Random thoughts - UNC vs. Davidson as it happens
There is 13:10 left in the first half, and Davidson is leading #1 North Carolina 9-6. Here are some random thoughts as I watch the game…
- UNC has nearly air-balled its last two freethrows. Fundamentals people…fundamentals.
- UNC has 6 turnovers so far. Fundamentals, people…fundamentals.
- I love Bill Raftery. He’s knowledgeable, he’s witty, and knows when to ratchet up the emotion “Send it in Jerome!!!” Jay Bilas is rock solid as well.
- TV timeout 11:46 left in the first half. Davidson 11, UNC 8. For a team that wants to push the tempo, UNC isn’t pushing much of anything right now.
- UNC is having a ton of trouble fighting over Davidson’s screens near the three point line. Fundamentals, people…fundamentals.
- Ty Lawson just picked up foul #3 for UNC with 10:26 left in the half. Let’s see how deep UNC’s backcourt really is.
- Davidson is making their free throws…UNC is not. That could spell trouble for the Tar Heels if this came is close down the stretch.
- With 9:11 left in the first half, UNC is now in the bonus. If they start hitting their free throws, Davidson could be in trouble.
- UNC is starting to look for Hansbrough down on the low block more, and he’s starting to hit some shots. UNC now down only 1.
- Davidson has Dell Curry’s son, Stephen, playing at shooting guard. The kid looks a lot like his Dad, and isn’t afraid to shoot the ball, just like his Dad.
- The Heels are starting to turn up the defensive pressure on the perimeter and it has led to some fast break buckets. UNC up by 4 with 6:33 left to go.
- UNC is up 38-31 going into halftime. Hansbrough is starting to physically impose his will on Davidson (12 points, 11 rebounds), and the Carolina backcourt has settled down a bit.
2nd half
- Hansbrough has come out ice cold, and now things between him and Lovedale are getting a little chippy. Hansbrough with the technical foul, and Davidson is up one with 15:43 to go.
- UNC looks absolutely awful on offense. Sloppy passes, out-of-control drives into the paint, no rhythm whatsoever. UNC is lucky that Davidson is missing some shots - they could easily be down by double digits.
- Hansbrough got the ball in the low post for the first time in the 2nd half and drew a shooting foul. Why the ball doesn’t go through Hansbrough more is beyond me.
- 10:46 to go, Davidson up 47-46. UNC is 2 for 12 in the 2nd half. So much for the 1st half momentum.
- UNC comes out of a timeout more composed and actually try to run their offense. 8:05 left and the score is tied at 52.
- Hansbrough just picked up his 4th foul with 6:26 left on a stupid push-off under the basket trying to get a rebound. UNC has tinkered with a 4-guard offense to try and break down the Davidson frontcourt pressure. Davidson up 59-56.
- Ellington hits a huge three to bring UNC back even. Carolina is still trying to do too much one-on-one stuff on offense - no ball movement whatsoever.
- Davidson just missed an easy layup that would have put them up by 2. That is at least 5 layups and dunks that Davidson has blown. If they end up losing this game by a few points, look no further than the missed layups as a big reason.
- 3:44 to go, scored tied at 61. Hansbrough is still on the bench. How much longer will Coach Williams wait to put him back in? UNC is playing pretty well using the smaller lineup. The answer: 1 second - Hansbrough is back on the floor.
- Both teams are now in the double bonus, so this could easily turn into a foul shooting contest.
- UNC’s Lawson with a great body-control layup in the lane to put the Heels up by 3.
- Hansbrough with a nice dump pass out of a double team leads to an easy bucket. UNC by 3 with 2:03 to go.
- UNC up by 3 with one minute to go. Davidson’s Lovedale just put up an airball and they are forced to foul. Great defensive stop by UNC.
- Lawson hits two free throws with 30 seconds left to put UNC up by 5.
- Curry’s long range 3 is in-and-out with 14.5 seconds left. Quick bucket off an in-bounds play cuts the Tar Heel lead to 3 with 12.9 seconds left.
- Lawson fouled with 11.1 seconds on the clock - 68% foul shooter - bricks the first foul shot, sinks the second to push the lead to 4.
- Last second drive in the lane is swatted away with 1.4 seconds left. Game over.
Well, Roy Williams can’t be too happy with UNC’s performance tonight. They were too inconsistent on both ends of the floor, they failed to get into any kind of offensive flow and relied way too much on their athleticism and one-on-one moves.
UNC did not play like the #1 team in the nation, and I wouldn’t want be a part of the next few practices that Williams is going to run. I see a lot of windsprints in the Tar Heels future…
Tags: carolina, Davidson, North-Carolina, Roy-WIlliams, Stephen-Curry, Tyler-Hansbrough, UNCRelated Stories
POSTED IN: College Basketball News
2 opinions for Random thoughts - UNC vs. Davidson as it happens
94cat
Nov 15, 2007 at 1:36 am
How about a little credit for Davidson’s good play on defense that kept UNC out of their rhythm?
UNC didn’t play well, and there’s a reason for their bad play: Davidson.
Rich Carlson
Nov 15, 2007 at 8:18 pm
While Davidson did play good defense, at times, I wouldn’t say that it was the main cause for UNC’s poor play.
Over and over again, UNC would not get into their offense. There were numerous times, especially after timeouts, when UNC came out, passed the ball around, dumped the ball into Hansbrough, and ran a more organized set of plays. But then, they would start trying to go one on one again.
I would say UNC’s poor play was due to a lack of patience on their part, rather than anything that Davidson did to stop them on the defensive end.
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