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University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Jerome M. Ibrahim
Lucas: Stanford Rapid Reactions
January 18, 2025 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from Stanford's visit to the Smith Center.
By Adam Lucas
1. Very tough loss for the Tar Heels, falling 72-71 to Stanford on a last-second shot by Duke transfer Jaylen Blakes. It was the first time Carolina lost at the Smith Center when leading at halftime since February 8, 2020, against Duke.
2. A late change by the Cardinal made a difference, as they went back to a zone with 2:20 remaining. At that point, Carolina had committed only four turnovers. They promptly coughed up their fifth, and Stanford scored to take the lead. There weren't many of them, but Stanford was extremely efficient turning turnovers into points--UNC had five, and the visitors scored 11 points off them.
3. Stanford big man Maxime Reynaud was as advertised, scoring 25 points to go with his 13 rebounds. But Blakes was as much of an issue in the second half, as he had 10 second half points and seven assists (he finished with 20 points). He scored or assisted eight of Stanford's 13 second half field goals. You knew Reynaud had a size edge against this particular Carolina team. Blakes having such a big day against a guard-heavy team was unexpected.
4. Carolina again shot poorly from three-point range, hitting just five for 18. That's 27.8 percent, which left the door open for Stanford on a day the Cardinal hit 7-for-22 from distance. The Cardinal also did a fairly good job of limiting Carolina's transition chances. The Heels collected just 11 fast break points and it felt like much of the second half--until the final possession--was played in the halfcourt. Carolina's best offense was at the free throw line, where it hit 20 of 24 chances.
5. Part of those struggles was a freshman day from Ian Jackson, who went 1-for-8 from the field and 0-for-5 from three. That illustrates how important he has become to Carolina's offense. When he doesn't score, the Tar Heels simply aren't as good offensively.
6. The offensive highlights on a day when offense wasn't a highlight: RJ Davis had 19 points on 15 shots (and 3-for-7 from three, which was solid) and Elliot Cadeau scored 12 to go with his five assists. Cadeau was limited in the first half by foul trouble, opening the door for Davis to pick up five first half assists (also his game total).
7. The final possession for Stanford looked similar to the last possession at Notre Dame, but this time the opponent converted it. Blakes was able to go the length of the court and get a good look, which he knocked down.
8. Ven-Allen Lubin had one of his best games at Carolina, playing 24 minutes, scoring 13 points and grabbing five rebounds. And despite Reynaud's big numbers, Lubin was reasonably effective against him in the second half, forcing him to hoist three-pointers--he only made three of 12, but one of them was key late in the game--instead of working inside. Lubin was part of a Carolina reserve attack that outscored Stanford 23-1.
9. If you watched on television, you might be wondering about the empty seats for a game that has long been sold out from the box office. The problem perfectly illustrates the delicate balance the ticket office faces--students didn't use close to their full allotment of distributed tickets. But there is no way to know that's going to happen until the game actually starts, creating a situation where some tickets remain unused (and unsold) despite the fact that it was a hot ticket at the box office. It's a very tricky situation. You want as many students in the building as humanly possible. Saturday was a very, very rare case that probably looked confusing on television but is unlikely to happen again.
10. Saturday also marked the 39th anniversary of the first game ever in the Smith Center. On January 18, 1986, the Tar Heels defeated Duke, 95-92, in an inaugural game that had been pushed back a couple of months. The original first Smith Center game was supposed to be against UCLA, but construction delays pushed back the opening.
11. Healthy dose of Tar Heels in town for the game. Carolina alum Cooper Alan--part of a huge family of Tar Heels who have been involved with the basketball program--sang a terrific national anthem. Former UNC quarterback Sam Howell was in the seats behind the scorer's table, and the usual host of basketball program notables were on hand: Roy Williams, Marcus Ginyard, Brice Johnson and Luke Maye. New football coach Bill Belichick was also at the game and shared a moment with Williams before tip-off, and longtime MLB standout Kyle Seager was there as the featured speaker at tonight's baseball First Pitch banquet. And yet with all those luminaries, the biggest cheer of the day came for the military Hero of the Game, Hal Kushner. Look him up.
