Keeping It Heel
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UNC Basketball Stat Pack: Tar Heels dominating teams on the boards

By Zack Pearson

Nov 18, 2016; Honolulu, HI, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams speaks to guard Kenny Williams (24) during the first half against the Hawaii Warriors at the Stan Sheriff Center. Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 18, 2016; Honolulu, HI, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams speaks to guard Kenny Williams (24) during the first half against the Hawaii Warriors at the Stan Sheriff Center. Mandatory Credit: Marco Garcia-USA TODAY Sports /
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A few interesting stats on the North Carolina Tar Heels basketball team through four games

College Basketball season is officially here as the North Carolina Tar Heels opened the first week of the season with a 4-0 start.

Now the fun begins.

After a late night (morning) win over Hawaii, the Tar Heels are off to Maui for the Maui Jim Invitational which begins Monday. UNC is one of 8 teams in a field that includes Wisconsin, Oregon, UCONN, Tennessee and Georgetown.

Maui will certainly be the biggest early test for the Tar Heels who still have Tennessee, Indiana and Kentucky on their non-conference schedule.

Early on the Tar Heels have looked great, dominating opponents and winning every game by double digits.

Let’s take a look at some key stats to the Tar Heels 4-0 start in our first stat pack of the year.

Dominating the boards

Nov 13, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Kennedy Meeks (3) shoots past Chattanooga Mocs forward Makinde London (21) during the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Evan Pike-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 13, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Kennedy Meeks (3) shoots past Chattanooga Mocs forward Makinde London (21) during the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Evan Pike-USA TODAY Sports /

The Tar Heels are a deeper team than they were a year ago and it’s showing. They are also deep on the front court as their bigs have played very well to start.

In the Tar Heels four games, they have out-rebounded their opponents by double-digits.

In total, UNC has out-rebounded opponents a combined 194-126. Their biggest margin came in their second game when they dominated the boards 51-32 against Chattanooga.

Against Hawaii, the Tar Heels used their length to not only dominate the boards but to score as well. They kept going down low to Isaiah Hicks, Kennedy Meeks and Tony Bradley Jr., and it worked.

Tony Bradley Jr. impressive early on

After the Tar Heels failed to land a big four or five star recruit for its 2015 class, they may have found a gem in their 2016 class.

While the class has played well through the first four games, it’s one freshman that is getting all of the attention.

Forward Tony Bradley Jr. has impressed and quickly making a name for himself among the UNC faithful. The freshman is just one of two players to have scored double-digit points in each of the first four games this season.

The other? Justin Jackson.

Bradley Jr. is averaging 17.4 minutes through the first four games, coming off the bench and providing a big spark for the Tar Heels. He’s shooting .640 from the field and has 31 rebounds so far.

The last Tar Heels freshman to scored double digit points was Marcus Paige in 2013. Paige scored double digit points in the Tar Heels first 13 games that season having his streak broken against Wake Forest in the conference opener.

How far will Bradley Jr. go?

UNC scoring a ton of points..

The Tar Heels have scored at least 90 points in three of their first four contests this season.

Against Hawaii the Tar Heels didn’t hit the 90-point mark, falling 7 points short as they scored just 83 points. With the offensive explosion, it gives Roy Williams something else to rave about on this team.

The 2016-17 Tar Heels are now second on the list for most points scored through first three games of the season under Roy Williams. This team has scored a total of 285, falling just 4 points short of the top team on that list, the 2008 Tar Heels.

Williams is coaching his 14th team at UNC.

Playing in the Maui Invitational means some tougher opponents, so don’t expect a lot of 90-plus point games in the tournament but they still should be scoring at a high rate. Hopefully.

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