Lucas: Ten Feet Off Of Beale

By Adam Lucas

MEMPHIS—Hubert Davis' voice was failing him.

He was in the FedExForum locker room with his Tar Heels after Carolina earned an 84-76 win over Memphis in the St. Jude Tip Off Classic.

He was a little miffed at the way his team had finished the game. The Heels had built a 15-point lead during the second half and looked terrific, but then committed too many turnovers late and created a couple nervous moments. He'd yelled more than he might have liked, and his voice had that familiar hoarse quality right after a game.

But after he addressed the team—remember, there are still nearly three full weeks until the first regular season game—the Tar Heel locker room door opened and four visitors entered.

Davis and the Heels had visited St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis the day before the game. A quick stopover turned into a two-hour stay. Davis and his players, as they often do, developed a bond with the kids, and after talking to the families after the visit, learned they might be free to come to the game. Remember, this is a coach whose favorite part of team trips to the Bahamas, every single time, is when he gets to spend time with the children at a Nassau orphanage.

So he was delighted to meet some new friends. "We have tickets for you!" he announced, and so Sammi and Aspen (and their mothers) were able to attend the game.

"This is my first basketball game ever!" Aspen beamed after the win. Both kids bounded into the locker room and were greeted with huge smiles and high fives from the players and coaches. Sammi presented the head coach with a bracelet she had made him, and Aspen had previously delivered him a drawing.

"We have to get a picture," the head coach said, and the two kids moved straight to the middle of the victorious Tar Heels, everyone cracking big smiles.

It was easy to be happy, because Carolina navigated some uncertainty on the basketball court while playing without RJ Davis, who was held out as a precautionary measure after taking a hard fall in the Blue-White scrimmage. That opened the door for Seth Trimble to put fully on display what those close to the program have been talking about for most of the summer.

Sure, he scored 19 points in a 24-minute scrimmage against his own team on Saturday. But Tuesday's 33 points came against a solid opponent, on the road, in an unfamiliar gym.

"He doesn't look good," Hubert Davis said on the Tar Heel Sports Network, "he looks great. It's because of his hard work and dedication to growing as a player, and it's coming to fruition on the floor."

Trimble's evolution gives Davis and the Tar Heel coaches plenty to ponder over the next three weeks. Elliot Cadeau, who handed out 13 assists, has to be in the lineup for Carolina to play the tempo the head coach demands. RJ Davis is the reigning ACC Player of the Year and will play all the minutes he can handle.

Putting Trimble on the floor with that duo would make Carolina relatively small…but would also make them extremely hard to guard. Imagine Davis swishing jumpers, Trimble slicing to the rim, and Cadeau utilizing the passing lanes to find each of them.

In the end, Carolina has the very best possible problem that a basketball team can have: they have more than five capable players to put on the court, which is far better than the alternative. There are several months to figure out the right combinations, and it's entirely possible that different nights might bring different quintets.

Trimble's classmate, Jalen Washington, was the night's other brightest light, scoring 17 points and making six of his seven shots. Perhaps even more significantly, he played a full 25 minutes, stayed out of foul trouble, and continued to show the ability to stretch the defense by swishing a couple of three-pointers. Even on a night that designated marksman Cade Tyson went an uncharacteristic 1-for-6 from three, the Heels showed the potential to be a team that will shoot better than the 8-for-24 they managed against Memphis, which will open up numerous driving lanes for Davis, Cadeau and Trimble.

Turnovers (21 of them), rebounding (Memphis held a one-rebound edge) and playing defense without fouling (the Tigers built a first half lead largely off marching to the free throw line)? Those are problems that can be worked on starting Thursday in practice. There is still an entire season to treat these games very seriously.

Which is why inside the Carolina locker room on Tuesday night, there was very little question what the most memorable part of the 36 hours in Memphis might be. There's been far too much real life in the Carolina athletics world over the past year. Tuesday was a nice reminder that it's OK to make an impact beyond the box score. Normally, the head coach stays locked into game mode for the entire trip home. This time, Hubert Davis was adjusting his new bracelet on his wrist and flashing a wide grin, an arm around his two newest friends, who just happened to be patients at the children's hospital.

"This," Davis said in that raspy voice, "was the highlight of my day."

Players Mentioned

Elliot Cadeau

RJ Davis

Seth Trimble

Cade Tyson

Jalen Washington

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