Lucas: Jan. 5 UNC Basketball Notebook

By Adam Lucas

Hubert Davis' emphasis on rebounding may be paying dividends.

The Tar Heels obliterated Charleston Southern on the glass, holding a 46-25 edge in total rebounds. But that was partially to be expected; the Heels are more gifted and talented than the Buccaneers, and there were plenty of CSU missed shots available.

Still, the margin of +21 was noteworthy because it tied with the Lehigh game for the biggest edge this season. And the offensive rebounding, which had plummeted in the two most recent games—only six against Kentucky and seven against Oklahoma—jumped back up to 13, with Carolina securing over a third of its missed shots after hovering near that 33 percent mark for most of the season.

Given the opponent, it was reasonable to be skeptical. But then the Tar Heels went out and did it again against Pitt.

"Pitt is the best rebounding team in our conference," Hubert Davis said after the game. "That's the second straight time we've outrebounded the opponent. And not only did we keep them off the offensive glass, we went to the offensive glass."

Carolina's offensive rebounding had dropped to grabbing approximately 20 percent of missed shots against the Wildcats and Sooners. It's at a combined 39 percent over the last two games, with two of the three highest individual offensive rebound percentage efforts of this season.

The difference in being an average offensive rebounding team and a good one was evident in two plays from Jae'Lyn Withers. On one, he tipped out a missed Tar Heel free throw to secure another Carolina possession—that play has been a staple of Carolina's best rebounding squads. On another, he went aggressively to the rim after a missed Tar Heel shot in the second half and slammed it back through. Withers is currently hitting the offensive glass at approximately the same rate as Seth Trimble. If he was able to increase that output—even to the level of, say, Harrison Ingram—it would combine with his impressive athleticism to provide more easy scoring opportunities.

Notes: Speaking of Trimble, he had several very good plays on Tuesday night when he forced the tempo against a Pitt team that wanted to play in the halfcourt. The sophomore has dramatically improved his turnover rate this season after struggling with decision-making as a freshman. "I've gotten much better," he said. "I don't like to compliment myself, but I've taken a huge step. Ninety-five percent of it was my mental approach. I feel like I've taken that next step."…Pitt remains the best rebounding team by differential in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The second-best team in that category is Saturday's opponent, Clemson. They do it a little differently, though—they're not especially overwhelming on the offensive boards, but they're very good at keeping opponents from getting second chance opportunities. The Tar Heels will have to work to create offense that way…

It's been an emotional couple of weeks around Carolina basketball. Today's Carolina Insider podcast is an attempt to encapsulate some of those emotions, as an interview with Travis Stephenson—a longtime friend of Eric Montross—has some laughs, some tears, and some historical Tar Heel basketball stories…Don't forget that a great deal of leadership happens away from the games. Over the holiday break, a practice was in a lull when Cormac Ryan took control. "It's dead in here," he shouted. "Let's get better right now." His point was later reinforced by assistant coach Sean May. "Cormac is exactly right," May said. "The energy has to come from you guys." Ryan hasn't yet consistently shot the ball the way he wants to, but he's a constant competitor and important part of the personality of this year's team.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Harrison Ingram

Cormac Ryan

Seth Trimble

Jae'Lyn Withers

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