You know they made that a lot harder than it had to be.
It is easy to dwell on OSU cutting the lead to two late. That can be hung on Larry Drew missing FTs and UNC looking like a bunch of fifth graders trying to break the Buckeye press at the end of the game. That will get better or at least it should get better. What happened in the final two minutes or so was pure panic. Roy said earlier this week that none of these guys save Deon Thompson and Marcus Ginyard have been through crunch time. All you can take away from the handling of OSU’s rally is the Heels survived. If you can get through it once, chances are you can learn from it and be better at it next time out. And yeah, UNC maintained the 20 turnovers per game average. Keep hoping that will improve at some point. It should. I think.
Despite the ugly nature of the game, we saw a lot of positive signs on UNC’s side mixed in with the Big Teness of the contest. Offensively speaking Marcus Ginyard and Will Graves both showed they can be scoring options. Will they do it consistently? We will have to wait and see on that but you have to really like the way Graves stepped up, created his own shot and was a threat to score from anywhere on the court. Likewise, Ginyard was 3-5 from three. Alongside Graves, UNC had some legitimate threats from outside with the Heels shooting 7-15 from three for the game. Larry Drew ended up with 11 points, hit a key three late but missed four free throws UNC really sort of needed at the time. Drew also had five turnovers so with him on one hand you see some good but on the other you keep hoping he will improve.
Deon Thompson had a huge game with 15 points and 12 boards even though he was only 4-12 from the floor. Thompson also made an excellent skip pass out to Drew for a key three pointer. Ed Davis found himself in foul trouble and was a non-factor in the 2nd half. The good news is UNC weathered losing Davis with a good mix of Tyler Zeller and Travis Wear. UNC got spot performances from Dexter Strickland and Justin Watts(five points in only six minutes) as well. Overall, Roy is still using a lot of players and the offense lacks a certain degree of flow. The Heels strike me a little unsure at times. Too often Tar Heel players are picking up their dribble and then have to take the best available pass which may not be the best pass for the execution of the offense. They are also just plain shaky with the basketball, often times fumbling it or throwing the bad pass. Even with these shortcomings, UNC relied on the interior game effectively and got enough balance from the perimeter scoring to be generally efficient with the offense. Still, the offense has a ways to go.
The upside is UNC plays good defense and it showed tonight. OSU did miss some shots but at the same time UNC did a great job disrupting OSU. Evan Turner ultimately managed 23 points but it was a painful ride to get there which included 10 turnovers. Marcus Ginyard with help from Larry Drew made Turner’s stint at PG in this game a living hell. Only after Thad Matta decided to move Turner from the point did the much hyped junior get his offensive game on track. Unfortunately he also fouled out and even 23 points and 11 rebounds is not enough to cast of the stench caused by double digit miscues. For OSU this game was lost on the 7-29 shooting by William Buford and Jon Diebler. Credit to the defense for their handiwork in this one.
UNC mvoes on to face Syracuse which will be more zone for the Heels to try and crack. Regardless, UNC snagged a win over a ranked team so this little trip is already a success.
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Do you mean Evan Turnover, way to much hype on that kid. UNC is really long on defense.
Just what to expect at this point. The perimeter players, esp Drew, got very tentative in 2nd half.
Lots to learn!
too close for comfort. that being said, I think Ohio St has a pretty solid team this year. they look like they have talent at all 5 positions.
Congrats to Evan Turner for getting OSU’s 3rd triple-double!
There will be a lot of focus on LDII missing 3 (not 4) FTs in a row, and that was big, but it should also be noted that he didn’t break and he did hit 4 of his last 5 to secure the win. Hopefully he will build on the latter.
I have to assume some of the turnovers are a function of the liberal substitution pattern. I suspect there will be a noticeable drop in turnovers as that tightens up. But even still, Roy has gone record as saying that he is okay when the TO number is 16-18; UNC had 19, and at least 2-3 were offensive fouls, so they aren’t that far off. LDII’s 8 assists to 4 TOs is certainly acceptable.
One thing about a team missing a lot of open shots… an “open shot” doesn’t necessarily mean a “good shot.” When a team plays strong defense it will often lead to the opposition rushing shots when they are “open” because they know it may be the best opportunity they get. The “openness” shot should not diminish the fact that it is still a bad shot forced by the defense.
Closing out games is a learned trait. The ‘05 and ‘09 teams both learned to do this well, but each had a lot of lessons before graduating (G’town, anyone?). Last night was a great lesson for this team!
Bout dern time I posted! Been reading this site for over a year now, and love the insight of THF and the rest of you guys.
Anyhow, what I saw from this game is that we definitely need to start figuring out who is in the rotation and who isn’t (even though everyone keeps making key contributions – Justin Watts was shockingly good in few minutes again).
