Lucas: The Moment

By Adam Lucas

LAHAINA—On January 27, 1993, North Carolina trailed Florida State by 21 points with less than 12 minutes left in the game.

The deficit was still 20 points when Henrik Rodl hit a three-pointer to trim the FSU lead to 71-54 with 9:21 left. The Smith Center was barely rumbling. And then, something unexpected: Dean Smith, who closely guarded his precious timeouts, signaled for his first timeout of the game.

"He told us," said Kevin Salvadori, who was in the huddle that night in the Smith Center, "that he just wanted Florida State to think about it."

At that moment, the 'Noles did think about it. The Tar Heels eventually completed the second-biggest comeback in school history, coming all the way back to beat the Seminoles, 82-77.

On November 26, 2024, North Carolina trailed Dayton by 21 points with 17:46 left in the game. The deficit was still 17 before Ian Jackson swished a three-pointer to trim the Flyer lead to 61-47 with 14:01 left. The packed Lahaina Civic Center was awakening. And then, something unexpected: Hubert Davis, who traditionally closely guards his precious timeouts, signaled for his first timeout of the half.

He gathered his team around him in the huddle and delivered a very simple message:

"Guys, we're right here. There's so much time left."

"We hit the three, and I just wanted to set everybody up and let them know what the moment was," Davis said on the Tar Heel Sports Network. "We were within striking distance and I wanted to give them a clear picture of where we would be at the 12-minute mark and where we would be at the eight-minute mark. That gives them confidence, because when I tell them those things, they can look up at the scoreboard and we're right where we need to be. It gives us an opportunity to have confidence on the floor."

That answer is so perfect, so Smith-like, that it almost brings chills. There is absolutely no question where Davis first saw that approach—remember, he was in every huddle for the biggest comeback in school history, when Carolina came from 22 down to beat Wake Forest at the Smith Center in 1992.

Hubert Davis scored a career-high 30 in that game. But 32 years later, his most important takeaway from that night might have been learning how Smith managed a game, and how he relayed that management to his players. All of a sudden, his team wasn't chasing a 14-point deficit anymore. They were just trying to make steady progress over a defined period of time.

RJ Davis scored 30 on Monday night (so if form holds, 32 years from now watch for Head Coach RJ to call a key timeout in a big Tar Heel win).

"In that timeout, Coach Davis told us to keep going," RJ said on the THSN. "Dayton is a really good team and they were making tough shot after tough shot. But we knew what we had was enough to win the game. Coach Davis' message was to keep chipping away, and by the four-minute mark we'd be right there."

What is it Smith's players always said? They practiced so many late game situations that the actual game scenarios weren't that daunting.

Well, listen to this from RJ:

"At 66-55, when there were six or seven minutes left in the game, I knew we were going to come back," the fifth-year guard said. "We had been down 18 or whatever, and we cut it to 11. We do it in four minute chunks. Bring it down to ten. Bring it down to a two-possession game. That's how we do it even when we're practicing, and it makes the games so much easier. When I looked up and we were down 11, I thought, 'We're in this game.'"

It was 66-55 with 11:06 left, after Seth Trimble converted a three-point play. Three minutes had elapsed since the Tar Heel timeout when facing a 14-point deficit.

Four minutes later, at the 7:40 mark, Carolina was down just three.

Four minutes later, at the 3:25 mark, Carolina was down just one.

And three minutes and 25 seconds later, Carolina had walked off the court with a two-point win and the second-biggest comeback in school history, making up the exact same margin as against Florida State 31 years ago. Steady progress, just like in practice. Four minute chunks. Hubert Davis would be the first to tell you he's not Dean Smith. Part of what makes him a good modern coach is that he incorporates aspects of Smith, but also Pat Riley from his tenure with the Knicks and a host of coaches he observed during his time at ESPN.

But this win was absolutely Smith-like. All that was missing on Monday night was Lefty Driesell storming off the Maui court waving his arms in disgust. Someday we'll all be talking about how we stayed up late to watch this one (with the sound turned down, obviously) in the middle of the night on Thanksgiving week, and maybe we were a little hazy at work the next day, but you know what, it was worth it, and let me get a little nap before that Auburn game and I'll be ready to do it all over again. The nature of this event means there is virtually no time to savor the win; a victory like this should come with a mandatory two or three days off to marvel at all the things, big and little, that happened to make it possible (stand up, Drake Powell and Jalen Washington and Elliot Cadeau, because one day the oral history of this game will include substantial contributions from each of you).

Instead, they'll be back on the court Tuesday night at 11 p.m. Eastern, with no actual practice time to correct any miscues. The Tar Heels were not perfect in the win—they committed too many turnovers and gave up some big offensive rebounds and didn't correctly execute in the final ten seconds when they were supposed to foul with a three-point lead. And, of course, they played that first half that created the 18-point deficit in the first place.

But in the moment, when they had to be, they made every play and grabbed every board and made every big shot.

"I'm really proud of the guys," Hubert Davis said. "Their fight to get back and win the game shows a lot about the character of this team. I'm really happy for them."

Not happy for him. Happy for them. Spoken like…well, you know who. Hubert Davis isn't Dean Smith. But on this Monday night, in this game, he handled the moment exactly like him.

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Elliot Cadeau

RJ Davis

Ian Jackson

Drake Powell

Seth Trimble

Jalen Washington

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