Any questions?
By far the best game of the season for this team. Oregon, I think is a decent team, who when hitting their shots, would have made this game much closer. Still UNC gets huge swaths of credit for playing some tough defense and for their execution on the offensive end.
Tyler Hansbrough returned to action and has 16 points, 12 of them from the FT line. It is obvious he is still working through the rust since some of his moves around the basket were not as smooth as they normally would be. He was also basically hacked to death by the Oregon interior defenders but as the game wore on Hansbrough stepped his game up a bit more. It was also nice to see him get aggressive with the Oregon’sp Michael Dunigan who had accidentally elbowed him in the chin on the prior play. Hansbrough tangled with Dunigan on a later offensive possession for the Ducks and drew an offensive foul on Dunigan.
The star of the game was Danny Green who was on fire. Green went 4-5 from three point range to start the game and ended up hitting a career best five threes on the game. Green was also very active on defense collecting two blocks to go along with his eight boards and four assists. If he continues to play at this level he is making a fairly loud argument to be the starter even when Marcus Ginyard is healthy.
Deon Thompson had another solid game as did Ed Davis who scored 11 and pulled 13 rebounds in only 23 minutes of play. Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington were fairly quiet but picked their moments. Lawson only had seven points and five assists but more importantly only had one turnover. Lawson’s A/TO is a ridiculous 4.0 so far this season. Ellington had zero turnovers and four assists to go along with his 13 points. Ellington is doing a much better job taking care of the basketball than he was a year ago which is a significant improvement in his game since it gives UNC another reliable ball handler at one of the guard slots.
Overall, a very satisfying performance and exactly the way the #1 team in the nation is expected to play when face an inferior opponent. Now the Heels get Notre Dame which will be a war and Hansbrough’s status(because of the ankle) is questionable.
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ND looks tough and will be a good test. They have a good interior game and have some shooters as well. Hopefully our depth will get to them. GO HEELS!!!!
Another plus for keeping DG as a starter is that if the other team gets off to a quick offensive start, Roy could bring in Marcus, Bobby and LD2 all at once and hit the opposition between the eyes with what would be a stifling defensive backcourt.
Speaking of reliable ball handlers… Deon’s handle is nothing short of remarkable for a power forward. I was amazed at how comfortable he looked last night the couple of times he “broke” the press last night.
I know C. Michael, and that is something I did not see last year. Of course, it is nice to be in a position not to have to have him do that. But, it is also nice to know he can if we need him to.
speaking of LD2, drew’s ability to stifle and neutralize the opposing PG and his vision on the offensive side was phenomenal. something you expect from a seasoned veteran. he did force a couple of passes but this guy amazes me every game. he also showed his ability to knock down a three when open and to turn on the jets when necessary. drew, to me, seemed a lot quicker and shiftier than people give him credit for.
all in all, great job by the team, and i’m looking forward to a tougher match up against notre dame.
Agreed. This freshman class actually appears to be better than advertised, which is saying something, considering they were all Burger-Boys!!
Deon reminds me of a taller Antoine Walker with a little less range. He might get drafted before Hansbrough does.
Lamar Odom? I tell you a forgotten big guy who I thought could do great in the paint, yet had the ability to catch the ball in the high-post and drive it in for a dunk was Tom Chambers.
Antione Walker is a tough comparison. Walker was actually taller and had a lot more range.
A very heartening win. Lawson and Ellington did everything needed of them, given how well the rest of the team was playing.
I agree that DG has earned the starting job. He is the most athletic player we have. The NBA won’t take a pass this time.
To paraphrase the old song, my lips say Ed Davis, but there’s Sam Perkins in my eyes. What a star this guy is going to be!
Finally, I see no reason that Hansbrough can’t go 30 minutes tonight — and he might need to. Notre Dame is not chopped liver. Hansbrough’s footwork has been better, but — and this is the important part — it gave no hint of injury. I think he’s ready to break out and get on the roll this season.
Last night’s effort was a joy to behold, at least for the first 25 minutes. For most of the second half, I thought the team lost a bit of concentration, but by then the game was decided. I hope we’ll be as fortunate tonight, but I doubt it.
Definitely not Odom, he’s a 6’10 SF, who if he weren’t gallantly lazy, would be a superstar…
I can’t really say who he reminds me of at this point.
