Quick Hitters – UNC vs. NC State

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 85-79 home win over NC State on Tuesday night.

Condensed Game:

Highlights:

• Can’t underestimate the role the crowd played in the victory. How cool that a full (and loud) crowd will turn out for a 10-17 team to play a late game on a school night. Really grateful for the Carolina faithful. It felt really good for the Tar Heels to get a big win tonight against an in-state rival who is currently vying for an NCAA Tournament birth. Hopefully the Heels can build on this momentum!
• For a moment, this game had the makings of the same story line we’ve seen time after time in this 2019-20 season. Carolina held an 11-point lead with 8:00 remaining and still a 10-point lead with 5:00 to go. However, NC State cut the lead to three with 2:00 remaining. Unlike other experiences though, the Heels were able to make winning plays down the stretch, including going 7-for-8 from the foul line in the final 0:40.
• The most consequential stretch of the game came after NC State opened up a seven point lead with 14:45 left in the game. The Heels responded with a quick 9-0 spurt from 13:51-12:12. That run extended out to 22-4, giving Carolina a 67-56 lead with 8:33 to play.
• There was question about Garrison Brooks’ ability to play after the illness he had been suffering from and the eight pounds he lost as a result. It’s safe to say he did just fine. Following in the lineage of recent Pack-killers Marcus Paige and Luke Maye, Brooks dropped in 30 points and nine rebounds. If you’re keeping track at home, that 55 points against NC State this season.

• Brooks was also able to exorcise some free throw demons this evening. After going 0-for-7 and 0-for-5 from the line respectively against Boston College and Duke respectively, Brooks went 14-for-16 tonight including making six out of six in the final 0:41. The junior big man did his best Tyler Hansbrough impersonation by getting four separate and-ones (three of which he converted the free throw).
• Let’s not forget that NC State jumped out to a 10-0 lead while making their first four shots (13-2 extended). During that same stretch Carolina was busy turning the ball over five times in the first 3:30. The Heels eventually settled in and ran off a 9-0 over the course of two minutes from 15:40-13:45 to cut the deficit to 13-11.
• After the Wolfpack’s initial 10-0 lead, the Heels clawed back to take a 38-37 lead off a Garrison Brooks shot in the paint with 1:00 to go before halftime. After a sloppy sequence from both teams, a Leaky Black lay-up at the halftime buzzer made it 40-37 Heels at the half.
• NC State foul trouble in the first half contributed to Carolina’s ability to get back in the game. Three important Wolfpack players (Hellems, Bates, and Daniels) each picked up two fouls before halftime. While Carolina didn’t take advantage as much as they would have desired, they were able to grab the lead.
• Cole Anthony had an under-the-radar 19 points. This is a tell-tale sign of the freshman starting to settle in to the game, getting teammates involved, and then calling his own number when the time is right. He also did a great job in getting back on defense during a NC State fast break which allowed Christian Keeling to catch up and block the shot from behind.

• Speaking of Keeling, what a night for the grad transfer! Before the Louisville game, he had not hit multiple threes in a game this season and now he’s done so in back-to-back contests. Keeling poured in a total of 16 points and the 6’3” guard was second on the team in rebounds with seven.
• Keeling has now scored in double-digits in five of the past seven games (and he had nine in the two in which he didn’t hit double-digits). He’s averaging 12.4 points per game over that seven game stretch. It’s been really fun to watch Keeling find his offensive stride in the latter part of the season; you just wish it could be for a more successful team in terms of wins and losses.
• Armando Bacot was curiously ineffective tonight against the Wolfpack, despite having registered a double-double against them in the first meeting in Raleigh. The freshman only played 13:26 total, and just 5:36 in the second half. Bacot picked up his second foul with 10:54 remaining in the first half and never really seemed to find his stride after that.
• The victory loss kept Carolina from tying the 1950-51 team for the longest losing streak in program history.
• It’s worth noting that both teams were sloppy with the ball early. They combined for 12 turnovers in the first seven minutes.
• Carolina did all of this tonight while shooting just 3-for-16 from three.
• One of the big factors was offensive rebounding (surprise, surprise). Carolina hauled in nearly double what State did (13-7) and held a similar edge in resulting second-chance points (13-6).
• Carolina scored 80 points for just the fifth time all season. Interestingly, it was only the second win in those five games (Miami being the other occurrence).
• Justin Pierce didn’t have an overly impactful game in the scoring column but he did snag four offensive rebounds, got three steals, and had two assists. It felt like both he and Keeling were all over the court. It showed in the final tally. Carolina was +25 with Pierce on the floor and +24 with Keeling on the floor.

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a road game against Syracuse on Saturday, February 29. Tip is at 4:00pm ET on ESPN.

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Email: tarheelhoopsblog@gmail.com

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Quick Hitters: UNC @ Louisville

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 72-54 road loss to Louisville on Saturday afternoon.

Condensed Game:

Highlights:

• With 4:09 remaining in the first half, Cole Anthony made two free throws (the first free throws of the game for either team) to bring Carolina within four (25-21). Louisville outscored Carolina 11-2 over the remaining four minutes before halftime and 11-0 in the first five-and-a-half minutes of the second half. That 22-2 run essentially ended the game and the Heels would get no closer than 14 points.
• At one point in that 22-2 run, Carolina missed 11 straight shots (last two shots of the first half, first nine shots of second half.
• Carolina knew they would be short-handed in the front court before the game even started, with both Garrison Brooks (illness) and Justin Pierce (ankle) out. With apologies to senior Brandon Robinson and star Cole Anthony, Brooks is the heart and soul of this team and his absence leaves a huge hole.
• With Brooks out, the starting five were Cole Anthony, Christian Keeling, Brandon Robinson, Leaky Black, and Armando Bacot. That quintet had literally not shared a single second of court time prior to today. This was the ninth different starting line-up the Tar Heels have used this year, the most of the Roy Williams era.
• By the time the first media timeout occurred, neither team had attempted a two-point shot. At that point both teams were 1-for-4, all from the three-point line.
• For the second time this season, only one Tar Heel (Cole Anthony – 18) scored in double-digits. The other instance was against Ohio State when Cole Anthony was also the only double-digit scorer.
• For three straight games, Cole Anthony has shot 7-for-16 from the field. He has shot under 50 percent in every game this season, other than one, the first game of the season against Notre Dame when he shot exactly 50 percent (12-for-24).
• Staying with Cole Anthony, part of the reason for his low field goal percentage is shot selection. He seems to have two or three head-scratchers per game. He will certainly grow in this area as his game continues to evolve and mature.
• Just two Tar Heels had more assists than turnovers. One was Brandon Robinson, with three assists and two turnovers. The other was KJ Smith who had one assist and no turnovers in mop-up duty.
• Carolina assisted on fewer than 50 percent of their made baskets (10 assists on 21 buckets) and had nearly double as many turnovers as assists (17 to 10).
• Carolina’s side of the court appeared to have issues with moisture in the first half. Four different Tar Heels slipped in the first 20 minutes.
• With Brooks and Pierce out, both Walker Miller (8:16) and Brandon Huffman (3:57) saw more playing time than they ordinarily do.
• It was encouraging to see Andrew Platek hit a couple three-pointers and have a solid all-around shooting day (3-for-5 FG, 2-for-3 3FG, 1-for-1 FT).
• Carolina played three possessions of zone late in the first half. The results were a wide-open lay-up, a three-pointer, and a dunk. Needless to say the zone didn’t come back out in the second half.
• The Tar Heels bungled multiple fast break opportunities today. Not enough that it would have changed the outcome of the game, but would have perhaps put game pressure on Louisville.
• In a season where the walk-ons haven’t received as much playing time as they normally would, it was encouraging to see them get a couple minutes including a great pass from KJ Smith to a cutting Caleb Ellis for a lay-up.

