UNC 97, USC 65
Game Summary
It is like dejavu all over again. For the fourth straight game, UNC came out and dogged a solid team. And like the previous three games, this one wasn't even close after the first 10 minutes. The guys were a little banged up (Felton still had a heavily taped left wrist and Melvin has a hurt hip) not to mention that several mentioned after the game (most notably McCants) that they felt sluggish due to the 15 hour flight from Maui. We are still playing together as a team, everyone is being unselfish, playing tenacious defense, and running the court very well (including May). UNC doubled USC's score at the half (56-28) and forced 16 turnovers. Jawad and Jackie both had outstanding games.
It doesn't get any easier from here. Next up on Wednesday night is Indiana (at Indiana -- Sean May's hometown) and then Kentucky on Saturday (fortunately that one is in Chapel Hill).
Game Breakdown
Who: University of Southern California
Where: Chapel Hill
Viewing method: FSN
Box Score
Photo Gallery 1
Photo Gallery 2
Coach Williams Quotes
UNC Locker Room Quotes
Coach Henry Bibby (USC) Quotes
Starters
Ray Felton - Ack, Felton's hand was still heavily taped, but the affects didn't really show. They said the X-rays came back negative (which is positive). He said only his hand hurts, not his wrist, so it doesn't really affect his dribbling or shooting much (especially since it is his left hand). He did grimace a few times after falling to the floor. Back to the game...Felton had 12 assists, 2 steals and only 3 turnovers! He had a nice oop to Jawad during a 3 on none break after a McCants steal. Great game overall.
Sean May - May had 10 rebounds and 17 points, but had an off night with his free throws (7-12). He ran the floor extremely well. During a three play series, May had a dunk, took a charge, then make a short jumper. Very nice.
Rashad McCants - McCants said he was still jet-lagged and his play showed it a bit. He didn't score for his average (13 points this game), but he didn't really need to. He shined on defense with a couple of steals and a block. On one steal, he made a great behind the back pass which ended in a layup. USC's Stewart was talking a little trash to McCants early on after Stewart made a jumper. McCants gave Stewart an elbow to his flapping jaw because he got up in McCants' face. Coach Williams didn't see it or else he probably would have taken him out of the game. Then on the next two positions, McCants scored down low and came back with a 3 pointer. Nuff said Stewart.
Jawad Williams - Jawad had an outstanding game and was awarded the game MVP. He had 23 points on 9 of 11 shooting. Jawad shot very well both inside and out. Oddly enough, one of his two misses came off a failed dunk attempt.
Jackie Manuel - Jackie had his best game of the season. He played inspired on both the offensive and defensive ends. He said that he felt fully rested even while his teammates were jet lagged because he got 12 hours of sleep three nights ago and 11 hours two nights ago. Jackie even made a 3! Jackie must be reading my blog because he started driving more this game (as I asked for him to do after last game) and he was very effective. Jackie got standing ovations from the crowd after he came out of the game at least two times. You can tell he is a crowd favorite due to his basketball sense and hard work ethic.
Reserves
Melvin Scott - Melvin saw limited playing time and ended the game with 0 points on 0-2 shooting from the floor. At first I thought it was an off night for Melvin (and the ugly inconsistency rearing its head again), but it turns out he injured his hip in the game against Iowa. He wasn't feeling 100% and Coach Williams used him sparingly.
David Noel - Pretty quiet game. He had a nice steal and outlet to Rashad who layed it up. Then Quentin had a steal and passed it to Noel for a layup.
Marvin Williams - Marvin had his coming out party tonight for his first game in the Dean Dome. He played excellent. You can see him getting better every game. He played solid D and even had a nice block. Coach Williams gave him the defensive award for the game, which was the first time EVER that a freshman has garnered that award twice in one season (and we've only had 4 games).
Quentin Thomas - Quentin did an all around nice job. He had 4 assists, but did have 5 turnovers. Most impressively, he handled USC's press well. Once he even beat the press by feeding May for a dunk.
Wes Miller - Came in at the 5:26 mark in the second half. Just based on the few minutes I've seen of Wes, I think he would make a good sub for Felton and Quentin if we ever needed him. He looks like he can handle the ball well.
Byron Sanders - Came in at the 5:26 mark in the second half.
Reyshawn Terry - Came in at the 5:26 mark in the second half.
Damion Grant - Came in at the 2:40 mark in the second half. He looked pretty slow.
C.J. Hooker - Came in at the 2:40 mark in the second half.
Charlie Everett - Came in at the 2:40 mark in the second half.
Sidelines
Just not much to report when you are up by 20 or 30 for most of the game. Coach Williams was pretty subdued.
Announcers
Tim Brando
Mike Gminski
Tim and Mike are the usual Fox Sports commentators. They aren't as good as Bilas and Raftery, but they aren't bad. What is up with the fomer Duke players being commentators? (Gminski and Bilas are both ex-Duke.) Well you know the old saying, if you aren't good enough to play in the Pros, you commentate :-P
Same ol, same ol:
- Talked about the heart to heart McCants had with Coach Williams after Kentucky game last year
- UNC had the ACC leaders in scoring, assists, and rebounding last year
Gminski gave Felton some junk when he missed a 3 pointer. He said Felton is not a good outside shooter. I take issue with that. Felton is a good shooter, but he thinks pass first. He never got into a rhythm last year. He shot very well his freshman year when he needed to. He is already shooting better this year.
Gminski also said he thought May has more bounce in his step this year. He lauded May throughout the game.
