Lucas: Whatever It Takes

By Adam Lucas

Hubert Davis is in his fourth season as Carolina's head coach. He was an assistant coach at Carolina for over a decade. He has spent his entire life in the game of basketball.

James Rolf Blizzard is a Carolina student manager. He graduated in December, so he does have a college degree, but he otherwise does not have anywhere close to the credentials established by Davis.

And yet here is the beauty and the frustration of life as a coach: as Jae'Lyn Withers discussed his third straight terrific performance on Saturday evening, both something Davis had said and something Blizzard had said equally resonated with him.

"Coach Davis has been putting a big emphasis on doing whatever it takes," Withers, who is known in the UNC locker room as J-Wit, said on the Tar Heel Sports Network after Carolina's 81-66 victory over Virginia. "One of our managers, J.R., said that kind of spells out W-I-T. So I have embraced that and try to make sure I do whatever it takes to get the win."

What a great reminder that although in many ways today's college athlete is an international corporation complete with agent, board of directors (the parents) and sponsorships, sometimes they are still unpredictable college kids and you're never quite sure what will connect.

So take a bow, J.R., and Davis would likely be the first one to say it. Because Withers' emergence over the last two weeks has given this year's Tar Heels a different feel.

Withers did it again Saturday, scoring 16 points to go with 11 rebounds in his second double-double of the season. His 4-for-6 shooting from three-point range was the headliner. But it was a more subtle play later in the game that illustrated the difference he's brought to the team.

With about 11 minutes left, Withers channeled his inner Ian Jackson and attempted a heat check step-back three-pointer from the left corner. The Tar Heel head coach promptly removed him from the game and gave him some firm instructions on the Carolina sideline.

Withers' ability to take pointed coaching has occasionally been uneven during his two-season UNC career. As he himself eloquently said on Saturday, "My nonchalantness was a lot at the beginning of the season." If nonchalantness isn't officially a word, it should be in this case, because Withers used it to perfectly describe his play at certain times this season.

This time, though, he responded. He came back into the game approximately two minutes later, and his first contribution was to go—hard—to the offensive glass. He fought for a missed Jackson shot, then didn't give up and went back into the fray to secure a Jalen Washington miss. He scored off that offensive rebound—one of his four on the night—to give the Heels a 14-point lead.

"I'm trying to provide a lot more leadership," Withers said. "I'm making sure I'm sharp so I can relay the messages Coach Davis is expressing. I'm playing with a lot more energy and more emotion. I'm more animated."

And not coincidentally, more productive. Withers now has six offensive rebounds in the last three games, all of them starts. Prior to that, he had six offensive rebounds in the entire rest of the Atlantic Coast Conference season, a span that encompasses 13 games. He's drained nine three-pointers in those three games; he had six three-pointers in the 13 prior ACC games. He has 43 points in the last three games; he had 44 points in the 13 prior ACC games.

Sure, there are still some moments that make Davis wince. Withers drew a first half technical foul after one of his three-pointers. But his play overall—and Davis' willingness to occasionally ride the wave and shuffle personnel to take advantage of it—has made Carolina a better team.

Withers' success combined with the workmanlike efforts of Ven-Allen Lubin (14 points and six rebounds) enables Drake Powell to spend more time at small forward. Powell played the second-most minutes on the team in Saturday's win, scored 11 points, provided a nice change of pace defensively on Isaac McKneely, and recorded a plus-minus of +15, second only to Withers in the game. Seth Trimble, in a dynamic sixth man role, also provided good defense on McKneely and had five points, five rebounds and a steal. Jackson scored 16 points in 17 minutes and needed just seven shots to do it.

Even on a night when RJ Davis was 3-for-14, Carolina looked like a more cohesive team. There have been nights this season when a 3-for-14 from Davis would've been devastating. Today it was barely a footnote.

"We're getting positive play and positive minutes from so many different areas," Hubert Davis told Jones Angell on the THSN. "That's what a team does. It's not built on one person. It's a collection of guys coming together and trying to be the best they can be."

It's also a collection of guys who for three straight games, have tried to do whatever it takes. Which, as we know, spells W-I-T.

"A lot of times when you can see the end of your college career, it refocuses you and you're able to see things from a different perspective," Hubert Davis said of Withers. "Defensively, rebounding and offensively he changes our team completely for the good. And he's playing his best basketball at the right time."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

RJ Davis

Ian Jackson

Ven-Allen Lubin

Drake Powell

Seth Trimble

Jalen Washington

Jae'Lyn Withers

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