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a home game against NC State on Tuesday, February 25. Tip is at 9:00pm ET on ESPN.

https://twitter.com/tarheelhoopblog/status/1231353901183619072

Twitter: tarheelhoopblog
Twitter: isaacschade
Email: tarheelhoopsblog@gmail.com

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Quick Hitters – UNC @ Notre Dame

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 77-76 road loss to Notre Dame on Monday night.

Condensed Game:

Highlights:

• Déjà vu? Nope. Groundhog day? Nope. Time travel? Nope. We really do keep witnessing the same miserable ending over and over again. Yes, most of the blame is on the Tar Heels for their play down the stretch in these losses, but how can you help but feel awful for these young men?

North Carolina opponents this season have made a FG or FT to tie or take the lead with…

3 seconds left
13 seconds left
27 seconds left
23 seconds left
1 second left
17 seconds left
As time expired
As time expired
1 second left
2 seconds left

— Bryan Ives (@awaytoworthy) February 18, 2020

• This was a game of runs. The Heels missed eight shots in a row in the first half, allowing Notre Dame to take a nine-point lead. Thankfully Carolina was able to get the lead down to three at the half. Notre Dame scored the first bucket of the second half but Carolina went on a 13-0 run to take an eight-point lead (19-3 extended run). Notre Dame eventually went on their own 9-0 run to cut the lead to five. The Irish kept chipping at the lead, but never led until the final bucket with :02.4 to go.
• This was also one of those “Carolina-had-this-big-a-lead-with-this-much-time-left” games. The Heels held a 15-point lead with 8:15 remaining, a nine-point lead with 4:15 to go, and a four-point lead with the ball and just 66 seconds remaining. Another way to look at it: Carolina led from 16:35 of the second half until Notre Dame hit the kick-out three for a 77-76 lead.

So much UNC heartbreak in the past 10 days. pic.twitter.com/u7ctjO0uDt

— Bennett Conlin (@BennettConlin) February 18, 2020

• Carolina will look back and rue several things, including two failed defensive rebounds in the final 90 seconds which both directly led to Notre Dame points.
• Were the Tar Heels victim to another incorrectly adjudicated foul situation (for the third time in a late-game scenario)? Cole Anthony air-balled an ill-advised three with :21 left. Leaky Black nearly tracked down the offensive rebound, but was called out of bounds as he attempted to save the ball. Black’s right foot was clearly out-of-bounds, but only because he was quite clearly bumped by Notre Dame’s Nate Laszewski. If called, that would have been Laszewski’s fifth foul and he would not then have been able to hit the game winner (because he would have fouled out and because Leaky Black would have shot two free throws for a potential four-point lead). Here’s the play in question:

Cole Anthony's late-game decision-making leaves a lot to be desired. Really, really difficult shot. #UNC pic.twitter.com/EVt0rbXWYU

— Trevor William Marks (@twmarks_) February 18, 2020

• Much can and will always be said about Cole Anthony. He led all scorers tonight with 23, and despite some interesting decisions down the stretch posted his best assist-to-turnover ratio of the season at 6-to-1.
• It’s interesting that Carolina was on the brink of a victory despite Armando Bacot scoring just two points (the first Tar Heel bucket of the second half). The freshman reeled in a typical 10 rebounds, but will need to contribute more offensively.
• Leaky Black continues to put up productive, and diverse, stat lines. Tonight he recorded double-digit rebounds (10) for the first time in his career. He’s had at least one assist, block, and steal in five of the past six games. Black also contributed nine points tonight, including a no-hesitation three-pointer and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
• Garrison Brooks continues to be the most consistent performer on the year. He has back-to-back 20+ point games for the second time this season (22 tonight). Unfortunately, Brooks took exactly one shot (1!) over the final 8:30 of the game. The team has to find a way to continue getting shots for its best offensive players in crunch time. A very similar thing happened with Garrison Brooks during the stretch of the Duke game.
• Christian Keeling’s double-digit scoring streak stopped at four games, but he managed nine in this one including the first bucket of the game just five seconds in.
• The starting line-up was the same for the second game in a row with Christian Keeling taking the spot Andrew Platek had been occupying. However, Brandon Robinson was back tonight after missing four games. Robinson came off the bench to play 25:24. The starting five going forward will likely include two of Christian Keeling, Leaky Black, and Brandon Robinson.
• The Tar Heels got their turnover issues mostly in check tonight. They committed just four in the first half, but added eight in the second half (including several costly turnovers down the stretch). The team got back to having more assists (18) than turnovers (12), however Notre Dame committed just six.
• Carolina did their usual work on the backboards, routing Notre Dame 47-31, which included 18 offensive rebounds. These rebounds allowed the Heels to double up the Irish in second chance points, 16-8.
• Similar to the Wake Forest game, Carolina missed just two free throws, both of which came from Garrison Brooks late in the first half. That also means that Carolina made every free throw they shot in the second half, including both ends of 1-and-1 on two separate occasions.
• Curiously, Andrew Platek only played 4:32. That’s quite the fall for a player who was starting as recently as two games ago.