Refs
Finally some hometown refs! I'm only saying that partially in jest, but there was definitely a difference between the refs tonight and those in Oakland and Maui. These refs let the guys play more. There was some pretty heavy banging around early on and the refs let it go. UNC was scrappy under the basket most of the game and the refs didn't call very many cheap touch fouls. I wonder if this had anything to do with it:
Crowd
I was a little disappointed that we didn't have a full house tonight. The stands were mostly full, but there were definitely some seats open. In the crowd's defense, they were loud and could be heard chanting in the background several times. I think everyone is hyped about the potential this season holds.
UNC 106, Iowa 92 - Maui Invitational champions!
Game Summary
I think Jay Bilas put it best: "This has been a stunning performance." Carolina dominated from the tip of the BYU game to the completion of Wednesday's championship game at the Maui Invitational. So many things went right, it is hard to believe this is the same team that got drubbed by Santa Clara. Obviously, it is easy to point the finger at Ray Felton as a big reason for the turnaround. But it is more than that. Overall, the team played better on both ends of the court. Better shooting and considerably better defense. The performance was impressive to say the least.
The score was 59-40 AT THE HALF. With many games you don't see that score for a final, but they got 59 points by the half and followed it up with a solid performance in the second half to finish with 106 points total. The announcers said the all-time record at the Maui Invitational was 162 points by Loyola Marymount. I can't imagine how they could score that much. It seemed like UNC was scoring constantly the whole game and "only" made it to 106.
Picture from tarheelblue.com.
Game Breakdown
Who: Iowa
Where: Maui, Hawaii
Viewing method: ESPN
Box Score
Photo Gallery 1
Photo Gallery 2
Photo Gallery 3
Starters
Ray Felton - Where do I start. Felton's performance during this tourney showed why he is considered one of the premier point guards in the country (if not the best!). Felton ended as the Tourney MVP and it was well deserved. He came into the game with his left hand heavily tapped. I was concerned it would affect him, but obviously it didn't too much. He had a couple of dunks, he was dribbling all over the place, and making great passes. He didn't score a lot (13 points), but had 9 assists and only 1 turnover. He provided the leadership and intangibles Carolina needed to win. Oh, and I have to mention the great behind the back drive and layup he had while being closely guarded. It was a masterful performance. Bring on Wake and Chris Paul!
Rashad McCants - McCants also had another outstanding game and was rewarded by being named to the all-tourney first-team. He ended with 22 points on 8-14 shooting. There was a black spot though near the beginning of the game. McCants' man went up for a shot outside and McCants blocked it. Then McCants stared his guy down while the guy was on the ground. He then turned around and didn't help the guy up. Coach Williams yanked him out of the game directly after that and could be seen giving him a lecture of some sort. We just don't need that mess.
McCants had a couple of nice dunks including a dunk (picture below) from a great tip pass from Marvin Williams off a long pass from Felton. The pass and dunk were replayed several times as the announcers said it was top 10 material.
Sean May - Sean didn't do so well around the rim tonight. He went 5-13, but scored 16 points due to a 6-7 performance from the free throw line. Glad to see him making more free throws this year. There is still a question for me as to whether he can score consistently around the rim.
Jawad Williams - Jawad is Mr. Versatile. He scored 18 points, went 2-4 from 3 point line, and had 4 assists. He is definitely the quiet leader this year. Let's just hope he keeps up the defensive intensity.
Jackie Manuel - Jackie played well. He had a nice drive for a layup in the first half. He did well driving to the hole last year. He should do more of it. He ended up 2-6 from the floor with 2 steals.
Reserves
Melvin Scott - If Melvin could just play the rest of the season like he has for the last 3 games, we absolutely will be in the hunt come March. He went 3-5 from the three point line and all of his shots looked good. Again, the key for him is to be set and shoot straight up. I've also been impressed with Melvin's D lately. Keep it up!!
Marvin Williams - Oh yeah, Marvin had a bit of a breakout game here. He did much better around the rim not to mention the great tip pass to McCants I mentioned earlier. He scored 11 and was solid again from the free throw line. I love it when a big man can make his free throws. I think May and Marvin are shaping up to be a great tandem. May is Mr. Silky Smooth and Marvin is Mr. Wild Man. Marvin played scrappy D all game and came out with 3 steals.
Quentin Thomas - Didn't play a whole lot (box score has him down for 8 minutes), but while he was in, he did a good job. When you have the Tourney MVP playing ahead of you, you can't expect a lot of time, but at least when he did come in, he didn't make any bad mistakes. I'm glad he's been able to get these first few games under his belt and show that he'll be a good PG for the future.
David Noel - Another solid performance by Noel. He was 4-4 from the field. I'd really like to see him have a breakout game soon. He has such hops they should really try to get him going to the hoop more.
Byron Sanders - Came in slightly ahead of the other guys on the bunch at the 5:40 mark in the 2nd half.
Wes Miller - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Reyshawn Terry - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Damion Grant - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
C.J. Hooker - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Charlie Everett - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Sidelines
Roy got upset with the refs on several occasions and rightfully so. But generally he was in a good mood and even laughing at times. Hard to be too upset with this performance.
Announcers
Jay Bilas
Bill Raftery
Sean McDonough
It was the same crew as the other games. These guys obviously have a good repoire. They were joking and cracking jokes on each other. I didn't hear them razzing the UNC coaches about their clothes this time, but I may have just missed it.
In Bilas' words: "This has been a stunning performance."
Refs
The refs seemed to get worse and worse as the tourney went on. And I don't think it was just me. Even Raftery said they were calling "a lot of nickel and dimers". Lets hope these refs stay in Hawaii for the rest of the season.
Crowd
The heavily UNC-biased crowd was lovin every minute of the game, as was I. As with the last two games, it didn't look like anyone left until after the final buzzer despite the blow out. Felton got a standing O after was pulled out toward the end of the 2nd half. It was well-deserved.
