UNC Basketball: Key Takeaways vs. Notre Dame

Jan 5, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels assistant coach Steve Robinson and head coach Roy Williams bow their heads during a moment of silence for former ESPN announcer and North Carolina Tar Heels alumni Stuart Scott before the game at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Roy Williams gave a solemn response when asked to talk about the passing of UNC Alumnus Stuart Scott.

"He came back here so many times and talked to our crowd, particularly to the students about how much he loved the university and what the University of North Carolina was to him.  It was a place in his heart – it was a special place in his heart, and it was never going to go away.   I remember him saying, you know, that ‘I could be gone a year and still when I come back, I get those cold chills because I am a Tar Heel’… To me personally, he was a friend.  He was a guy that I idolized.  Stuart Scott was a hero to me.  Stuart Scott:  Tar Heel."

Directly before the game, players on both teams swayed anxiously.

North Carolina students held up blue signs that read “STU”.

And Stuart Scott, the pioneer SportsCenter anchor that not only did his job professionally and memorably, but lived his life in such a way that captured the hearts of the entire sports world and Carolina family, was on all the four jumbotrons in the Dean Dome, smiling for the Carolina faithful.

It didn’t feel like any other game.  These weren’t ordinary circumstances, and Notre Dame, as North Carolina anticipated, was no ordinary ACC opponent.

The Tar Heels came into the game 11-3 (1-0) and the Fighting Irish came in 14-1 (2-0), and while there was a moment of silence before the game began, both teams gave those watching plenty to shout about.

According to Keeping It Heel writer Jackson Hicks, the three things to watch for in this ACC matchup was how Marcus Paige impacts the game, whether North Carolina stops Notre Dame’s prolific offense, and whether or not the Heels control the paint.  The Heels needed all three of these questions to be answered in their favor to keep up their perfect record in the ACC.

North Carolina fell to Notre Dame 70-71.

Jan 5, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Marcus Paige (5) and forward Kennedy Meeks (3) react in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Paige’s Impact

From the beginning, North Carolina fans knew that Marcus Paige was aware of what he had to do to put his team in a place to win the game.  Paige came out of the gates hot going 3-3 for 7 points before the second commercial break, and continued to be aggressive throughout the entire game.  He was involved in two fast break opportunities caused by turnovers to cut it to 1 with 2:29 left in the first half.

But in the second half, Paige cooled off.  Coming out of halftime with 10 points, North Carolina’s most valuable offensive player couldn’t get anything going.  Besides a clutch three that cut the Irish’s lead to 3 late in the second half, North Carolina’s #5 did not perform like the #5 of last season that North Carolina fans unfairly seem to expect.

Down one, with 20 seconds left in the game, Coach Roy Williams put the ball in Paige’s hands, and, even though he had a decent look, he could not put the ball in the basket in either of the Tar Heels’ final possessions.

Paige created offense by passing, forced turnovers, and hit a few big shots as the Heels made their run late in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to defeat this hot, perimeter-shooting Notre Dame team.  Paige finished with 15 points on 17 shots, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists.

Jan 5, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Zach Auguste (30) with the ball as North Carolina Tar Heels guard Marcus Paige (5) and forward Kennedy Meeks (3) defend in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

 Stopping the Irish

Notre Dame came into the game with the 3rd best offense in the nation averaging 85.9 points per game and shooting 55% from the field on the year.  And while the Heels held them well under their average in terms of points, any North Carolina fan would say that they were not having an off-shooting night.

The Heels struggled to adapt to the Irish’s great outside shooting.  Notre Dame presented mismatches for the Heels on the perimeter throughout the entire game.  Notre Dame’s ability to hit from deep confused the bigger Tar Heels, and a few times led to gaping driving lanes.  Even when the Heels made a run to end the first half, the Fighting Irish ended the first twenty minutes with 9 assists and was shooting over 40% from three.

Whenever the Heels looked like it was their time to make a run, Pat Connaughton or Zach Auguste would answer on the other end.  And when it seemed like without a doubt it was North Carolina’s game to lose as star player Jerian Grant fouled out with 2:07 left in the second half (finished with 8 points, 8 assists), Zach Auguste  answered the bell by cleaning up Pat Connaughton’s miss with 1:08 left to go in the game.

Connaughton finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds and Auguste finished with 18 points and 6 rebounds.

Jan 5, 2015; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard/forward Pat Connaughton (24) fights for a rebound with North Carolina Tar Heels forward Brice Johnson (11) and guard Marcus Paige (5) with 4.8 seconds left in the second half. The Fighting Irish defeated the Tar Heels 71-70 at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Controlling the Paint

The Tar Heels, although they outscored the Irish in the paint by a decent margin, struggled mightily in the paint.  They shot just 15 of 34 (44%) and scored 30 points – almost 9 paint points less than they averaged coming into the game.  The Heels outrebounded the Irish 43-26.

North Carolina’s ineffective play inside, especially down the stretch, could partially be connected to the fact that Kennedy Meeks had to sit on the bench early in the second half with 4 fouls.  Meeks finished with 12 points, going 6-6 from the free throw line.

In the end, however, it ultimately came down to the fact that Notre Dame hit from deep, and North Carolina continued its struggles on the free throw line.

The Heels simply did not do enough to counteract the high-powered, Notre Dame offense, especially late in the game.

Theo Pinson gave North Carolina a big boost when they made their last run at the Fighting Irish lead late in the second half, totaling 7 points and 4 rebounds in 5 minutes; but again, it wasn’t enough to complete the comeback.

And as the horn sounded after Paige’s prayer sailed over the rim, the Dean Dome ended the game in the same way it began when honoring Stuart Scott – in silence.