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a road game against Louisville on Saturday, February 22. Tip is at 4:00pm ET on ESPN or ESPN2.

https://twitter.com/tarheelhoopblog/status/1229633010527604736

Twitter: tarheelhoopblog
Twitter: isaacschade
Email: tarheelhoopsblog@gmail.com

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Quick Hitters – UNC vs. Louisville (ACC Quarterfinal)

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 83-70 win over Louisville on Thursday evening in the ACC Quarterfinals.

Highlights:

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Hard to believe that this is the same team as the one that got blown out by Louisville just over two months ago in the Dean Dome. Since that game, Carolina has won 15 of 16 (including two against the Cardinals). Safe to say that embarrassment and the ensuing look in the mirror was the turning point in the season for the Tar Heels.

 

 

 

 

Pat’s Stats @patjames24 #CarolinaSZN pic.twitter.com/g5KxPNK94C

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) March 15, 2019

• Louisville is always long, pesky, and athletic. So to get another convincing win over them, especially in a tournament scenario, is a big deal. This was the win the Tar Heels had to have in order to lock-up at least a two seed in the NCAA Tournament (which might have already been locked up) and keep the path open for a one seed. A win over Duke tomorrow all but assures the Heels of a one seed. A loss to Duke doesn’t necessarily lose the one seed, but it does mean that the Heels will have to see what other teams do in their conference tournaments.
• Tomorrow’s semifinals will be the first time in history that three teams in the AP top five are all playing in a conference tournament semifinals. The ACC semifinals will probably be better than the Final Four.

 

 

 

 

 

Friday night will be the first conference tournament EVER to feature three top-5 teams in the semifinals.

Buckle up.

— Bryan Ives (@awaytoworthy) March 15, 2019

• Rebounding was an important factor in the first two match-ups, with Louisville winning Round One 40-31 and Carolina winning Round Two 49-32. Louisville’s Coach Mack stressed the importance to his team about keeping Carolina off the glass. To no avail. The Heels held a 44-35 rebounding advantage at the end of the night.
• Coach Mack had also cautioned his team about keeping Carolina out of transition. I’m not sure how to put this kindly, but, um, they didn’t do that. The Heels scored 10 fast break points in first 7:30 of the game and finished with 34 total fast break points.
• Coby White really struggled in the first two Louisville games. He shot a combined 3-for-18, including 0-for-9 on threes and scored 12 total points. Tonight he had triple-double-like numbers, finishing with 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists, with just one turnover. After multiple turnovers in each of the first 16 ACC games, White has finished with zero or one in the last two regular season games and the ACC Quarterfinals. In those three games he has a 6:1 assist to turnover ratio. He also had a ridiculous move and and-1 with 17:05 left in the game:

 

 

• While Leaky Black was back in uniform, he didn’t see the court. Sterling Manley, however, got a little playing time in the second half with the game very much still in question. With Garrison Brooks saddled with four fouls, Manley came in with 9:24 to go to spell Luke Maye leading up to the under-8:00 media timeout. Manley got a dunk and tipped away a post entry pass in his 90 seconds on the court.
• 10 players played. Nine of them scored. Eight of them grabbed a rebound. Seven of them had an assist.
• The Heels didn’t shoot the lights out from deep, but after a combined 9-for-46 (19.6 percent) in the first two games, a 7-for-20 (35 percent) clip was much improved. Especially because three of those made threes were bonus production from Nassir Little (one) and Brandon Robinson (two). Both players filled up the stat sheet well in other ways as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Carolina only turned the ball over nine times, just one of which came from the point guard position.
• There’s always a tension in the ACC Tournament of playing for NCAA Tournament seeding while also staying healthy and not exhausting the team. Recall the John Henson injury in 2012. Last year’s team seemed to have an NCAA Tournament hangover after beating Duke in the ACC Tournament semifinals. Yet in 2017, Carolina lost to Duke in the semifinals and went on to win the National Championship. So how was the health tonight? Garrison Brooks fell and hurt his elbow early, but came back in and seemed to be okay. He had a couple nice moves inside and finished with 11 points. Kenny Williams took his usual bumps and bruises, including injuring his right shoulder and appearing to get poked in the eye.
• Speaking of Kenny Williams, how did he follow up his Senior Night performance against Duke? He had a rough shooting night and finished with four points. However, as previously mentioned he held Jordan Nwora to just seven points and, as per normal, was all over the court causing havoc.
• Curiously, the Heels picked up several fouls on screening violations (at least four by my count). There were some curious calls throughout the game, such as an NBA-style continuation bucket in Louisville’s favor. There were also some no-calls that probably should have been whistled.
• Cam Johnson started off hot, scoring 10 of Carolina’s first 16 on 4-for-4 shooting. He finished the half with 14 points, shooting 6-for-8. Interestingly, he didn’t score a single point in the second half.
• It was an interesting night at the free throw line. The Heels hit their first 13 before missing five of the next six. Brooks made a pair in the closing minutes for the team to finish 16-for-21.
• Several offensive runs helped Carolina’s cause. In the four-minute stretch from 16:36-12:34 of the first half the Heels were 9-for-10 on field goals and went from two points to 23. If you’re keeping score at home that’s 21 points in four minutes. Later in the first half, Louisville decided to play and cut 13-point Carolina lead to one in just two minutes. However, the Heels pushed the lead back to 10 over the final 5:30 leading to halftime. Finally, with Louisville hanging around and the lead down to seven late in the second half, Carolina went on an 11-0 run to push the lead out to 18 (79-61; predicated on the defensive end), which all but iced the game.
• Johnson has now made 85 threes on the season. One more will get him into the top 10 in a single season, tied with Marcus Paige and Shammond Williams for tenth.
• If Luke Maye pulls down one rebound tomorrow against Duke, he will have 900 for his career. The 12th Tar Heel to do so.

 

Round 3️⃣!!#CarolinaSZN pic.twitter.com/zHR32K97dq

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) March 15, 2019

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

 

 

 

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is the ACC Semifinals against Duke on Friday. Tip is approximately 9:00ET on ESPN (following Virginia/ Florida State).

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Quick Hitters – UNC vs. Duke

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 79-70 home win over Duke on Saturday night.