UNC 94, Tennessee 81
Game Summary
Wow. It is hard to think this is the same team that was blown out by Santa Clara. UNC routed Tennessee in the second round of the Maui Invitational. Early on I thought it might shape up to be a good game. For the first 6 minutes, Tenn. was able to keep it close, but we went on a spurt and before you know it we were up by 10 and then 20 to end the half at 51-31.
Tennessee is coached by former UNC player Buzz Peterson. Here is a shot of Coach Williams and Coach Peterson together:
Coach Peterson played under Coach Smith and Williams during the Michael Jordan era. Supposedly he was one of the better shooters to play at Carolina.
For the second straight game, we had great transition play. We converted several steals into baskets. Felton had a great alley oop to Jawad. Felton drove the ball, sucked all the defenders around him, then kicked it out to Melvin Scott for a 3. Overall, McCants had another superb night, both offensively and defensively.
The game wasn't all that close, but due to a couple of Tenn. spurts, Coach Williams had to leave the key players in until around the 3 minute mark when he cleared the bench. It wouldn't have even been as close as it was if it wasn't for Tenn freshman Chris Lofton who went 6-10 from 3. He was on fire and ended with 22 points.
Next up is Iowa for the championship game.
Game Breakdown
Who: Tennessee
Where: Maui, Hawaii
Viewing method: ESPN2
Box Score
Photo Gallery 1
Photo Gallery 2
Starters
Ray Felton - I'll take his 9 points and 9 assists. If he could do that every night, we'd be in good shape. He did, however, have 5 turnovers and many of them were on faulty passes. He played good trapping D that Tenn had trouble with all night.
Sean May - May had a good game, although more quiet than against BYU. He ended with 9 points, but ran the floor well again and played good D. One thing we are missing though from our big men is a shot blocking threat. Last year, players were afraid to drive against Uconn's Okafor because he would probably block the shot. Duke and Wake also have shot blocking threats. Neither May, J Williams, or M Williams are big blocking threats for us though.
Rashad McCants - McCants played like the best player in the country tonight. It is not every game someone can score 27 points and you can call his play unselfish, but that is exactly the case with McCants. There were even times he passed open looks to swing the ball around to get it to an even more open man. Rashad had 17 points in the first half! He ended with 10-16 shooting and 3-7 from 3. He had another NBA-style 3 during the first half. The one downside was his free throws. He went only 4-8. McCants played some great transition offense too. He had an awesome spinning drive to avoid his man and ended up with a layup. He had a power dunk with his left hand as shown here:
Toward the end of the game, Rashad showed his defensive skills by jumping out and blocking a 3 point shot attempt!
Jawad Williams - Jawad had a tough game. The refs weren't calling things his way for most of the night (more on this later), but he still managed to rattle off 21 points on 8-10 shooting! He played good D, but only got 2 rebounds. I'd take this kind of game from him every night.
Jackie Manuel - Jackie had a decent night. He was the only player to foul out of the game, which is unusual for him. He got called for a couple of reach in fouls after his man beat him (again, which is unusual). But he did shut Tenn's best player (McFadgon) down for most of the night. He didn't do much offensively (which is fine by me) by scoring 3 points.
Reserves
Marvin Williams - Marvin is something else. He is a little wild at times, but he definitely gets an A for effort. He is all over the place. He took a charge in the second half. The crowd gave him a standing ovation after he shot the ball and worked doggedly to get the rebound and put it up again (he didn't make it, but got fouled). He is the mirror opposite of May who is silky smooth. Marvin plays wide open.
Melvin Scott - Melvin had a fantastic game. To start, he was 3-6 from the 3 point line. His shot looked great. I think the announcers said it well, if he gets to set and shoot, he can nail them at a high percentage. If he comes off a screen or is moving one way or another when he shoots, his percentage goes down dramatically. Now for the best part, Melvin was kicking butt on D! There were a couple of times when Melvin was working hard and wouldn't let his man go by him. He displayed a tenacious D I haven't seem from him the past. If he could keep this up, he might work his way back in the starting lineup.
Quentin Thomas - Solid game, but he only got to play 7-8 minutes. I think he'll be a good one though. He can get up the court quick and he generally makes good decisions with the ball.
David Noel - Solid game by Noel, but not much offensively. He was setting screens and filling gaps. He did make all 4 of his free throws.
Wes Miller - Came in during the final few minutes. Looks quick. Announcers think he is a solid point guard and a good shooter. I haven't seen any offensive production out of him yet. It looks like he'll be the third string PG behind Felton and Quentin this year. His playing time will probably be limited.
Byron Sanders - Came in during the final two minutes.
Reyshawn Terry - Came in during the final two minutes.
Damion Grant - Came in during the final two minutes. Couldn't get in a groove, but then again he didn't have much time. I just don't think Grant is quick enough to play for UNC much.
C.J. Hooker - Came in during the final two minutes. Had a nice layup.
Charlie Everett - Came in during the final two minutes. Missed two free throws.
Sidelines
At 15:37 left to go in the first half, Tenn. tied it up at 6 so Roy called a timeout. He was visibly upset - red in the face and giving his guys the evil eye. Roy complained at various times throughout the game because of poor calls by the refs.
Buzz actually became so upset he got a technical for slamming his hand down on the scorer's table. The announcers said that is not characteristic of Buzz who is usually a real laid back kind of guy.
Announcers
Jay Bilas
Bill Raftery
Sean McDonough
It was the same crew as last night. Beside repeating a bunch of stuff from the previous night, I think they did an ok job. I remember now from last year how I start to like announcers less and less as the season goes on because they always repeat the same things in every game. They like to talk about McCants' troubles. Or how last year in the ACC McCants was leading scorer, Felton led in assists, and May led in rebounds. Or Coach Williams' winning percentage (best among active coaches). I could go on. Not that it is bad stuff mind you, but I wish sometimes they could come up with more stuff to say.
