UNC Basketball: Random Observations vs Clemson

The UNC basketball team ended their three-game losing streak with an emphatic victory over Clemson on Saturday afternoon.

That was arguably the best performance of the UNC basketball program’s season.  Carolina played fast, shared the ball, and shot well from the outside.

North Carolina hit 15 threes, led by Caleb Love, who was outstanding.  He was efficient, scoring 23 points on just 12 field goal attempts, and took care of the basketball, with five assists and just one turnover.

His backcourt mate, RJ Davis, played his best game in weeks as well.  Davis looked comfortable shooting the ball from deep, hopefully suggesting his injured finger is a thing of the past.

Another game, another double-double for Armando Bacot.  The big man continues to be one of the best players in the country, as he outplayed Clemson’s PJ Hall for most of the afternoon.  Hall spent lots of time on the floor trying to flop Bacot out of the game to no avail.

The box score won’t show it, but Leaky Black may have been the MVP of the game.  His defense on Hunter Tyson was outstanding, as he held the Tiger’s leading scorer to just three points on two attempts.  Black’s defense was the best I’ve seen all year, resembling his performances on that end of the floor from last March.

Pete Nance continues to struggle shooting the ball.  It’s hard to tell if it’s an injury or confidence issue, but it is clear something isn’t right.  The transfer was held scoreless on seven attempts and played just 19 minutes today.  As I discussed earlier this week, I think Puff Johnson should replace him in the starting lineup moving forward.  Nance could provide some scoring pop and a quality post presence off the bench.  To his credit, he continues to bring energy to the team and appears to be a good vocal leader and teammate.

Speaking of Puff Johnson, he added eight points off the bench, including two three-pointers.  His shooting presence spaces the floor and opens up driving lanes for Carolina’s guards.  He had a key putback off of an offensive rebound as well.  The junior forward always seems to be at the right place at the right time.

He wasn’t the only member of the bench that produced, however, as Carolina got 25 points from reserves.  Jalen Washington and D’Marco Dunn were on the floor and scoring during a key stretch in the first half, and Justin McKoy looked good in some of the game’s final moments.  Don’t overlook the impact of Seth Trimble’s defense either.  The freshman point guard threw Clemson’s Chase Hunter off of his rhythm for a stretch, as Carolina held the Tiger’s point guard to just three of sixteen from the field.

Everything looks better when the ball goes in the basket, and it did today.  The Heels made some tough shots, but this was largely due to better spacing and shot selection.  Carolina got plenty of good luck against a Clemson team that is known for its defense.

This win was huge for the Heels in many ways.  Carolina stopped the bleeding from the recent losing streak and picked up a victory against a team that is currently projected to make the NCAA Tournament.

It was nice to send the Tigers home with an L again.  Clemson won the last matchup in Chapel Hill to break “The Streak”, but with today’s victory, North Carolina moved to 60-1 all-time against the Tigers in Chapel Hill.  That’s pretty good.

The Tar Heels don’t have much time to celebrate, as Miami comes to the Smith Center on Monday night.  The Hurricanes might be the best team in the ACC, and a victory for Carolina would be huge for NCAA Tournament purposes.

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