To step aside though – isn’t it great that we can complain that we have too many players worthy of starting/coming off the bench? Haha, it may be ugly to watch now, but all I can think is that if we’re hit with an untimely injury, flu, random suspension, we’ll not even miss a beat. I’m wondering if Roy is scared of losing a key player like Lawson again, where when he’s absent, the rest of the team looks confused.
Anyhow, I’ll take any win, and this was one we can build on. I’d rather have these close games now, in November, than in ACC regular season and March.
Oh, and is anyone else standing up and shouting “Marcus Friggin’ Ginyard” yet? I think he’s replaced Danny on making those timely 3’s and slams. Something I never thought I’d see from Marcus.
The Bad:
- still not closing out games, guys a 19-20pt lead does not mean the other team will stop playing
- still too many carless turnovers (bad passes, offensive fouls, not being strong with the ball, etc.)
- press offense
- free throw shooting at the end
The Good:
- very good defensively outside of the final 5min
- perimeter shooting
- still won an ugly game against a quality opponent when deon thompson missed alot of shots that he’ll usually make, ed davis in foul trouble, zeller playing very weak and passive, turning the ball over 20 times, and going brain dead in the final 5 minutes.
Challenge will be a little stiffer tonight just because of match ups. Syracuse is big on the front line and has alot of athletic guys that can shoot the basketball. The progression continues.
One other point, although they made perimeter shots in the 1st half, Graves and Ginyard don’t need to start thinking they are Ellington and Green, those two 3’s to start the second half were horrible decisions.
Good experience but too close for the nerves. I am surprised that we got out rebounded. We’ll have to do a much better job on the boards against the Orange and that confounded zone of theirs. Zeller didn’t seem to get many minutes in the 2nd half. I think he’ll have to be a factor in tonight’s game. We’ll have to play better to beat the Cuse’ and maybe last night’s wake-up call will help them focus a little better. These two teams are both physical and we need that toughening before we go into Rupp and the Dallas Palace!
I saw at least one turnover that came from a chemistry issue. Dex passed it straight out of bounds b/c one moment someone (I believe it was Marcus) was there and when he went to pass, they were cutting. And that’ll come in time (without, I might add, a trip to cabin complex out in the middle of frickin’ nowhere).
Plus, this win lets me bug the daylights out of my teacher today. Ahahaha. I’m taking my Carolina cape (someone got it for me at Six Flags) that’s hanging over my bed down and I’m gonna just cover up his OSU pillow he keeps on his desk.
UNC is now 11-1 versus the Big 10 over the last 4+ seasons.
Bobby Frasor via Twitter:
“just watched the game on dvr. Buford is my new favorite player in college. He was pumping and could not make a shot”
Is there any question that Bobby Frasor is going to end up as a legendary color-commentator??
Good first 35 minutes, as noted by everyone.
Positives I take:
*We’re far ahead of last year’s team defensively. I think OSU had maybe 2 uncontested shots those first 35 minutes. We cover ball screens much better and we actually rotate defensively.
*I thought our play vs. zone defense was good (not great). We’ve all talked on here about importance of interior passing, and our bigs look for each other pretty well. I thought we did a good job balancing taking perimeter shots when available and getting ball inside vs. zone. We’ll face the ultimate test on this tonight.
Negatives have been mentioned, so I’ll skip those.
One thing I think will happen in terms of minutes/rotations, is it will be someone different every night. Not ideal, perhaps, but we’re immune, to some degree, from foul trouble and injuries. So many people to plug in wherever we need them. A major challenge for the coaching staff to find those good combos each night, but I think they can handle it!;)
I don’t know how to link to it, but there’s a very good write up by Luke Winn on si.com about the defensive job that Ginyard did on Turner, and the defensive performance overall. Glad to see someone in the media noticed that the bad offensive performance for OSU may have been influenced by our defense. It’s under the college bball section of their website.
It seems like Strickland is going to be the key for UNC this year. Larry Drew is solid (well, except for the free throws…) and I’m not worried about him at all (well, except for the free throws…), but when he leaves the game the offense grinds to a halt. Its a lot like what happened last year when Lawson left the game to get some rest. Last night the offense was clicking in the first half and then Drew was taken out to get some rest with about 4 minutes to go before halftime and the offense just … stopped. I think the development of Dexter Strickland is the key piece that is going to determine how much success UNC has this season.
Here is a link to the article Marcus was referring to:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/luke_winn/11/20/carolina.ohio.state/index.html
Thank you, L8N.
You’re welcome – Go Heels
Actually THF, Drew had 4 turnovers which under the circumstances is pretty good, especially considering that one was an offensive foul.
Deon had 5! I would say that Deon was trying to do too much, but he certainly was pretty aggressive with 12 boards. Sometimes though he just needs to take it stronger to the hole.