Bilas was oozing praise for McCants once again. They loved his performance and how could I blame them.
They also made negative comments again about the shirts the UNC coaches were wearing. Apparently none of the announcers like strips because last night they dogged Coach Holladay and Robinson for wearing strips and tonight they dogged Coach McGrath for wearing strips. At least they pointed out that their own shirts weren't much to speak of (which they weren't).
Refs
I assume these were the same refs as the night before, but they must have stayed up late and not got as much sleep. They weren't near as sharp. They called a bunch of touch fouls (more so than the BYU game) and they even called two technicals! The first I about fell out of my seat on. Jawad got an alley oop from Felton and slammed it home. The force of his slam caused him to swing upwards, so he had to hang on the rim while he was coming down to prevent a hard landing. No showboating, IMO just a clean hard dunk. And they called a technical. Give me a break.
Later they called a technical on Buzz Peterson for slamming his hand on the scorers table ala Coach Williams. He deserved that one.
It seemed like the refs had it out all night for Jawad. If they weren't calling technicals on him or touch fouls against him, it looked like he was getting beat up pretty good down low without anything to show for it.
Crowd
At the opening tipoff you could hear "Let's go Tarheel's" being repeated in the background. I think this says something when fans are so dedicated, they are willing to fly 12 hours (it is in Hawaii mind you) to watch their team play. No other team at the tourney has that level of fan support. It was great to see. And with two minutes to go in the game, fans didn't start to leave. No, the subs came in and the crowd started chanting, "Here we go Tarheels, here we go".
UNC 86, BYU 50
Game Summary:
What a difference few days make. Carolina continued their west coast trip by leaving the bad memories of Santa Clara behind in Oakland and moving on to the Maui Invitational in Hawaii. The tourney consists of 8 teams with games spread over three days. UNC started off by playing BYU. The game was never close.
This is exactly how I expected them to play against Santa Clara, but obviously they didn't. The big difference is this time, Ray Felton was in the lineup. Unfortunately, I missed the first three minutes of the game due to the Duke/Davidson game running over. At least I got a peak at Duke and they don't look nearly as strong as they did last year. They'll still be a threat, but I digress.
UNC broke out to an early lead and never let it go. We finally got to see the new and improved defense everyone had been talking about during the preseason. Get this: Carolina only allowed 3 points for the first 9 minutes of the game! The score was 22-3 at the 12 minute mark in the first half. The defense was tenacious and the transition offense was in full effect. Heck, even Sean May was leading a couple of early breaks.
I don't know why last year's team showed up to play against Santa Clara, but the team that beat BYU justifies a top 5 ranking (at some point). Overall, it was an excellent game with little to critique. The big question is whether we can keep it up for two more games and win the tourney. Tomorrow night we play the winner of the Stanford/Tennessee game.
Game Breakdown:
Who: BYU
Where: Maui, Hawaii
Viewing method: ESPN2
Starters:
Ray Felton - Oh, it was good to have him back. Things just run much smoother when Ray is running the show. He missed a few shots early on, but drained two 3's later in the first half. If we can get his scoring average in double figures, there is no other point guard that can come close to him (yeah, that includes Mr. Paul). There are few in the business that can run the transition like Felton. He pushed the ball hard and UNC got a bunch of transition buckets as a result.
Sean May - May gets my player of the game award. He was all over the place: snagging rebounds, catching bad passes, and even running in transition. He had a breakaway dunk in the first half. Great stuff. And unlike the Santa Clara game (and most of last year), most of the short shots were going in tonight. He ended up with 18 points.
Rashad McCants - Rashad didn't have a high scoring game (13 points), but overall he played unselfish and worked hard on D. He drained a 3 pointer in the first half from like 24 feet out (way beyond even NBA line). He also had a great post up and turnaround hook. We need to get Rashad down low against his man more often. Anytime he does that, it never fails, one of the announcers will talk about how he is one of the most dominant offensive players in the country (this time it was Bilas that said it).
Jawad Williams - Much better performance from Jawad compared to the Santa Clara game. He played good D and shot well.
Jackie Manuel - Had a pretty quiet game. I'm sorry, but I still cringe every time I see Jackie take an outside shot. So far he is making more from outside than in previous years, but I still don't think we want him shooting on a regular basis.
Reserves:
Marvin Williams - Didn't make a lot of field goals tonight, but he was perfect from the free throw line! He was 1-4 from the floor and 6-6 from the line. Always a good sign if a big man can hit free throws. He also played good scrappy defense.
Melvin Scott - Made two 3's in the first half. His stroke looked good. Much better performance than against Santa Clara. This is exactly what we need from Melvin: good quality minutes off the bench.
David Noel - I was happy to see more of Noel tonight. I wouldn't say he had his best game, but it is hard not to like him in the lineup. He did have a nice dunk and ended up with 7 points.
Quentin Thomas - Sub'd in for Felton during the first half quite a bit. Solid play.
Wes Miller - Sub'd in during the second half and got quite a bit of time at the point. Looks like a solid ball handler, but again, not much of an offensive threat (0 points).
Byron Sanders -Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Reyshawn Terry - Came in around the 6 minute mark in the 2nd half. He looked pretty good and made a couple of shots. I sure hope Reyshawn gets some quality PT this year.
Damion Grant - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
C.J. Hooker - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Charlie Everett - Came in after Coach Williams cleared the bench during the final few minutes of the game.
Sideline:
Not much going on over on the sidelines. But then again, there wasn't a whole lot for Coach Williams to get upset about this game. The announcers did take time to make fun of Coach Robinson's and Coach Holladay's shirt.
