UNC Basketball earns Quad 1 victory over Virginia Tech

The UNC basketball program responded well after their disappointing loss to Pittsburgh, as they went on the road and defeated Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon.

We all know how important Armando Bacot is to the UNC basketball program. In fact, his production (on both ends of the floor) is typically vital to the team’s success.

However, if we went back and time and someone told us that Bacot would have no points and only one shot attempt in the first half against the Virginia Tech Hokies, most of us would’ve thought two different things:

1. Armando simply must have been dealing with foul trouble, and
2. The Tar Heels have to be in deep trouble

Although we all would assume that No. 2 was the case, it surprisingly wasn’t, as the Tar Heels held an eight-point lead heading into halftime. With steady contributions, mainly from the starting unit, the UNC basketball program picked up a much-needed victory on the road against the Hokies.

It was a hostile environment in Blacksburg, Virginia, just ask R.J. Davis, who heard “airball” chants from the crowd every time he touched the ball for a good span of time after his first shot didn’t hit the rim. Although the environment was not a friendly one for Hubert Davis’ team, the Tar Heels put together an effective first 20-minutes of play to give them a lead that they ultimately wouldn’t relish.

Brady Manek got the Tar Heels offense going, as he scored the team’s first seven points. Some timely offensive outputs from Leaky Black and Caleb Love followed and helped spark a 22-8 run to end the half.

Love was on fire through the first half, as he made four of his five shots, including two from downtown. The trio of Love, Davis, and Manek accounted for 30 of the team’s 38 first-half points.

After shooting 51.9 percent from the floor in the first half of play, the Tar Heels couldn’t get into an offensive rhythm in the second half. Although they shot just 36.4 percent from the floor (including a brutal 14.3 percent from three) in the second half, North Carolina made some timely shots to hold the Hokies at bay.

Down the stretch, the Hokies were in desperation mode and needed to foul. The Tar Heels did a great job of getting the ball in Love’s hands, as he made all six of his free throws within the final minute of play to secure the victory.

Even though he cooled down in the second half, Love led all scorers with 21 points. He also notched a career-high seven assists and made some quality passes that helped lead to some open shots for his teammates.

Along with Love, four of the Tar Heels five starters scored in double figures. In fact, the starting unit logged a ton of minutes (shocking, we know), as Davis only used three players off the bench.

Manek was the team’s second-leading scorer with 14 points. Even after a scoreless first half, Bacot did all his damage in the second half, as his 12 points and 15 rebounds secured his 20th double-double of the season.

There are a few takeaways from this one:

• The victory secures the team’s first win in the state of Virginia since January 24, 2016. Man, it’s nice to finally pick up a win in that state!
• Does this win make up for the Pittsburgh loss? Not by any means. However, it was a nice bounceback performance, one in which you wished they would have put together against the Panthers just a few nights ago.
• We talk about the guard play a lot, but this team needs Caleb Love to play as he did in the first half of this game. When he’s scoring (most notably not forcing up shots) while looking for ways to get his teammates involved, the Tar Heels are simply a better team.
• Was it a pretty win? It wasn’t picture-perfect (inconsistency in the second half, turnover issues throughout, etc.), but you have to give this team credit for responding well. Every time Virginia Tech made a run, it seemed as if the Tar Heels had an answer, and it was huge to take the crowd out of the game often.
• Are the Tar Heels a tournament team? We wish we could answer that! Moving forward, it would be nice to see North Carolina play as they did on Saturday afternoon. When they play with that same energy and are locked in on both ends of the ball, they are a tough team to beat.

It’ll be a short turnaround for the UNC basketball program, as they’ll host Louisville for yet another very important ACC matchup.

Which Tar Heels team will show up for the occasion? For our sake, we hope that it’s one that is similiar to the one that took home a victory on the road against Virginia Tech.

Continue to follow the Keeping It Heel team for all the latest news and updates regarding the UNC basketball program.