Lessons Learned from the UNC basketball program's collapse at Louisville

A Q1 win was there for the taking, but North Carolina ran out of juice in the final stanza of the game.

North Carolina v Louisville
North Carolina v Louisville | Andy Lyons/GettyImages
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Drake Powell pops

Drake Powell
North Carolina v Louisville | Andy Lyons/GettyImages

Freshman Drake Powell has become a solidified starter, but sometimes his performances have taken a Theo Pinson-esque vibe. He's clearly contributing, but sometimes it doesn't stand out.

Against Louisville, he made a more lasting impression. Powell was aggressive with the dribble, trying to get to his spots in the paint. The Dirk Nowitzki one-leg stepback shot has been scouted somewhat, so he tried to use his long first step from the perimeter to get to the rim. It worked. Powell scored 14 points on 6/11 shooting and added four rebounds.

The next step is the rein in the soft fouls. Powell fouled out in a critical moment. That foul wasn't great, but we have to go back to the end of the first half too, when he fouled J'vonne Hadley with eight seconds left in the half. Hadley wasn't threatening to score, but because Louisville was in the bonus, he got two easy points, and Powell got rung up for his second personal.

Even if these sort of fouls seem inconsequential, at the end of the game, it made a huge difference.

Schedule

Schedule