Announcers:
Jay Bilas
Bill Raftery
Sean McDonough
I really enjoy this crew. They don't come off smug the way a Doherty or Packer does and they aren't overenthusiastic the way Dook Vitale is. Good unbiased game calling. And that is remarkable considering Bilas is an ex-Dukie.
In fact, Jay is pretty high on UNC. Here are a couple quotes of note:
- "(UNC has) arguably the most talented starting 5 in the country"
- "Rashad is the best offensive player in America"
Referees:
The refs were definitely calling things conservatively. And anytime there was the hint of a push after the whistle, they were right there to get in between the players. I'm sure this can be contributed to the recent NBA and College Football scuffles.
Unfortunately, their liberal use of the whistle led to some bad calls. Noel was boxing out his man, the guy jumped over his back, pulled Noel to the ground, and Noel got called for the foul. Called a push off. There were a couple other miscalls, but it didn't matter much since the game was such a blowout.
Crowd:
The crowd favored UNC. There must have been a lot of Carolina fans there. I tried to get tickets for this game two months back, but tickets were available every school EXCEPT Carolina (already sold out). Other than booing refs for bad calls (of which there were a few), some Carolina fan yelled loudly anytime a BYU player shot a free throw. It was noticable on TV.
Heels Fall to No. 11 in AP Poll
This week's AP Poll has UNC at 11. Personally, I don't mind. I'd rather that we earn our ranking throughout the season than to have so much pressure initially. No one on this year's team knows what it is like to be on a top 5 team. I think we need to play like a top 5 team for a little while before we actually deserve that ranking. If tonight is any indication, we might be headed back there before too long.
Previewing BYU
I don't want to see any heads hanging tonight. Need to forget about Santa Clara and move on with the season. Who knows, it could have been a fluke. Maybe with a loss under our belt and Felton back in the line-up, we'll be hitting on all cylinders. We definitely need to have a fast paced tempo. We are an average half-court team. We need to trap, push the ball, and play tough D.
North Carolina (0-1) vs. Brigham Young (0-0)
Maui, Hawaii -- Lahaina Civic Center
9 p.m., ESPN2
Tar Heels look to bounce back
Roy hopes Heels find defense in paradise
Game Notes vs BYU
Roy Williams Sunday Quotes
Previewing BYU
Truth About Duke - Debunking Duke
I know I've posted about TAD before, but Truth About Duke - Debunking Duke always gives me a chuckle. There is a recent post about Casey Sanders that talks about how his Swedish team will likely cut the former Duke big man.
Citizen-Times.com: Carolina cover boy - Rashad McCants garners national attention
This article is from the paper in McCants' hometown (Asheville). It has the usual analysis of his behavior/personality. Here are some interesting tidbits:
"The 6-foot-4, 207-pound junior who turned 20 two months ago has scored 1,193 career points, the fifth-highest total ever after two years in the ACC."
"If he stays at Chapel Hill through his senior season, remains healthy and averages his current career number of 18.4 points per game for 60 games, he would become the school's all-time leading scorer, passing such famed names as Phil Ford, Charlie Scott, Billy Cunningham and Michael Jordan."
"He also displays a new tattoo on each arm - "Born to be hated" and "Dying to be loved."
"As he has on several occasions the past three years, McCants declined an interview request by the Citizen-Times for this story. A spokesman for the UNC sports information office said McCants will only grant interviews following games."
"I think everybody has mood swings. Rashad just has more mood swings than anybody I know." (high school friend of Rashad)
Santa Clara 77, UNC 66
Game summary:
UNC lost to Santa Clara by 11, but I'm afraid the margin of victory doesn't begin to show how lopsided the game actually was. Santa Clara took a 1 point lead with 4:16 left to go in first half and never trailed again. The worst thing I can say about UNC is that we looked just like last year's team for most of the game -- and that's not a compliment. The team chemistry (or lack thereof) was depressing. We had good effort, but seemed out of sync. And just like last year, the offense was anemic for long stretches and the defense looked like swiss cheese. There was a lot of talk during the preseason about UNC's defense had improved markedly and everyone was coming together, but I didn't see that. Coach Williams did say during the post-game that his two Jayhawk teams to lose their season openers both went on to the Final Four that year. Obviously, without Ray Felton, the team didn't have their floor leader. I think Felton could have made the difference in this game, but regardless, this shows how mediocre we are without him in the lineup. And I'm sure we can still play mediocre with him in the lineup if the team chemistry is not there.
I'm probably most disappointed with our defense. We gave up at least 3 or 4 quick turnaround shots by Santa Clara's big man Travis Niesen (a good player, but he shouldn't be schooling May and Williams). Niesen ended up having the game of his life and had a career high in points. It was one of those nights for UNC where Santa Clara couldn't miss and we couldn't make anything. You know it is bad when someone shoots an airball from outside and a guy underneath the basket catches it and flicks it in facing away from the basket. Yes, it was one of those nights indeed.
Despite our big height advantage, Santa Clara outrebounded us. Melvin had trouble playing the point. McCants wasn't aggressive on offense early.
There were some bright spots. We took at least 3 charges in the first half. Our guys were stepping in and closing the gap all over the place. Very good. McCants had a great dunk during the first few minutes. Quentin had an early steal and transition layup.
Let's hope we use this as motivation for the upcoming Maui Invitational.
Game breakdown:
Who: Santa Clara
Where: Oakland, CA
Viewing method: DirectTV - CSTV (channel 610)
Starters:
Sean May - Even with the drop in weight, I didn't notice May as being any quicker or having more stamina. To me, he played just like he did last year. He go t a bunch of rebounds, but many were off his own missed shots and he missed a ton of shots around the basket. He made those shots before he got hurt his freshman year, but hasn't been consistent since.