Highlights:

• Let me start by both apologizing and bragging. This final regular season edition of Quick Hitters is coming to you late, but for good reason. I watched this Carolina/Duke rivalry game from the comfort of a hospital room because my daughter, Poppy Ann Schade, was born on Friday (International Woman’s Day). In her lifetime Carolina has won an ACC Championship, is undefeated, and has never lost to Duke. Maybe she’ll be a good luck charm for the Heels in March (and April?!).

Poppy Ann Schade
Born at 11:35 a.m.
March 8, 2019
7 lbs. 2 oz.
19 3/4 in.#littleladypoppy pic.twitter.com/BNcVkv6Vj9

— Isaac Schade (@isaacschade) March 9, 2019

https://twitter.com/isaacschade/status/1104780848606392320

• You probably won’t hear this on ESPN, but Carolina has now won three games in a row against Duke, four of the last five, and six of the last nine.
• Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, but the Heels have put themselves in great position for a one seed in the NCAA Tournament. Perhaps they now even have a shot at playing closer to home since a one seed would likely be at Duke’s expense. There are many story lines to unfold over the next week before the brackets are revealed next Sunday.
• The winner of the second Carolina/Duke game of the season has gone deeper in the NCAA Tournament 11 of the past 12 years. Furthermore, 11 of those 12 teams have made it to the Elite 8 or better (2014 is the lone exception in both cases). Will the same be true this year? Let’s hope so.
• Virginia’s victory over Carolina earlier in the season ultimately came back to bite the Heels. Virginia’s victory over Louisville just prior to the Carolina/Duke game gave the Cavs at least a share of the conference title, but assured them of the one seed in the ACC Tournament. As we know, the Heels tied the Cavs for the ACC regular season championship, but received the two seed because of the head-to-head loss.
• There are so many plays and players to talk about. Let’s start with the seniors. First up: Kenny Williams. It has been well documented that Williams has struggled with his three-point shot this season. A career 36.8 percent three-point shooter, he was shooting just 28.2 percent and was 0-for-his-last-15 heading into the Boston College game. On senior night, Williams connected on four threes (a season high) and has gone 6-for-12 in the past two games.
• Against Duke, Williams was second on the team in scoring with 18 points, grabbed six rebounds, had three assists, one block and one steal. That would be a complete stat line for most people, but as we are all aware, there’s more from Kenny Williams. He drew four (FOUR!!) charges in the game; three of which were against Duke’s leading scorer, RJ Barrett. He also played his usual strong man-to-man defense including forcing Cam Reddish into an off-balance contested three-pointer just before half time. What a time for Kenny Williams to have his best game of his senior season.

https://twitter.com/dadgumboxscores/status/1104577101276082178

• The other two seniors, Luke Maye and Cam Johnson didn’t fare very well in the first half. They combined to shoot 3-for-11 and both picked up two fouls, although they did combine for 10 rebounds. The second half, however, started off with the seniors scoring 12 straight points for Carolina to turn a 40-38 halftime deficit into a 55-44 lead. Johnson finished with a double-double (14 pts / 10 reb). He now has double-doubles in back-to-back games for the first time, three in the last five games and five total on the season (all in ACC play). While Maye didn’t get a double-double, he did come within shouting distance of a triple-double, finishing with seven points, 16 rebounds, and a career-high seven assists.
• Luke Maye now has 890 rebounds in has career. 10 more rebounds will make him just the 12^th Tar Heel to reach the 900 milestone. Maye has averaged 18 rebounds over the last two games. For context, that’s the exact same number as Sean May in 2005.

Some context for Luke Maye's rebounding the last two games of the regular season: Remember Sean May's otherworldly rebounding to end the 2005 regular season?

Sean May (2005) – 18 rpg (12 vs. FSU, 24 vs. Duke)
Luke Maye (2019) – 18 rpg (20 vs. BC, 16 vs. Duke)

— Isaac Schade (@isaacschade) March 10, 2019

• One more note on the seniors: Typically, senior night features a walk-on or two in the starting line-up. However, the only three graduates on this years’ roster are already in the starting line-up so the typical five started the game.
• You’ll recall that Coby White struggled in round one against Duke (nine points on 3-for-14 shooting, 1-for-6 from deep, six turnovers). Not tonight. This time around White had 21 points, four threes, three assists, three blocks, and zero turnovers. Here are some of the special accomplishments White achieved tonight: This was the first time all season he didn’t have a turnover (coming on the heels of his first non-multiple turnover ACC game). He set the Carolina freshman record for made three-pointers in a season (75), passing Rashad McCants’ 72 in 2002-03. During one stretch in the second half, White scored nine straight for Carolina. In the first half, he also had one of the more impressive drives to the basket you will ever see.

F L A S H Y

Coby White showing off the handles! 👀 @UNC_Basketball pic.twitter.com/rDKsjyAat4

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 9, 2019

Under-the-radar stat:

Tonight was the first game in Coby White's (@whitecoby2) @UNC_Basketball career that he finished with 0 turnovers.

— Isaac Schade (@isaacschade) March 10, 2019

• Midway through the second half Carolina went on an 11-0 run to grab a 75-60 lead in a game that neither team had previously lead by more than six points. However over the next six minutes, Carolina missed nine straight shots (six of which were threes) and turned the ball over twice, allowing Duke to cut the lead to 75-70.

Carolina's 11-0 run in 2:25 of game time was the knockout

Carolina catapulted its four-point lead to a 15-point lead

How did they do it?

Defense and offensive rebounds

6 offensive boards, multiple stops via charges, steals, and overall solid positioning

Video evidence pic.twitter.com/Bi46QGAbOz

— chris (@dadgumboxscores) March 10, 2019

• It would not be a surprise to hear that blocks played a factor, because Duke is the leading shot blocking team in the country. However, it was Carolina blocks that were the story. The Heels finished with eight (tying a season high). With the Heels mired in the aforementioned scoring drought, they recorded three blocks over the final 3:38 to help preserve the lead (one each from Brooks, Maye, and Williams).
• Garrison Brooks really struggled at the line. He hit just 2-for-8 in the first 39 minutes. But then with the game on the line and Duke fouling in the final minute to extend the game, Brooks collected himself and hit both ends of a 1-and-1 to score the Heels’ final two points of the game. Coach Williams showed great confidence in the sophomore big man to leave him in even when he knew Duke was fouling. Cam Johnson also hit both ends of a 1-and-1 just 16 seconds before Brooks.

