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University of North Carolina Athletics
Elliot Cadeau
Photo by: Maggie Hobson
Lucas: Hawai'i Rapid Reactions
November 23, 2024 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from late night in Honolulu.
By Adam Lucas
1. Carolina wins a hard-fought battle in Honolulu, thumping Hawaii, 87-69.
2. Quality effort from RJ Davis. Davis was especially big in the first half, when he scored 14 points and handed out four assists for the mostly Cadeau-less Heels at that point in the game. Davis' step-back three-pointer with a minute left in the first half felt like the biggest basket of that period. He also used Friday night to pass Sam Perkins for fourth in all-time scoring at Carolina, finishing with 18 points.
3. Davis was part of what has been the story all year for Carolina: the three-guard attack of Davis, Elliot Cadeau (17 points) and Seth Trimble (13 points). For the fourth time in four games, every member of that trio reached double figures. They're also a big reason why the Heels again dominated the fast break points category, piling up a 19-1 edge.
4. Great second half adjustment by Carolina. Hawaii big man Tanner Christensen bullied Jalen Washington on Hawaii's first trip of the second half. That was the end of that, as Carolina sent help for Washington on subsequent possessions to force someone other than Christensen to beat them. Hawaii—a poor three-point shooting team that followed form in this game—was unable to do so despite a mid-half flurry that briefly brought the game a little closer. The Rainbow Warriors finished 8-23 from three, which actually improved on their season percentage.
5. Carolina was faced with a problem it doesn't want to see very often during Friday night's first half. Cadeau picked up two quick fouls and had to go to the bench with 16:38 left in the first half in what was then a 5-2 Tar Heel lead. That slowed down the UNC offense, and combined with a Hawaii zone, it wasn't a very efficient remainder of the half. Hubert Davis eventually stole three minutes with Cadeau late in the half even with those two fouls—he responded by converting a three-point play before taking a seat with 90 seconds left to preserve his availability for the second half. He was huge in that final stanza, as his 17 points came in just 23 minutes. There is simply no disputing how important he is to the UNC offense.
6. Not much mystery about what Hubert Davis' halftime message might have been. The Tar Heels surrendered 12 second chance points in building a 41-34 halftime lead, and gave up 10 offensive rebounds on 21 missed Rainbow Warrior shots. Only a couple of three-pointers by RJ Davis and Ian Jackson just before halftime kept that from being a much closer game at the break. The 12 second chance points scored by Hawaii in just one half already eclipsed the previous season high against the Heels. For the game, Carolina was outrebounded 40-27 and was outscored 14-5 in second chance points (but just two of those points came in the final 20 minutes).
7. Jackson is instant offense. After missing the American game, the freshman quickly showed his ability to score on Friday night. He's so quick that he's very tough to guard one-on-one. Even when his shot isn't falling, he's capable of getting to the free throw line, where he provided four points for Carolina during a first half that they needed some offense (and also hit that three-pointer). The freshman finished with 11.
8. A subtle positive sign for Carolina: Cade Tyson attempted his first two free throws of the season (and made them) on Friday night. Pair that with an aggressive first half drive for a dunk plus another good second half drive, and it looks like the Belmont transfer might be getting a little more comfortable. He also made a late three-pointer, and Hubert Davis liked enough of what Tyson was doing that he was in the game for some key second half minutes. Tyson finished with nine points.
9. Great turnout of Carolina fans in Honolulu. We are a long, long way from home, but you'd never know it by the hundreds of Tar Heels who were some of the first folks in the building and turned what was supposed to be a Hawaii white-out into a healthy dose of Carolina blue.
10. The next step in this journey: Carolina will board a flight for Maui on Saturday. The Heels have some Maui Invitational pre-tournament activities as they prepare for their event opener against Dayton, which will take place on Monday night at 11:30 p.m. Eastern.
1. Carolina wins a hard-fought battle in Honolulu, thumping Hawaii, 87-69.
2. Quality effort from RJ Davis. Davis was especially big in the first half, when he scored 14 points and handed out four assists for the mostly Cadeau-less Heels at that point in the game. Davis' step-back three-pointer with a minute left in the first half felt like the biggest basket of that period. He also used Friday night to pass Sam Perkins for fourth in all-time scoring at Carolina, finishing with 18 points.
3. Davis was part of what has been the story all year for Carolina: the three-guard attack of Davis, Elliot Cadeau (17 points) and Seth Trimble (13 points). For the fourth time in four games, every member of that trio reached double figures. They're also a big reason why the Heels again dominated the fast break points category, piling up a 19-1 edge.
4. Great second half adjustment by Carolina. Hawaii big man Tanner Christensen bullied Jalen Washington on Hawaii's first trip of the second half. That was the end of that, as Carolina sent help for Washington on subsequent possessions to force someone other than Christensen to beat them. Hawaii—a poor three-point shooting team that followed form in this game—was unable to do so despite a mid-half flurry that briefly brought the game a little closer. The Rainbow Warriors finished 8-23 from three, which actually improved on their season percentage.
5. Carolina was faced with a problem it doesn't want to see very often during Friday night's first half. Cadeau picked up two quick fouls and had to go to the bench with 16:38 left in the first half in what was then a 5-2 Tar Heel lead. That slowed down the UNC offense, and combined with a Hawaii zone, it wasn't a very efficient remainder of the half. Hubert Davis eventually stole three minutes with Cadeau late in the half even with those two fouls—he responded by converting a three-point play before taking a seat with 90 seconds left to preserve his availability for the second half. He was huge in that final stanza, as his 17 points came in just 23 minutes. There is simply no disputing how important he is to the UNC offense.
6. Not much mystery about what Hubert Davis' halftime message might have been. The Tar Heels surrendered 12 second chance points in building a 41-34 halftime lead, and gave up 10 offensive rebounds on 21 missed Rainbow Warrior shots. Only a couple of three-pointers by RJ Davis and Ian Jackson just before halftime kept that from being a much closer game at the break. The 12 second chance points scored by Hawaii in just one half already eclipsed the previous season high against the Heels. For the game, Carolina was outrebounded 40-27 and was outscored 14-5 in second chance points (but just two of those points came in the final 20 minutes).
7. Jackson is instant offense. After missing the American game, the freshman quickly showed his ability to score on Friday night. He's so quick that he's very tough to guard one-on-one. Even when his shot isn't falling, he's capable of getting to the free throw line, where he provided four points for Carolina during a first half that they needed some offense (and also hit that three-pointer). The freshman finished with 11.
8. A subtle positive sign for Carolina: Cade Tyson attempted his first two free throws of the season (and made them) on Friday night. Pair that with an aggressive first half drive for a dunk plus another good second half drive, and it looks like the Belmont transfer might be getting a little more comfortable. He also made a late three-pointer, and Hubert Davis liked enough of what Tyson was doing that he was in the game for some key second half minutes. Tyson finished with nine points.
9. Great turnout of Carolina fans in Honolulu. We are a long, long way from home, but you'd never know it by the hundreds of Tar Heels who were some of the first folks in the building and turned what was supposed to be a Hawaii white-out into a healthy dose of Carolina blue.
10. The next step in this journey: Carolina will board a flight for Maui on Saturday. The Heels have some Maui Invitational pre-tournament activities as they prepare for their event opener against Dayton, which will take place on Monday night at 11:30 p.m. Eastern.
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