Rashad McCants - Pretty good defense, but was not very active on offense in the first half. Very unselfish play, but maybe too unselfish--especially when no one else is stepping up and making shots. In the final 5 minutes of the game Rashad caught fire and started draining 3's. But it was too little too late.
Quentin Thomas - Started in place of the benched Felton. Tall and quick, but was a little out of control at times and played like a freshman.
Jawad Williams - Didn't start on fire like he did at the beginning of last year. His shooting percentage was pretty low (36%). He also got schooled a few times down low by Niesen.
Jackie Manuel - Got the start, which wasn't common last year. He must have been doing better in practice than Melvin Scott. Jackie played solid defense (as expected), but wasn't much of a threat offensively (ended with 0 points).
Reserves:
Melvin Scott - In a departure from last year's starting line-up, Melvin came off the bench. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to help his game. He missed a bunch of outside shots and the times he played the point, he didn't look comfortable and forced a couple of turnovers.
Marvin Williams - Marvin played strong down-low, but like May, missed several around the basket.
David Noel - I was a bit shocked to see how little David played. He made a couple of good plays, but his playing time was limited.
Wes Miller - Wes filled in at the point and did a respectable job, although he didn't bring much of an offensive threat.
Reyshawn Terry - It was a bit of a surprise to me that Reyshawn didn't play a single minute (unless he made it in during the final minute).
C.J. Hooker - Got in during the final minute when Coach Williams cleared the bench.
Charlie Everett - Got in during the final minute when Coach Williams cleared the bench.
Byron Sanders - I don't think he played a single minute unless he came in during the final minute.
Damion Grant - I don't think he played a single minute unless he came in during the final minute.
Jesse Holley - Not present. Jesse is still playing for the UNC Football team.
Sideline:
Coach Williams didn't start to show a lot of emotion until the second half when he was visibly upset a few times. One thing I know I don't like to see is Felton on the sideline for the whole game. Let's hope we don't have to see that again. Felton was seen cheering on his team vigorously. I recall one 3 McCants made and Felton jumped up and started clapping and talking to everyone.
Announcers:
Matt Doherty
Carter Blackburn
This was a bit of a reunion for Matt and Carolina. He said he watched practice the day before the game and several players went over to say hi. I wonder if Rashad was one of those players? ;-) Overall, if had to watch/listen to Matt announce many games this year, I'd have to put the TV on mute. He needs to go back to coaching because I don't think he comes across well on TV (which is exactly what I thought when I used to watch his Saturday morning coach show when he was at UNC). He comes off pretty smug and likes to use a bunch of coaching jargon that the average fan would have no clue of what he is talking about. Now for the bad part. It is was a well known fact that Doherty and Rashad didn't get along very well. I could see him being overly biased against UNC and specifically Rashad. He kept talking about how refs were missing calls with Rashad fouling and he'd point out several cases where the refs missed calls against UNC. He didn't talk about near as many missed calls in favor of UNC. Obviously Doherty isn't a UNC fan, which I don't expect him to be as an announcer, but I do expect him to call an even game and I don't think he did that.
Here are a few tidbits of note from Matt:
- Jackie is early candidate for defense player of the year
- Said CSTV needs to pay him more money
- Said he was an employee of Isiah Thomas - does some scouting for the Knicks
Referees:
Dave libby
Mike Davis
Verne Harrison
The refs did an ok job, but not great. The called several fouls against Niesen's (aka the Flopper) defender when all Neisen was doing was flopping. Niesen should stick to the court and not pursue an acting job, but the refs fell for his stunts several times. Here are a few other missed calls I saw:
- Called several questionable touch fouls against UNC including a touch foul on May
- Marvin was fouled and they called it a jump ball
- Santa Clara had an obvious goal-tend to everyone in the building....except the refs
Crowd:
Non-factor. Definitely not a capacity crowd. Normally after an unranked team on their own court beats UNC, the crowd storms the floor. It didn't happen this time, but Oakland isn't really Santa Clara's home floor. And there was a lot of Carolina blue in the stands.
Previewing Santa Clara
What time is it? What time is it? It is hoops time. Oh yeah. Carolina's regular season starts tonight with a game at Santa Clara. The game will be televised on CSTV, so I have to go to a friend's house that has DirectTV to watch it (channel 610). But don't worry, I'll provide a full game breakdown afterward.
InsideCarolina.com: The Great 2006 Recruiting Dilemma
This is a good article by recruiting guru Dave Telep on how the 2006 class is shaping up to be a good one and why it is difficult to recruit the top players.
It is really unfortunate that we miss out on many of the top high school stars going to college. I wish the NBA would come to their senses and implement a minimum age requirement much like the NFL.
ESPN.com - Bracketology
ESPN's Joe Lunardi has picked Carolina to be a 1 seed in next year's NCAA tourney. Hard to argue with him at this point.
Lucas: Keys to the Season - Shot Selection
"Roy Williams doesn't want his team to take good shots. He wants them to take great shots.
The difference seems negligible. Good shots, great shots, is there really a difference? To Williams, there is, and he's now spent a full year trying to teach his players the difference. It's not a simple concept. There are times when a player might have a wide-open look at the basket. That's a great shot, right? Not if just one pass away there's a teammate with an even more high-percentage shot opportunity."
Continue at source.
Rashad McCants Ready for Opener
This is good news.
SI's 2004-05 College Basketball Preview: North Carolina
SI's preview of North Carolina
SI has also posted part of their in-depth interview with Rashad McCants. It is definitely an interesting read.
Rashad McCants on Sports Illustrated Cover
That's right, McCants is on the cover of Sports Illustrated's most recent edition and they picked UNC #1 in their preseason poll!!
Caption on the front the of the magazine reads:
MYSTERY MAN
Will the Tar Heels' RASHAD McCANTS be the best player in the country? Or not?