• Duke’s worst two field goal percentages of the season happened on Wednesday, February 20 and Saturday, March 9. Also known as the two times they played the University of North Carolina.
• Good defensive effort from Andrew Platek to save possession and call a timeout with 7:12 left in first half. You just worry about the health and well-being of anyone who dares to use one of Coach Williams’ timeouts in the first half!
• Zion Williamson once again didn’t play for Duke. Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, Marques Bolden also hurt his knee 2:30 into the game trying to block a Garrison Brooks dunk. Javin DeLaurier filled in admirably, scoring eight points on 4-for-4 shooting, while grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking four shots in 28 minutes. Thoughts go out to Bolden who, at this time, is reported as having a sprained MCL.
• Carolina wasn’t as able to take as much advantage of Williamson’s absence this time around. The Heels led points in the paint 32 to 30. The rebounding numbers were tied at 48, however the Heels outscored the Blue Devils 22-11 on second chance points. In fact, second-chance points were responsible for Carolina’s first five points.
• The bigger difference was outside the paint, where Carolina hit 12 threes, after connecting on just two in round one. In fact, the Heels had already surpassed those two just three-and-a-half minutes into the game.
• You always worry about some under-the-radar player going off for Duke – in this case someone like Alex O’Connell, Jack White, or Jordan Goldwire. Carolina held those three players to four points on 1-for-10 shooting and no made threes.
• Nassir Little scored all nine of his points in the first half. His scoring and athleticism, combined with Kenny Williams’ team-leading 12 first half points, buoyed the Tar Heels while waiting on the top three scorers (Johnson, White, Maye) to find their touch.

Nassir Little gave solid minutes in the 1st half

All nine of his points came in the first frame

Made one of his 12 three-point shots this season during this stretch

Roll the 📹 pic.twitter.com/hjPjrKzwVU

— chris (@dadgumboxscores) March 10, 2019

• This is that weird part of the season where the Tar Heels could play as many as nine more games or as few as two. Enjoy. Every. Moment.

How are you guys feeling today?! 🤙#CarolinaSZN pic.twitter.com/rlHxq3p65x

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) March 10, 2019

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Senior Night Speeches:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is the ACC Tournament. The Heels have a 1^st & 2^nd round bye and will start play on Thursday in the Quarterfinals against either Louisville, Georgia Tech, or Notre Dame. Tip is at 7:00ET on ESPN.

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Quick Hitters – UNC vs. Florida State

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 77-59 home win over Florida State on Saturday afternoon.

Highlights:

• Hangover from Duke game? Nah. If anything, the Heels were even more focused. Perhaps they were desperate to prove that Wednesday’s result wasn’t just some aberration due to Zion Williamson’s absence. Besides, in the Roy Williams era, Carolina has never (NEVER) lost the game after the first Duke game. After today’s win the Heels are now 16-0 in those games. So what was there to worry about?
• It might not seem like it to casual fans, but given the circumstances, this might have been the biggest win of the season. Carolina is coming off the emotions of the Duke game. FSU was on an 8 game winning streak. The stakes were high given the ACC standings and the need to keep pace with Virginia and Duke, while keeping Florida State, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Louisville at bay.
• This is back-to-back Saturdays in which Cam Johnson had a big game coming off an ankle injury. Last week he dropped 27 on Wake Forest, including seven made threes. Today he got his second double-double of the year with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
• By the way, is there a more underrated player in the country than Cameron Johnson? Is it because of the legend of Luke Maye? Or perhaps the hype given to freshmen Coby White and Nassir Little? Hopefully Johnson will begin to get the national attention he deserves based on the year he’s having.

• Staying with the theme of working back from ankle injuries, Nassir Little has appeared to still be hampered by his even though he has been playing. Today, however, was a different story. Little attacked from the second he got on the court and wound up making more free throws than anyone else in the game attempted. In fact, Little had two monstrous dunks. One came in the first half when he drove and dunked over one of the Seminole behemoths inside. The other was on a put-back when nobody bothered to box out the most athletic man on the court. Little finished tied with Johnson for a game-high 18 points. Here’s both dunks:

• Those 18 points, along with production from the rest of the bench were hugely important against a deep Florida State team. You think Roy Williams plays a lot of people? Leonard Hamilton plays a lot of people. Nine Seminoles made it to double-digits in minutes. And although the Seminoles led the bench scoring category, as expected, Carolina kept it to a respectable 33-24.
• Against Florida State, Carolina often struggles with length and athleticism. And yet today Carolina dominated the interior numbers. After what many considered to be an aberration on Wednesday night due to the Zion Williamson absence, the Heels proved they score in the paint with anyone by leading that category 28-12 over the Seminoles. Additionally, thanks to a strong gang rebounding effort, the Heels topped that category 47-32 (including a 13-6 lead in offensive rebounds).
• Florida State makes a habit of living at the free throw line. A big question coming into the game was, “Can Carolina stay out of foul trouble and keep the Noles off the line?” By way of answer, the Heels made 18 free throws and FSU attempted 16. Sooooo….”yes”.
• The three point shooting got off to another sluggish start. Carolina hit two of 11 in the first half, but finished a respectable 7-for-20. Early in the season, the Heels really struggled to win games where they didn’t shoot well. This week they beat the number one and 16 teams in the country while shooting a combined 9-for-40 from three. Good for the Tar Heels. Bad for the rest of the country.
• After these most recent two wins, the Heels are 7-3 against ranked teams this season. Importantly, after a 2-2 start in those games, Carolina has won five of the last six.

Death taxes and Roy Williams teams playing their best basketball toward the final stretch of #ACC play.

— Jman (@jhardy252) February 23, 2019

• Coby White played a sluggish first half but came out and scored six of his 10 points early in the second half to help push the three-point halftime lead out.
• Thanks to the results of Saturday’s other games, the top three ACC teams (Carolina, Virginia and Duke) are each 12-2 and hold a three game lead over the next closest teams in the standings. Additionally, if Carolina beats Syracuse on Tuesday, they’ll have locked up no worse than the third seed and a double bye in the ACC Tournament.
• Thanks to yet another strong defensive showing, Carolina’s defensive efficiency is now catching up to the offense. The Heels are just one of five teams nationally in the top ten of both offensive and defensive efficiency in KenPom. They are seventh in offense and tenth in defense. The other four teams are Virginia, Duke, Michigan State and Kentucky.

North Carolina's defense was spectacular this week.

It forced Duke into 20 turnovers, the most by the Blue Devils in 8 years.

