet, either.
Less than a month ago, Jae'Lyn Withers played single-digit minutes in three of four games against Florida State, UConn, Kentucky and Oklahoma. He had a combined six rebounds in those games, just one of them offensive. That was part of a stretch when he had nine rebounds in 67 minutes of action over six games.
Wednesday night, he had ten rebounds in just 24 minutes. He's averaging over six rebounds per game in Carolina's last four contests. It's not just his work on the glass. After starting the year hitting just 40 percent from the field, he's shooting 67 percent from the field over the last half-dozen games. He's working on expanding his range, but right now, he's figured out that he can do some very productive work around the rim, and the Tar Heels are winning games because of it.
"He was huge," Hubert Davis said on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the win. "We don't win this game without J-Wit. Defensively, he was terrific, with his length and athleticism and his rebounding. On the offensive end, the way he cut towards the basket and his ability to finish and step up and make free throws was important. He was the MVP of the game, and he was terrific on both ends. He was the guy coming off the bench who ignited us and gave us a spark."
Playing with ten family members in attendance from Charlotte, Wednesday was a showcase of exactly why Withers made the decision to leave Louisville and come to Chapel Hill. It's not easy to play against your former team; Withers maintained a fairly steady stream of commentary—almost all jokingly—with his former teammates and coaches.
What they saw was a player who has found his place at Carolina. Remember, Withers started three games early in the season and would probably have started even more at the outset of the campaign if he hadn't battled a concussion. It's easy to pout, especially for a veteran, when your role fluctuates.
But Withers played through it, and now he gives the Tar Heels an athletic weapon off the bench that many teams can't match.
"I have the mindset of keeping myself in tune with the game, whether on offense or defense," Withers said on the THSN. "My athleticism is the best part of my game. I have to utilize that whenever I'm out there. Playing defense and rebounding are the two easiest things for me to do."
As Carolina fans know, playing point guard as a freshman very rarely comes easy. And Elliot Cadeau wasn't perfect on Wednesday night, as he committed a couple of turnovers and went just two-for-four from the field in his 25 minutes. It wasn't a signature Cadeau game.
But you can see Cadeau becoming the type of point guard the Tar Heels need him to be. There were the flashy plays, like his steal—he had three of them—that led to a dunk when Mike James briefly considering jumping with him and got just enough of the body for Cadeau to give him a wide smile when he landed after converting the two points.
Other moments, though, were just as encouraging. He singlehandedly reset the offense after a missed Armando Bacot free throw during the second half. There was no glance toward the sideline, just a point guard completely in control of his team. The play fittingly ended with Cadeau carving through the defense with a bullet pass to Withers for an athletic basket that gave the Heels a 13-point lead. It was an appropriate showcase of two players who aren't yet as good as they will be in late February and March…but are still plenty good enough to have Carolina perhaps a little ahead of schedule going into the second half of January.
The team just looks like, well, a team. In the second half, Cadeau inexplicably decided to double-team Tre White on the Louisville wing. Sometimes, freshmen just do these types of things. It wasn't a call from the bench. It was just something he did on his own, and it most often leads to a wide open look.
But the other four Tar Heels—the four starters were on the court with Cadeau—picked up behind him in perfect rotation. RJ Davis stepped up to cover Cadeau's man. Harrison Ingram quickly raced over to cover for Davis. Armando Bacot ran out to get a hand in the face of the man Ingram left open, while Cadeau got back in the play and went to the post to help as Cormac Ryan kept an eye on White, who had originally started all the scrambling.
The play eventually ended with Skyy Clark chucking in a guarded three-pointer, but it didn't matter. That kind of communication and defending as a unit is something we wouldn't have seen a month ago—and something that will take Carolina a very long way if it continues.
"As games have gone on and we have gotten deeper into the season, everyone is getting a feel for one another," Withers said.
The evolution isn't finished yet. But there was enough evidence on Wednesday night to be plenty encouraging on an otherwise routine night.
It's OK if you don't remember this one.
Carolina's 86-70 victory over Louisville isn't likely to be identified as a signature moment of the 2023-24 season. The Heels weren't necessarily good, but they were good enough. They weren't especially sharp, but they were sharp enough. They were crisp enough early to build a double-digit lead, and that was enough to withstand a hot second half Louisville shooting performance and cruise to a sixth straight Atlantic Coast Conference win.