SI curse and slight muscle tear not withstanding, he definitely has the talent to be!
Lucas: UNC Basketball Mailbag November 16
"Welcome back to another year of the Damion Grant Chronicles...uh, we mean the Carolina Basketball Mailbag. Sorry, got a little confused there.
It's only 72 hours until the start of one of the most anticipated Tar Heel seasons in recent memory, so we're going to get straight to the questions. Throughout the season, we'll be checking in every Tuesday with your latest questions and our best efforts to answer them. If you'd like to submit your question, we'd love to hear from you."
UNC Basketball Mailbag November 16
Lucas: Heels Ready for Business Trip
"Players and coaches plan to do plenty of work--and have a little fun--over the next 10 days.
Roy Williams lists his schedule like he's reciting dental appointments:
We get there Saturday at 2:00. We leave for practice at 3:30. We have to be back at 6:30 and we've got some deal at 7:00. Sunday we have a coaches' administrative meeting at 7 a.m. and a press conference at 8...We'll practice Sunday afternoon and we have a banquet that night."
Continue at source.
It sounds like Quentin Thomas will get the start against Santa Clara while Ray Felton sits out one game due to a stupid suspension levied by the NCAA for participating in one lousy summer league game that wasn't sanctioned (no, I'm not bitter).
McCants is still trying to recoup from a slight muscle tear. I sure hope that gets healed up before the season gets in full gear. He won't have much time to rest it then.
This is an excellent sign:
"I left practice a couple Saturdays ago and thought, 'We're going to be pretty doggone good,'" [Roy] Williams said. "Not one practice did I ever have that kind of feeling last year."
Sean May Tuesday Quotes w/Audio
Last year, InsideCarolina.com provided only text excerpts from the weekly pre-game interviews with players and coaches. This year, they are providing the full audio in Real Media format! This is awesome and something that fans wouldn't get to hear otherwise. I really hope they do the same for the post-game interviews.
Sean May Tuesday Quotes w/Audio
Lucas: Thomas Looking Forward to Home Game in Oakland
Quentin Thomas will play his first collegiate game before a hometown crowd on Friday.
So far so good with Q (as his teammates call him). I like Coach Williams' quote the other day about how Q has it rough in practice because Felton constantly guards him and knows all the plays he is going to run. At least he has one of the best defenders in the country to work with during practice. I think he'll make the typical rookie mistakes this year, but he has plenty of promise. And we don't have to cringe as much every time Felton takes a hard fall this year.
Here Q talks about how coming to Carolina was a no-brainer--he didn't even have to visit the campus.
heraldsun.com: Marvin Williams helps Heels climb Mount (and McCants questionable)
Not good news:
"Roy Williams said McCants hurt the already-sore shoulder dunking last week against WSSU. Though McCants was held out as a precaution, Roy Williams said he was not sure if McCants would play against Santa Clara on Nov. 19."
Continue at source.
Exhibition Game: UNC 100 Mt. Olive 69
I can't say I'm pleased with where we are at a week before our first game. McCants sat out this game due to shoulder pain. Felton didn't play most of the second half because he won't be playing against Santa Clara. Sean May still isn't playing many minutes and he was pretty critical of Marvin Williams even though Williams was Mr. Everything against Mt Olive. To top it off, they played uninspired for the first half. Yeah they won, but that is besides the point.
Uneven Tar Heels Overcome Feisty Mt. Olive
Lucas: Miles Away
Photo Gallery 1
Photo Gallery 2
Box Score
Roy Williams Post-Game
Locker Room Post-Game
New book: Going Home Again: Roy Williams, the North Carolina Tar Heels, and a Season to Remember
Adam Lucas' new book entitled Going Home Again: Roy Williams, the North Carolina Tar Heels, and a Season to Remember just hit the stands.
Felton to sit out Santa Clara Game - ack
This sounds like some major BS to me. Felton played one game for a summer league that had been NCAA-approved in previous years. It just so turns out that this year they weren't approved by the all-mighty NCAA. Felton learned about that after playing one game and stopped playing in the league. As a result, he got a one game suspension by the NCAA. I don't know all of the rules, but doesn't intent have some role in all of this? Obviously he didn't intend to do anything wrong. I think this is ridiculous, but I guess there isn't much that can be done about it. He will sit our UNC's opener against Santa Clara next Friday.
Back Upcourt: Five Matchups To Watch
Oh yeah. This is the kind of article that gets me excited for the season to start. Tons of good matchups to watch this year. There were a bunch last year too, we just didn't know how good they were going to be. Bret Dougherty does a great job outlining most of the key match-ups. And surprise, surprise, Bret is the first journalist I've seen mention the fall from grace Felton has had compared to last year. I wouldn't trade Felton for any guard in the country (NBA included).
News-record.com: Tar Heels work to keep egos in check
Here is a short article on how UNC needs to keep egos in check and come together as a team this year if they want to do better.
InsideCarolina.com: Scouting Report on Wayne Ellington
Dave Telep, the nation's leading recruiting analyst, reviews his notes and compiles an in-depth scouting report on Wayne Ellington.
InsideCarolina.com: Offer on the Way to Wayne Ellington
"Thanks to some electrifying late summer and fall performances, there aren’t many players in the country whose star is brighter than Wayne Ellington’s. The class of 2006 stud from Merion (Pa.) Episcopal is a 6-4 wing, who is adding some point guard skills, and has got some of the nation’s elite showing him love."
Continue at source.
Newsday.com: Danny Green commits to Carolina
"As St. Mary's senior Danny Green Jr. sat through another lesson yesterday in Spanish class, a text message appeared on his cell phone. The contents were cryptic, but hardly needed translating.
'Got the fax. Congratulations,' it read. The message came from North Carolina assistant Steve Robinson."
