The UNC basketball program was not satisfied with its victory over Navy.
After taking a 20+ point lead in the second half, it appeared that North Carolina was set to run away for good. However, a 15-0 Navy run, sparked by Tar Heel miscues and miscommunication, kept the Midshipmen in the game. Over the final 3:50 of regulation, Navy outscored North Carolina 17-3, a finish that left a sour taste in the Tar Heels' mouths.
While a win is a win, the effort essentially throughout was rather concerning. Sure, getting hyped for a non-conference game against Navy (no disrespect to them, they played a great game) on a Tuesday night in November isn't the easiest task. However, this game proved to this team that they can't take any night off, because eventually, an opponent will capitalize and find a way to beat the Tar Heels.
Following the win, the media waited approximately 25 minutes for the players to speak. The delayed post-game interviews were due to a players-only meeting that was called.
Jarin Stevenson claimed that Seth Trimble called the meeting, though no other Tar Heel confirmed this publically. Caleb Wilson, who starred in the second half, was visibly frustrated when speaking to the media, mentioning that the slow starts can't continue moving forward.
“I really think the biggest lesson is coming out strong,” Wilson said. “I don’t feel like there’s any other lesson. In the second half of every single game, it’s over with for whoever we’re playing against. And we have to come out like that."
For Hubert Davis, you can sense the disappointment in the way he spoke to the media, but he was, in the same token, happy his team is communicating.
“That’s great that they’re communicating and talking amongst themselves,” Davis said. " (I) was disappointed in how we finished the game. I felt like just the sustained energy in the first half wasn’t there, but I thought we picked it up in the second half. We were playing well, and it was just unfortunate that we didn’t finish the game better than the way that we did.”
While some will panic that a players-only meeting five games into the season is concerning, it shouldn't be. In fact, the fan base should be encouraged that this group doesn't want to settle for mediocrity: they know they belong among the nation's best and understand that there is plenty of room for them to improve.
It also helps to have leaders on the roster who aren't afraid to speak up when the team needs a spark.
“We have a lot of leaders on the team,” Stevenson said. “A lot of people (who) leave their input. We have a team of good leaders that are going to help us in the future and help us in these next few practices to get us ready for the next one.”