It held Florida State to 31% shooting, the worst by the Seminoles in 2 years.

— Bryan Ives (@awaytoworthy) February 23, 2019

• Garrison Brooks continues to grow in his discipline as a player. In other games this season, two first half fouls would have completely taken him out of his game. Today he didn’t commit any other fouls and in fact was responsible for drawing the third fouls on both Seminole big men in the second half.
• Brandon Robinson didn’t have a huge statistical game, but he did have an important stretch midway through the first half. He also snatched a BIG TIME rebound away from 7’4” Christ Koumadje a couple minutes later in the first half.
• Florida State hit a three with 10:36 remaining to cut the lead to four. This was as close as the game had been since just after halftime. Over the course of the next 90 seconds Carolina went on an 8-0 run, which included two Luke Maye threes. The run extended out to 16-1 and Florida State didn’t hit another field goal until 1:57 remained in the game.

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a home game against Syracuse on Tuesday, February 26. Tip is at 9:00ET on Raycom and WatchESPN.

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Quick Hitters – UNC @ Duke

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 88-72 road win over Duke on Wednesday night.

Highlights:

• How absolutely sublime that in a year when all anyone can talk about is Duke’s freshmen, it was Carolina’s senior leadership that won this game. Luke Maye finished with 30 points (his first 20-point game against Duke), 15 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two turnovers. Cameron Johnson had 26 points, seven rebounds, four assists, one steal and zero turnovers. And while Kenny Williams didn’t have the scoring numbers, he drew three charges, had five rebounds, four assists, one steal and zero turnovers. Maye has scored 20+ in four of the last six games, while Johnson has 27 and 26 points in the last two.

• While the seniors had really strong games, the freshmen unfortunately struggled. Coby White finished with six turnovers and nine points, but on 3-for-14 shooting. He did corral five rebounds, dish out three assists and have two blocks. Nassir Little was essentially a non-factor and Leaky Black is still in street clothes.
• With the freshmen struggling, it was up to the juniors and sophomores to help out. With White struggling, Seventh Woods provided 12 strong minutes. He scored five points, drew a charge, passed out three assists and had two steals. One of those steals led to the vicious Garrison Brooks dunk right before halftime. Speaking of Brooks, he was the other unexpected scoring contributor – 14 points on 6-for-7 shooting to go along with eight rebounds and two steals.

• The aforementioned Brooks dunk right before halftime was part of the most important sequence of the game. With 1:30 remaining before halftime, Duke cut the Carolina lead to five. Over the next 90 seconds, the Heels went on a 5-0 run to rebuild a double-digit lead. On two occasions early in the second half, Duke cut the lead back to nine, but the Heels led by double-digits for the remaining 18 minutes of the game. A week after Duke’s impressive comeback against Louisville, Carolina knew they had to keep playing. Every time Duke made a push, the Heels responded right back.
• If you told me before the game that Carolina was going to shoot 2-for-20 from three and that Coby White was going to shoot 3-for-14 and have six turnovers, I would have thought there was no way Carolina wins. This team has been so dependent upon the outside shot this year.
• Carolina wasn’t the only team to struggle from deep. The two teams combined to shoot 3-for-34 from three in the first half. Duke wound up shooting 8-for-39 for the game.
• Part of the reason Carolina was able to overcome those shooting woes was their points in the paint. The Heels scored 30 of their first 32 points in the paint (12 of which were second chance buckets). Duke allows 30.0 points in the paint per game this season. Carolina more than doubled that number, finishing with a whopping 62.
• And part of the reason Carolina was able to get those inside points was a knee injury to Zion Williamson less than a minute into the game. It’s unfortunate for the young man, who is a transcendent athlete. Hopefully he’ll be okay. It was obvious (with apologies to Tre Jones) that Williamson is the one who sets the defensive tone for Duke. Without him, the Blue Devils are extremely vulnerable defensively; particularly in the paint. The Williamson-less Blue Devils we saw tonight reminded me more of last year’s poor defensive team than the unit I’ve seen this year in Durham.

• An important factor in Williamson’s absence was the freedom it allowed Luke Maye. Maye, who would have had a much more difficult time navigating Williamson’s defense, quickly scored six points against the replacement (Jack White) and was then off and running to a 30-point game.
• Duke fans will say the injury cost Duke the game (and it certainly had a great impact), but the same could be said for Carolina’s game against Virginia last week. A game in which Carolina came much closer to winning than Duke did tonight. Even without Zion, Duke still has three of the top 10 freshmen (and two of the presumptive top-five NBA Draft picks) in the country. Plus, the game was played at Cameron (a.k.a. Hansbrough) Indoor Stadium.
• It’s so vitally important to get off to a good start on the road (see Carolina’s 18-0 opening against Wake on Saturday). The Tar Heels jumped on top early, never trailed and built a double-digit lead seven-and-a-half minutes into the game.
• 160 total points were scored in the game. Only 44 of those points (27.5 percent) were scored by someone not named Luke Maye, Cam Johnson, RJ Barrett or Cam Reddish.
• Carolina is now 7-0 in the ACC in road games. The remaining two are at Clemson and at Boston College. Only one team has ever gone 9-0 on the road in ACC play – Virginia in 2017-18.
• This was the 11^th time in the Roy Williams / Mike Krzyzewski era that Carolina and Duke have met as top-10 opponents. After tonight’s win, Carolina now holds a 6-5 advantage in those games.

Our Locker Room >>>>>>#CarolinaSZN #BeatDuke pic.twitter.com/S9I2fteYTz

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 21, 2019

• With the win (and given the tiebreaker over NC State), Carolina is now guaranteed no worse than the seventh seed in the ACC Tournament, including a first round bye.
• The Heels are tied for first in the ACC with Virginia and Duke. Carolina’s next two games are against Florida State and Syracuse, the teams tied for fourth (and two games back in the loss column). The results of those two games will go a long way to determining who winds up with the top four seeds in the ACC Tournament (which comes with a first and second round bye). Carolina has the scheduling advantage of playing both these games in the Dean Dome.
• Carolina now has victories over two of the four current projected number one seeds (Duke and Gonzaga) and came a few plays away from a third (Virginia). Duke has two wins over Virginia, but, outside of that, the Tar Heels arguably own the best pair of wins in the country.
• Something to keep your eye on: Cam Johnson can’t seem to catch a break on the nagging injury front. This was the third game he’s missed part of because of an injury. Tonight he hurt his left ankle when stepping on a photographer four minutes into the second half. He came back in a couple minutes later and promptly hit a mid-range shot and later drew a charge. However, he appeared to re-tweak the ankle in the last minute of the game. Hopefully Cam will be okay for the quick turnaround against Florida State on Saturday.
• Many celebrities were on hand for the game. Most notably was President Obama. Others included Spike Lee, Todd Gurley, Greg Olsen and Ken Griffey Jr.