12. This was very obviously a game Carolina needed to win, and probably heightens the importance of Tuesday night's game at Wake Forest.
1. Very tough loss for the Tar Heels, falling 72-71 to Stanford on a last-second shot by Duke transfer Jaylen Blakes. It was the first time Carolina lost at the Smith Center when leading at halftime since February 8, 2020, against Duke.
2. A late change by the Cardinal made a difference, as they went back to a zone with 2:20 remaining. At that point, Carolina had committed only four turnovers. They promptly coughed up their fifth, and Stanford scored to take the lead. There weren't many of them, but Stanford was extremely efficient turning turnovers into points--UNC had five, and the visitors scored 11 points off them.
3. Stanford big man Maxime Reynaud was as advertised, scoring 25 points to go with his 13 rebounds. But Blakes was as much of an issue in the second half, as he had 10 second half points and seven assists (he finished with 20 points). He scored or assisted eight of Stanford's 13 second half field goals. You knew Reynaud had a size edge against this particular Carolina team. Blakes having such a big day against a guard-heavy team was unexpected.
4. Carolina again shot poorly from three-point range, hitting just five for 18. That's 27.8 percent, which left the door open for Stanford on a day the Cardinal hit 7-for-22 from distance. The Cardinal also did a fairly good job of limiting Carolina's transition chances. The Heels collected just 11 fast break points and it felt like much of the second half--until the final possession--was played in the halfcourt. Carolina's best offense was at the free throw line, where it hit 20 of 24 chances.
5. Part of those struggles was a freshman day from Ian Jackson, who went 1-for-8 from the field and 0-for-5 from three. That illustrates how important he has become to Carolina's offense. When he doesn't score, the Tar Heels simply aren't as good offensively.
6. The offensive highlights on a day when offense wasn't a highlight: RJ Davis had 19 points on 15 shots (and 3-for-7 from three, which was solid) and Elliot Cadeau scored 12 to go with his five assists. Cadeau was limited in the first half by foul trouble, opening the door for Davis to pick up five first half assists (also his game total).
7. The final possession for Stanford looked similar to the last possession at Notre Dame, but this time the opponent converted it. Blakes was able to go the length of the court and get a good look, which he knocked down.
8. Ven-Allen Lubin had one of his best games at Carolina, playing 24 minutes, scoring 13 points and grabbing five rebounds. And despite Reynaud's big numbers, Lubin was reasonably effective against him in the second half, forcing him to hoist three-pointers--he only made three of 12, but one of them was key late in the game--instead of working inside. Lubin was part of a Carolina reserve attack that outscored Stanford 23-1.
9. If you watched on television, you might be wondering about the empty seats for a game that has long been sold out from the box office. The problem perfectly illustrates the delicate balance the ticket office faces--students didn't use close to their full allotment of distributed tickets. But there is no way to know that's going to happen until the game actually starts, creating a situation where some tickets remain unused (and unsold) despite the fact that it was a hot ticket at the box office. It's a very tricky situation. You want as many students in the building as humanly possible. Saturday was a very, very rare case that probably looked confusing on television but is unlikely to happen again.
10. Saturday also marked the 39th anniversary of the first game ever in the Smith Center. On January 18, 1986, the Tar Heels defeated Duke, 95-92, in an inaugural game that had been pushed back a couple of months. The original first Smith Center game was supposed to be against UCLA, but construction delays pushed back the opening.
11. Healthy dose of Tar Heels in town for the game. Carolina alum Cooper Alan--part of a huge family of Tar Heels who have been involved with the basketball program--sang a terrific national anthem. Former UNC quarterback Sam Howell was in the seats behind the scorer's table, and the usual host of basketball program notables were on hand: Roy Williams, Marcus Ginyard, Brice Johnson and Luke Maye. New football coach Bill Belichick was also at the game and shared a moment with Williams before tip-off, and longtime MLB standout Kyle Seager was there as the featured speaker at tonight's baseball First Pitch banquet. And yet with all those luminaries, the biggest cheer of the day came for the military Hero of the Game, Hal Kushner. Look him up.
12. This was very obviously a game Carolina needed to win, and probably heightens the importance of Tuesday night's game at Wake Forest.
Players Mentioned
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