Continue at source.
CITIZEN-TIMES.com: Rashad McCants' sister verbally committed to UNC
"Inevitably, Rashanda McCants says each trip to the mall ends the same way. The Asheville High senior finds herself at the cash register, holding something Carolina blue. "I can't help myself, I am drawn to that color," said McCants, who orally committed to join the University of North Carolina's women's basketball team last November."
Continue at source.
Ginyard: Coach Williams Made UNC Easy Choice
"Widely recruited Marcus Ginyard, a senior combo guard at Virginia’s Bishop O’Connell High and rated the nation’s No. 38 recruit in the Class of 2005 by SchoolSports.com, says choosing UNC as a collegiate destination was a no-brainer. So easy, in fact, that the 6-4, 205-pound Ginyard committed to UNC in October of his junior year.
“Once Coach [Roy] Williams got there last year, it was like, this is it,” says Ginyard, who turns 18 next May 8 and averaged 13.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists along with 2.5 steals last year. “It was like, ‘Here’s the school I want and now it has the best coach that’s still coaching.’ Easy decision.”
One of the nation’s best combo guards, Ginyard attended the Dean Smith Basketball Camp during three summers as a preteen. His outstanding passing, handling and finishing skills along with his stifling defense make it likely Ginyard will contribute for the Tar Heels right away next season."
Continue at source.
Winston-Salem Journal: No Excuses - Heels say it's time to prove themselves
"Sean May is fed up. He's tired of explaining why North Carolina hasn't won an ACC Tournament or many big games the past two seasons. Or why the Tar Heels have come up short on the road, or why they haven't had a winning conference record since 2001."
Continue at source.
Q&A with North Carolina's Roy Williams
The Charlotte Observer has an excerpt from a recent Q&A with Roy Williams. A couple highlights: he says McCants is a better team player than his reputation is known for; people on the team respect and listen to Jackie Manual; and Ray Felton needs to shoot better.
heraldsun.com: ACC teams lead the way in recruiting
Here is an article on the ACC's domination of recruiting.
Basketball signing period begins today for class of '05
UNC signed four '05 recruits today to mark the official signing period for 2005 seniors. Bob Gibbons of rivals.com ranked UNC #6 overall with their 2005 recruiting class and Duke was #1. I think over time we'll see that should be reversed. But we still need another big man...
UNC snubbed from AP All-American Team - Wake Forest's Paul leading vote-getter
How can the most talented starting 5 for two years running (i.e., UNC) not have one player on the preseason AP All-America team? I figure McCants isn't on it because of his "personality quirks". That is the only way State's Hodge can consistently get these kind of honors (he was on the preseason team) and not McCants. I guess what really matters is the post-season All-America team anyway.
Chris Paul was the leading vote getter. Am I the only one that sees the parallels between Chris Paul this season and Ray Felton last season? Felton was also on last year's preseason All-America team. Everyone was talking about him exactly like they are talking about Paul this year. Now it is like Felton is some ordinary second rate point guard compared to Paul. Hogwash! I hope Felton rips Paul a new one. I can't wait to see that match-up.
Lucas: Terry Another Summer Success Story?
If we could count on sophmore Reyshawn Terry for solid minutes this year, we truly will have a deep bench. Terry played like a nervous freshman most of last year. Adam Lucas ponders whether Terry will be another Summer Success Story. I hope so.
Senior Interview Outtakes
Extras from the Tar Heel Monthly group interview with Jawad Williams, Jackie Manuel, and Melvin Scott.
Roy Williams Live! Debuts Soon
Roy's weekly radio show begins Monday, Nov. 15 at Spice Street Restaurant.
Tar Heels Begin At No. 4 In AP Poll
Three of the top five teams are ACC schools in the opening AP Poll. Wake and Ga Tech are ahead of UNC. Hard to argue at this point since both of those teams were better last year and neither lost many players. Going to be a nerve racking season again, I can just feel it!!
Tar Heels to Open at Pete Newell Challenge
Freshman Quentin Thomas will make his collegiate debut in his hometown of Oakland, CA during the Tar Heel operner at the Pete Newell Challenge.
Here is the line-up for Nov 19th:
6 p.m. PT (9 p.m. ET): NORTH CAROLINA vs. SANTA CLARA
8:30 p.m. PT (approx.): STANFORD vs. USF
The following week, UNC will be at the Maui Invitational.
heraldsun.com: UNC freshmen dazzle
This article talks about how the UNC freshmen dazzled during their first exhibition game.
Holley has broke hand
Jesse Holley, a starting receiver for the UNC football team and walk-on point guard for the basketball team, has a broke hand. He will continue to practice and play in football games while it is broke. He said the broke hand is his non-shooting hand and shouldn't prevent him from playing bball (he'll start around mid-December after football season ends).
Tar Heel Trio Named Naismith Award Candidates
Felton, May and McCants are among the top 50 candidates for the prestigious Naismith Award. Yeah, there were a couple other ACC people on the list, but no one worth mentioning :-)
Lucas: Back to Heaven
Adam Lucas talks about how David Noel may be the extra piece of the puzzle the Tar Heels need. By his performance Friday night, he definitely looks to be on the right track again. Let's hope he can stay healthy.
Exhibition Game: UNC 113 WSSU 54
UNC had their first exhibition game of the year tonight at the Dean Dome against Winston-Salem State. It was a blowout: 113-54. The game wasn't televised and I didn't attend. I was out buying a new TV that I'm going to use to watch Carolina games this year. Yea!
Six in Double Figures as Tar Heels Open with Win
InsideCarolina.com: Heels Batter Rams
Photo Gallery 1
Photo Gallery 2
Box Score
Locker Room Report w/Audio
Roy Williams Quotes w/Audio
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