Obama is probably the real reason Duke-UNC tickets were selling for 2k pic.twitter.com/oFVBtyRa6b

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 21, 2019

 

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a home game against Florida State on Saturday, February 23. Tip is at 3:45ET on CBS.

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Quick Hitters – UNC vs. Miami

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 88-85 home win over Miami on Saturday afternoon.

Highlights:

 

• Hard to believe, but 9-1 is Carolina’s best ACC start under Roy Williams. This is the best start for the Heels since the 2000-01 team lead by Brendan Haywood and Joseph Forte started 11-0.
• The end of regulation felt very similar to last year’s home loss to Miami. A Tar Heel senior hit a game-tying three pointer in the closing seconds. The difference is that last year Miami hit a miraculous shot to win, while they missed the game-winner this year and the game went on to overtime.
• Roy Williams made a brilliant play call for Luke Maye’s game-tying three. Coby White had been so hot that both Miami players went with him off the Maye screen. White made the mature decision to throw the ball to a wide open Maye who tied the game. Here’s the shot:

Luke's not 🆕 to this! #CarolinaSZN pic.twitter.com/OGeQOphiwy

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 9, 2019

• With just over 7:00 remaining in the game Miami held a seven-point lead (61-54). Then Coby White happened. Over the final 7:03 of the second half, he shot 5-for-5 from three and assisted Luke Maye on the game-tying three with 0:12 left in regulation. He then went on to assist or score on seven of Carolina’s 11 points in overtime. For the game, White tied his career-high of 33 points (11-16 FG, 7-10 3FG) and had six assists, three rebounds, two steals and a block. Here’s a glimpse of White’s day:

• Carolina had just 10 turnovers today. Four of those 10 were in the first 5:30 of the game. Three of those four were credited to Coby White, but he didn’t turn the ball over the rest of the game.
• Of all the unusual stats today, Miami out-rebounded Carolina 39-32. Only twice previously this season was Carolina out-rebounded. The first two were the losses to Kentucky and Louisville.
• The first half was a string of runs. Carolina had three separate runs of 7-0. Miami mixed in their own run of 9-0.
• It was a quiet offensive game for Kenny Williams, who finished with just five points on two made baskets. However, each of the five were important. His first bucket came off a steal and fast break layup. The second bucket was a three pointer in overtime, which gave the Heels their first lead of the extra period. Williams also added his usual defensive impact including a block, two steals, and a drawn charge.
• Once again, Brandon Huffman scored a first half bucket and played solid defense on a post entry pass in the final minutes of the first half.
• Carolina had a great sequence in the last minute of the first half. Cam Johnson knocked the ball away on defense. The ball wound up in Nassir Little’s hands who threw ahead to Johnson. Johnson found a slashing Luke Maye for a dunk in traffic with an and-one tacked onto the back end. Here’s the play:

• Speaking of Luke Maye free throws, he had hit 15 in a row before missing two with 11:01 left in the second half.
• Carolina started off shooting lights out in the second half. They hit their first six shots, including two threes and two completed and-ones. The problem is that Miami was also shooting really well. After missing their first two shots, they hit seven of their next eight (plus two free throws). On the back end of the Hurricane’s hot shooting, they went on a 13-0 run to take control of the game. They wouldn’t relinquish that lead until the teams traded blows in the final 3:30.
• Here’s an example of the hot shooting for both teams in the final 25 minutes of game time. Miami shot a blistering 12-for-20 (60 percent) from three in the second half and overtime. However, Carolina shot an even better percentage, knocking in 10 of 15 (67 percent) during that same portion of the game.
• Not sure why Miami waited so long to foul at the end of overtime. After a made three with 28 seconds left, they were down by a point and had to foul or Carolina could just run out the clock. Finally, with 12 seconds remaining they fouled. And with all that time to foul whomever they wanted, they fouled Cam Johnson. Advantage Tar Heels.
• It was important that Miami wasn’t in the bonus at the end of OT when Carolina held a three-point lead. Rather than just giving the fouls, the Tar Heels aggressively went for steals and Miami never got a shot off. Curiously, Miami elected not to foul Carolina at the end of regulation, and Maye was able to tie the game.

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

 

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a home game against Virginia on Monday, February 11. Tip is at 7:00ET on ESPN.

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Quick Hitters – UNC @ Louisville

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 79-69 road win on Saturday afternoon over Louisville.

Highlights:

• What a huge win for Carolina. In addition to the revenge factor, the victory allows the Heels to keep pace with Duke and Virginia atop the ACC standings.
• Just eight games into conference play Carolina has already secured a winning road record in ACC games, by achieving a 5-0 start. With five of the first eight conference games being on the road, this also means that six of the remaining 10 are at home.
• In the previous match-up in Chapel Hill, the Heels played uninspired and uninterested. That was not the case today as the boys in baby blue were the aggressors from tip to final horn. This was most evident on the defensive end of the court. For example, Steven Enoch, who abused Carolina inside in the first game for 17 points and 11 rebounds, finished with zero points on 0-1 shooting and four rebounds.
• The 10 turnovers today tied for the second-fewest committed by Carolina all season. No single player had more than two. Most importantly, Coby White had four assists against two turnovers, while Seventh Woods also had four assists and zero turnovers. Coach Williams will be pleased with an 8:2 assist-to-turnover ratio from his two primary ballhandlers.
• There will be games where the freshmen dominate the headlines. Then there will be games like today when the seniors combined for 49 of the team’s 79 points.
• Louisville outrebounded Carolina in the first game (40-31). Not today. The Heels went from the -9 of the first game to +17 today (49-32). In fact, the Cardinals didn’t corral a single offensive rebound until after halftime. On the other hand Carolina tied their second-highest offensive rebound output of the season with 18.

