UNC Basketball Big Man Earns Multiple Player Of The Week Honors
By Jordan Falls
It was a hard fought week for the UNC Basketball team as they earned two road victories in the Atlantic Coast Conference in a more untraditional way for North Carolina. It wasn't running up and down the floor and scoring 85 points per game. No, it was digging in defensively and winning the rebounding battle against the No. 1 (Pittsburgh) and No. 2 (Clemson) teams in the conference in rebounding.
The leader on the rebounding side of things? Fifth-year graduate senior Armando Bacot. In the two games last week for the Tar Heels, Bacot scored 30 points while pulling in 26 rebounds and also becoming a rim-protector with five blocks. As a result of his performance, and the Tar Heels picking up two (currently) quad-one wins to begin ACC play 3-0, Bacot was named National Player of the Week by Andy Katz.
🏆 Weekly Awards from @TheAndyKatz 👇
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) January 8, 2024
Team of the Week: Seton Hall
Player of the Week: Armando Bacot pic.twitter.com/IRRfYxnAbV
Bacot also contributed key free throws against the Panthers, shooting an impressive 6-6 from the charity stripe to go along with his 5-10 performance from the field in 35 minutes of game action. Against the Tigers, he was 6-11 from the field and 2-4 from the free throw line.
HIs performance was much more than on the offensive end though. Against the Tigers he caused problems for senior forward PJ Hall forcing him to go 4-13 from the field and 0-5 from three while also out-rebounding Hall 16-5 and forcing the senior to foul out with 1:26 remaining in the game.
Not only was Bacot named Player of the Week by Andy Katz, but he also earned National Recognition from the Naismith Awards as he was named the Jersey Mikes Naismith Men's College Player of the Week. He also was later named the ACC Player of the Week for the eighth time in his UNC basketball career.
Our @jerseymikes Naismith Men's College Player of the Week is Armando Bacot (@iget_buckets35) 🏀
— Naismith Awards (@NaismithTrophy) January 8, 2024
The @UNC_Basketball big man led the Tar Heels to a 2-0 week, including a double-double in the huge win over ranked Clemson 🔥
His dominant week included averages of 15 points, 13… pic.twitter.com/npQUui6iag
More performances like the past week from Bacot and the ceiling on this UNC Basketball team will get even higher as teams will have to choose between defending the paint or the perimeter.
Next. UNC Basketball Coaching Staff Changing the Narrative on Defense and Rebounding. UNC Basketball Coaching Staff Changing the Narrative on Defense and Rebounding. dark
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