UNC Basketball: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the Tar Heel’s ACC season III

With another three conference games in the books, what can we take away from the Tar Heels play during that time?

Three more games have been played by the Tar Heels this ACC season and they are now halfway through conference play.

During the last three games we looked at the Heels really good assisting, their bad habit of committing personal fouls, and their ugly home/road splits.

During these past three games, UNC’s assisting has been nearly as good as before. They had 53 in these last three games against the 56 they accumulated during their previous three. They are also keeping their turnovers in check, maintaining their 1.6 assist-to-turnover ratio during that stretch.

The Tar Heels have also seen a slight decrease in their number of personal fouls. They are down nearly two a game from the previous three game stretch to about 17. That’s about the difference of being in the bonus versus the double-bonus in a half.

However, the Tar Heels home/road split is still looking very nasty. In the past three games, the Heels went 1-0 at home with a margin of victory of 19. On the road they went 1-1 getting outscored by six.

So with that all covered, let’s take a look at the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of their past three ACC games.

The Good

Jan 28, 2017; Coral Gables, FL, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Justin Jackson (44) dribbles the ball up court against the Miami Hurricanes during the first half at Watsco Center. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

The Play of Justin Jackson. Ok, I’m not going to lie. Finding something Carolina was overly good at in these past three games was not as easy as it has been in the past. The rebounding is still good, but not great. The assists are about equal but not mind-blowing. I was about to give up hope until I stumbled upon the work of Justin Jackson.

In the past three games, Jackson has been really good. He is averaging 23 points per game during that stretch, his best three game stretch so far this season. He is also shooting 42.9 percent from behind the arc and 78.5 percent from the charity stripe.

Jackson has been fantastic all season. However, the way he has raised his game these past three should really give Carolina fans hope of where he might be able to take this team come March.

The Bad

Jan 28, 2017; Coral Gables, FL, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Joel Berry II (2) applies pressure to Miami Hurricanes guard Ja’Quan Newton (0) during the second half at Watsco Center. Miami won 77-62. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /

Joel Berry’s lack of consistency. If Justin Jackson has been Carolina’s best player, then Joel Berry II has been the Tar Heel’s most valuable. However, Berry has had some interesting stats these past three games that should give Tar Heel fans some concern.

Against Boston College, Berry finished with zero assists and zero rebounds in 35 minutes of play. Against Virginia Tech he didn’t get to the free throw line once. Finally, against Miami he went 0-for-8 from the field, including 0-for-4 from behind the arc.

These are all concerning because, with the exception of the rebounds, Berry is one of the best on the team in these areas. He leads the team in assists with four per game.

He is also the team’s leading free-throw shooter at 90 percent, nearly nine points higher than the next closest regular player.

Berry is also the team’s best perimeter scorer with a clip of 42 percent from behind the arc.

When Berry isn’t playing at top speed, the Tar Heels tend to struggle, regardless of the stellar play of Jackson. If Berry continues to put zeros in the box score, Carolina may see a few more L’s and a few less W’s this season.

The Ugly

Jan 14, 2017; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Theo Pinson (1) reacts in the second half. The Tar Heels defeated the Seminoles 96-83 at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

North Carolina without Theo Pinson. The Tar Heels are just not as good without Theo Pinson. Case in point: the Miami Hurricanes debacle.

Now I am not saying that Theo Pinson could’ve won the game for the Tar Heels. A lot of things were going against UNC in that game, the least of which was the short turnaround from the Virginia Tech game. But I would be remiss to say it didn’t make a difference.

First of all, not having Pinson hurt the rotation. During Miami’s initial blow out run, Roy Williams had a lineup out there of Luke Maye, Nate Britt, and three freshmen. That lineup produced zero points and several turnovers. Pinson normally would’ve replaced one of the freshmen, most likely Woods or Robinson, and provided sure ball handling and a scoring threat.

It also prevented Roy from turning to his smaller lineups including his pseudo Golden State Death group. Miami destroyed Carolina with quick cuts to the baskets which the Tar Heel bigs couldn’t defend well.

Secondly, UNC is just better when Pinson plays. In ACC play, the Tar Heels are 6-0 with Pinson and 1-2 without him. They average 93 points a game when he plays and only 71 when he doesn’t.

Pinson is a stat stuffer and does all the little things that teams need to succeed, a la Draymond Green or Danny Green. With the short turnaround, his benching was probably a very prudent and wise decision. However, it just further showed that without him, the Tar Heels are not a true contender.

If UNC wants to keep up with the top teams in the country they need to continue to keep giving Justin Jackson the ball. They need to also get Joel Berry back on track. And finally, they have to keep Theo Pinson healthy. If they do these things there is no doubt they can return to the Final Four and be an absolute power in Phoenix, Arizona.

Is this where the Tar Heels are struggling? Is UNC doing better in other areas? Let us know in the comments below.

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