Box score/factors: https://t.co/BTL4PG6Htk

Lowest turnover rate (14.3) in ACC play, plus rebounding 41.9% of missed shots is a good recipe for another road win

18-3 advantage in 2nd chance points

Watch some video evidence of 2nd chance points pic.twitter.com/HoqUEJGkVL

— chris (@dadgumboxscores) February 2, 2019

• Nine players saw time on the court for Carolina. Nine players scored. Nine players recorded a rebound. Seven players recorded an assist.
• Luke Maye finished the Georgia Tech game with a meager four points. He responded today with 20 points and 11 rebounds. It wasn’t a great shooting day (7-for-18), but what a great response from the senior. Here’s Maye talking about the game:

• Louisville typically makes a living at the line. Today, they only took nine free throws. So not only were the Tar Heels the aggressors, but they did so without fouling. Meanwhile, Carolina made more free throws (15), than the nine that Louisville took.
• Louisville made push after push in the second half to try and get back in the game. Carolina had an answer every time. Kenny Williams, in particular, had two important threes in these situations. Williams also had a monster defensive rebound in the first half which resulted in a Cam Johnson three and the first double-digit lead of the day.
• After the first game against Louisville, one of the storylines was that Carolina would have to shoot better than 3-for-22 from deep. The Tar Heels did shoot better, but only marginally so (6-for-24). It’s been said of this team that they have to find a way to win when the outside shots aren’t falling, and today they did.
• Another stat that needed to be remedied from game one was Coby White’s minutes (and points). Due to foul trouble, he only played 19 in the first match-up and scored four points. Today he played 30 minutes, but shot 3-for-14 and finished with eight points. It’s also been said of this team that they have to find a way to win when Coby White doesn’t shoot well, and today they did.
• Part of the reason the Heels were able to do so was the steady hand of Seventh Woods. Woods has struggled recently, but had to do well today because there was no Leaky Black to play third-string point guard. Here’s Woods talking about his play today:

• Brandon Huffman played some important minutes in the first half after Garrison Brooks picked up his second foul. Huffman played solid interior defense and scored a bucket off a post-up.
• Despite the two first half fouls, Garrison Brooks played a really solid game. He scored 12 points on 6-for-9 shooting. He scored two interior buckets early in the second half and a few minutes later had a dunk in transition.
• The first four minutes of each half are always important, but especially on the road. At the first media timeout of the game the Heels led 10-9. The halftime lead was 16 and at the first media timeout of the second half Louisville was only able to knock the lead down one to 15.
• Nassir Little just continues to make ridiculous athletic plays. He had a tip-in in the closing minutes of the first half that had no business going in. He also had this block on a really nice defensive play:

• Cameron Johnson posted another double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. He didn’t miss a shot in the first half – 12 points on 4-for-4 shooting, 2-for-2 from deep, 2-for-2 from the line.

 

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a home game against NC State on Tuesday, February 5. Tip is at 8:00ET on Raycom.

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Quick Hitters – UNC vs. Georgia Tech

Quick Hitters from North Carolina’s 77-54 road win on Tuesday night over Georgia Tech.

Highlights:

• The story of this game was a 25-5 run over the first 6:50 of the second half that pushed a seven-point halftime lead out to 27. The Heels took the lead out to 30 halfway through the second half.
• Carolina has not yet lost on the road in ACC play. The Heels are 4-0 away from the Dean Dome in conference games. Playing at Louisville on Saturday will be a fierce test of the teams’ road mettle.
• Curious rebounding numbers in the wins over Virginia Tech last week and Georgia Tech tonight. While UNC outrebounded both teams (VT 35-32 and GT 39-34), the margins against overmatched rebounding opponents should have been significantly larger.
• Once again, turnovers made life more difficult than it needed to be. For the game, Carolina surrendered 15. Luke Maye was responsible for one-third of those. At one point in the first half, the Tar Heels turned the ball over on four straight possessions.

Despite making 13-of-27 3s, Carolina scored just 1.03 PPP (too few ORs and FTAs, a few too many TOs). Its defense allowed just 0.72 PPP, though, allowing the Heels to cruise to an easy win (albeit against a pitiful Georgia Tech offense).

— Adrian Atkinson (@FreeportKid) January 30, 2019

• The beginning of the first half was all about Coby White, the beginning of the second half was all about Cameron Johnson. White was 2-for-2 from deep in the first four minutes and scored eight of Carolina’s first 11 points. He finished with 19 points (7-13 FG, 5-9 3FG) and eight assists (against two turnovers). Johnson scored the Heels’ first eight points of the second half and led all scorers with 22 points. He shot an incredibly efficient 4-6 from three and 8-10 on all field goals.

• Leaky Black sprained his left ankle with 8:28 remaining. He was seen on crutches and in a walking boot after the game.
• Georgia Tech’s 54 points was the fewest points Carolina has allowed this season. Also the third time Carolina has held their opponent under 60. Carolina held exactly one opponent under 60 the entirety of the 2017-18 season. The Yellow Jackets missed their first nine three-pointers and finished 2-16.
• Even though Nassir Little’s streak of scoring in double-digit games ended, he had another solid performance (other than settling for threes on a couple occasions). Little  is so freakishly athletic. He had several rebounds that were unbelievable. His follow of his own shot and put back with 10:30 remaining was as impressive and quick of a second jump as you’ll see.
• Tonight wasn’t 16 made three-pointers like against Virginia Tech, but 13-27 from deep is another really impressive showing.
• Seventh Woods had a nice moment in the first half. He tipped a Georgia Tech pass, which deflected to Cameron Johnson. Johnson pitched ahead to Woods who rose up for a transition dunk.

Seventh Woods deflection and the JAM

Seventh's hands on defense are quick pic.twitter.com/q5sJQ07RPx

— chris (@dadgumboxscores) January 30, 2019

• As part of Carolina’s second half run, Georgia Tech had a transition lay-up to cut the lead to 10. They missed it and a Carolina break back the other way resulted in a Garrison Brooks dunk and a 14 point lead. Those were the first two points in a 15-0 Tar Heel scoring run. Here’s the dunk:

BOARD ➡️ RUN THE FLOOR ➡️ FLUSH@UNC_Basketball big man Garrison Brooks rewarded for his hustle. pic.twitter.com/WOaTAjg4PK

— Bally Sports South (@BallySportsSO) January 30, 2019

Roy Williams postgame press conference:

Remember to check in for Quick Hitters after every North Carolina basketball game. Next up is a road game against Louisville on Saturday, February 2. Tip is at 2:00ET on ESPN.

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