Beneath the surface, though, there were some signs of what they're becoming. They're not the caterpillar anymore. But they're not quite the butterfly yet, either.
Less than a month ago, Jae'Lyn Withers played single-digit minutes in three of four games against Florida State, UConn, Kentucky and Oklahoma. He had a combined six rebounds in those games, just one of them offensive. That was part of a stretch when he had nine rebounds in 67 minutes of action over six games.
Wednesday night, he had ten rebounds in just 24 minutes. He's averaging over six rebounds per game in Carolina's last four contests. It's not just his work on the glass. After starting the year hitting just 40 percent from the field, he's shooting 67 percent from the field over the last half-dozen games. He's working on expanding his range, but right now, he's figured out that he can do some very productive work around the rim, and the Tar Heels are winning games because of it.
"He was huge," Hubert Davis said on the Tar Heel Sports Network after the win. "We don't win this game without J-Wit. Defensively, he was terrific, with his length and athleticism and his rebounding. On the offensive end, the way he cut towards the basket and his ability to finish and step up and make free throws was important. He was the MVP of the game, and he was terrific on both ends. He was the guy coming off the bench who ignited us and gave us a spark."
Playing with ten family members in attendance from Charlotte, Wednesday was a showcase of exactly why Withers made the decision to leave Louisville and come to Chapel Hill. It's not easy to play against your former team; Withers maintained a fairly steady stream of commentary—almost all jokingly—with his former teammates and coaches.
What they saw was a player who has found his place at Carolina. Remember, Withers started three games early in the season and would probably have started even more at the outset of the campaign if he hadn't battled a concussion. It's easy to pout, especially for a veteran, when your role fluctuates.
But Withers played through it, and now he gives the Tar Heels an athletic weapon off the bench that many teams can't match.
"I have the mindset of keeping myself in tune with the game, whether on offense or defense," Withers said on the THSN. "My athleticism is the best part of my game. I have to utilize that whenever I'm out there. Playing defense and rebounding are the two easiest things for me to do."
As Carolina fans know, playing point guard as a freshman very rarely comes easy. And Elliot Cadeau wasn't perfect on Wednesday night, as he committed a couple of turnovers and went just two-for-four from the field in his 25 minutes. It wasn't a signature Cadeau game.
But you can see Cadeau becoming the type of point guard the Tar Heels need him to be. There were the flashy plays, like his steal—he had three of them—that led to a dunk when Mike James briefly considering jumping with him and got just enough of the body for Cadeau to give him a wide smile when he landed after converting the two points.
Other moments, though, were just as encouraging. He singlehandedly reset the offense after a missed Armando Bacot free throw during the second half. There was no glance toward the sideline, just a point guard completely in control of his team. The play fittingly ended with Cadeau carving through the defense with a bullet pass to Withers for an athletic basket that gave the Heels a 13-point lead. It was an appropriate showcase of two players who aren't yet as good as they will be in late February and March…but are still plenty good enough to have Carolina perhaps a little ahead of schedule going into the second half of January.
The team just looks like, well, a team. In the second half, Cadeau inexplicably decided to double-team Tre White on the Louisville wing. Sometimes, freshmen just do these types of things. It wasn't a call from the bench. It was just something he did on his own, and it most often leads to a wide open look.
But the other four Tar Heels—the four starters were on the court with Cadeau—picked up behind him in perfect rotation. RJ Davis stepped up to cover Cadeau's man. Harrison Ingram quickly raced over to cover for Davis. Armando Bacot ran out to get a hand in the face of the man Ingram left open, while Cadeau got back in the play and went to the post to help as Cormac Ryan kept an eye on White, who had originally started all the scrambling.
The play eventually ended with Skyy Clark chucking in a guarded three-pointer, but it didn't matter. That kind of communication and defending as a unit is something we wouldn't have seen a month ago—and something that will take Carolina a very long way if it continues.
"As games have gone on and we have gotten deeper into the season, everyone is getting a feel for one another," Withers said.
The evolution isn't finished yet. But there was enough evidence on Wednesday night to be plenty encouraging on an otherwise routine night.
Players Mentioned
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