I was disappointed by the play of Ed/Zeller. Ed’s fouls were really troublesome and he did not adapt to the tight way fouls were being called. Zeller played too soft and has not learned that he needs to use his body to get rebounds instead of just reaching. He also needs to go stronger to the hole.
Marcus and William certainly played their most complete games as Heels and hope that is a sign of things to come.
By and large I think we will see this rotation for the rest of the preseason, except that David Wear will play more as his ankle recovers. We had 8 guys with double figure minutes which is about right considering the fouls on Ed.
We sure do not have as much depth at guard and we would be sitting pretty if BF got a fifth year through redshirt. Until then Strick will have to do and hope he grows up fast. Although the offense did not flow well while he was in, he certainly did not have quite as much a deer in the headlight look!
Oh – and one more thing. I’m already sick of Dick Vitale again. Can they please give that job to Len Elmore instead?
“Actually THF, Drew had 4 turnovers which under the circumstances is pretty good, especially considering that one was an offensive foul.”
That’s what I get for relying on stats that are not finalized. But I was tired. Stupid late games.
Listening to Vitale was painful. For example, on Larry’s 3, he went on and on about Deon’s pass, but said nothing about Larry’s entry pass and then rotating to the opposite side of the floor, or the monster pick Marcus laid in the lane that took out 2 defenders. He also called the game over when it clearly was not. On the other hand, can’t listen to Woody who simply cannot keep up with the game anymore.
Graves had his best game by far. He moved well without the ball and didn’t hesitate when presented with open jumpers. Travis Wear also had a very efficient game in limited playing time. This team is deep and very talented. While it will no doubt have some bumps in the road, it will be very good by March.
As much as I think that it’s contributing to the ugly offense, I’m glad to be seeing so much zone at this time of the year. Good to go ahead and learn how to deal with it now. Also, if we are able to play well against Syracuse’s zone, then we should be able to perform well against anyone’s zone.
Great Ed Davis quote via Twitter:
“why people keep textin me talkin bout keep ur head…we won im happy s—”
Some kids just get it. UNC appears to have a bunch of them…
Nothing to add beyond what has already been said so far. This team will by turns delight and frustrate us, most likely in equal proportions. I will do well to remember this.
Someone please get Vitale to leave….please.
The only thing that could have made that game uglier last night did. With all the whistles it was bound to be a very ugly contest. Let the guys play for pete’s sake. It’s not about the refs, it’s about the game. They called it equally bad for both sides but that is all the credit I will give them.
Came across this blog linked from the WRAL Sportsfan site. THF, are you the same THF on the Smack Talk forums?
Now that I’ve asked that, on to the game. For 30 or so minutes, I was very pleased with the way the Heels played. Yes, they still have some TO issues, but a lot of those were turnovers made out of effort. They weren’t necessarily lazy play TOs. As the inexperienced players become more comfortable, I believe we’ll see a lot of those TOs turned into positive plays for the UNC offense. When the game is “still in doubt”, this team looks like they really want to put in the effort on the defensive end. When they learn to play defense from tip-off to final buzzer, then they’re going to really begin to look like a top 10 team in my opinion. Also, let’s credit Ohio State a little. They’re not a bad team and have some really good players. They had been attempting runs throught the 2nd half only to be thwarted time and again by UNC making key baskets. I would like to have seen UNC push the game out of reach or at least maintain its working margin. However, to get a scare like that down the stretch may help these young players realize that you can’t let up on a team when you’ve got them down.
Individually, I really liked the play we got from some of our perimeter guys. Marcus Ginyard continues to display offensive skills that we had not seen previously. Will Graves appears to be playing much more intelligently. He doesn’t try to chuck up a shot every single time he touches the ball. Larry Drew is playing a lot better than he did in limited minutes last season. He still has room to improve, but I think we can see the talent is there for him. As for his free throws, I think it was huge that he stepped to the line with a 2 point lead, and drained 2 free throws after going 2-6 on three prior trips to the line. Deon Thompson is a consistent amongst our “bigs”. A double-double against a team that was allowed to play bruising Big 10-style basketball cannot be discounted. Unfortunately, Ed Davis spent most of the game in foul trouble, so he didn’t get to build up the kind of numbers we’d like to see from him. Most of the other players contributed in their spot minutes which I think is important. James Henson also gave us a glimpse of how special he could be on that steal and dunk in the 1st half.
The bad: As previously mentioned, not playing hard defense for 40 minutes. The team didn’t attack the press as well as it could. UNC has the athletes to turn press defenses into fast break opportunities. The turnover number is still high since this team is not yet playing at the pace that we’ve seen the last 2-3 years.
I saw the same thing C. Michael. It made me pretty happy.
“Came across this blog linked from the WRAL Sportsfan site. THF, are you the same THF on the Smack Talk forums?”
Negative.
Ah, ok. Anyway, I really like what I see here. Think I shall visit more frequently.
Go Heels!