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University of North Carolina Athletics
Lucas: Rapid Reactions
December 8, 2016 | Men's Basketball
By Adam Lucas
1. There will be some restlesness about an 83-74 home win over Davidson that got very tight at the end. But the Tar Heels also played without two starters, including inarguably their most indispensable player in Joel Berry, and Davidson is (as usual) a quality team. "I think we thought it was going to be easy," a disappointed Roy Williams said after the game. "In my opinion, we weren't ready to play."
2. In the end, even without two starters, Carolina still had too much depth for the Wildcats. Bench points were a startling 26-2, featuring a strong ten from Luke Maye.
3. Justin Jackson, though, was the offensive star, pouring in seven three-pointers and tying his career high with 27 points. Jackson took 19 shots, more than double anyone else on the roster, but none of them felt forced. His seven-of-13 performance from the arc was one short of the single-game UNC record. "Justin kept us in the game," Roy Williams said after the game.
4. Some very good minutes in the first half for the Tar Heel reserves. After a listless first four minutes from the starters, Roy Williams used a lineup of Seventh Woods, Stilman White, Brandon Robinson, Luke Maye and Tony Bradley for a roughly four-minute stretch. The subs took the Tar Heels from down 10-3 to leading 15-13 by the time they exited with 10:59 remaining in the half.
5. Two famous redheads at the game: Morehead Scholar/Tar Heel letterman Will Johnson, and Oscar-winning actress Julianne Moore (who has a Davidson connection and was on the front row in a Davidson hat).
6. Although they missed a couple late that made it a little closer than it could've been, Carolina went 27-for-34 from the free throw line for 79.4 percent.
7. The very weird delay at tipoff was caused by the remnants of one of the absorbent sponge-type pads the Smith Center maintenance crew uses to soak up leaks in the building. The disintegrated pieces might have been in the rafters for years, and could have been jarred loose during the spotlight introductions.
8. Not a great night for the UNC posts overall, as Davidson chose to double Kennedy Meeks virtually every time he got the ball, and Isaiah Hicks was limited by foul trouble. But both Meeks (diving on the floor to force a jump ball) and Hicks (pulling down an offensive rebound between two Wildcats) made big plays in the final two minutes, and both also sank a pair of free throws late.
9. Stilman White quietly had some very good--and essential--backup minutes at point guard. White played 15 minutes, made all six of his free throws, and and had an assist with zero turnovers.
"Stilman has done a great job running the scout team in practice," Williams said. "He gave us a big lift."