With regard to Tyler going tonight, it’s not so much about what we saw last night, but how it responds in the 22 hours in between games. If it tightens up at all, you really have to sit him because that is when you are at most risk for a really severe injury.
I agree C. Michael. Lamar could do a lot better if he had a Tyler H. work ethic. If Ed Davis can learn the art of long-range jumper, he could be compared to Sam Perkins. (I really don’t want him doing that, as he is too valuable under the goal, but if he becomes open while out there…. )
Tyler Hansbrough still seems to lack quick movement to me, especially on defense. A couple of people got by him on the baselines last night, but nevertheless, he had a good game. Yes, Danny Green is becoming a star! Moving up the draft with each passing game. Good to see the seniors moving up the charts. We might see Deon Thompson take his man off of the dribble and drive & dunk before too long
Nice list of things to be impressed about: the defense, the freshmen (breaks my heart to see big Z on the bench), Danny Green, Ty’s A:TO ratio, 5 minutes of work for the “Morehead Scholars” (as Bilas puts it).
I’ll buy the early Sam Perkins to Ed Davis comparisons. I love watching him play already. Ed might end up as a better rebounder (sacrilidge, I know). Drew is very, very impressive as well, and these minutes in November will prove crucial in February.
C.Michael – I was also thinking that if Green starts and someone on the opposition starts to go on a tear, what an advantage to bring a fresh lock down defender by the name of Ginyard off the bench to say “Oh my no. That’s enough of that.”
I’m really looking forward to Ginyard coming back. We’re going to be unstoppable!!!!!
Great game by the Heels! ND should be a good test. Hopefully Woody won’t call any air balls “raspberrys” again. GO HEELS!
Am I wrong? I am under the assumption that Ginyard’s starting has nothing to do with Ginyard either being better than Green, or Ginyard’s being “better” for the team. I thought it was sort of in tradition with the John Havilicek 6th man concept of having an even better player coming off the bench to pump up the team.
C.Michael, you’re right about the possible tightening up of Hansbrough’s ankle. Stil, when I had ankle injuries as an athlete (such athlete as I ever was, which wasn’t much), if it didn’t hurt when I played on it, it was OK.
I guess I should confess at this point that, so far as I’m concerned, Hansbrough is close to super-human. Of course I know he isn’t REALLY super-human; it’s just that his combination of strength, desire and focus is beyond anything I’ve seen watching sportx.
Someday I’d like to see him put in charge of our Special Forces. That will be it for Osama & Co.
The ankle injury is not a sprain. According to Roy he “hit it on the floor going in for a layup” and when he got to Maui is was swollen and stiff. That explains why no one knew because apparently it was not a problem when it happened but a few hours seated on a flight increased the swelling.
THF, the flight from the West Coast to Hawaii is about six hours and is done at 37,000 feet. Under those conditions, even a healthy ankle will swell. I know; I have a winter home in Hawaii, and every time I go, I take off my shoes when the flight leaves and have to struggle to get them back on when it lands.
But I’m glad it’s not a sprain; as we saw last year with Lawson, sprains can be real nasty. This doesn’t sound as bad.
william, I think that is correct, or at least has been.
fwiw, I see Davis much more in the mold of Worthy.
I hereby nominate the nick-name “Jet II” for Drew–any seconds?
“fwiw, I see Davis much more in the mold of Worthy”
Except I don’t think Davis could grow a beard if his life depended on it.
52bgJ, I second that! Great idea!
I took another look at last year’s stats and Danny Green leads Ginyard in virtually every offensive category except for free throw rate. Ginyard does lead in three point percentage, but Danny took five times as many and both had good percentages here. Danny leads Marcus in both offensive and defensive rebounding and in the defensive categories of steals and block shots, while Ginyard turns the ball over more.
I wonder if these numbers might partially explain any frustration that Danny felt during the off-season last year when deciding whether to come back.
Marcus did, however, get far more minutes last year than Green, getting almost 15 minutes a game more playing time than Green did, which seems difficult to explain based upon the numbers.
Maybe Roy has some sort of plus/minus system, like in hockey, that doesn’t show up in Pomeroy’s stats?
Whether or not Danny becomes the “starter,” it seems that he might be due more playing time based upon his excellent season last year and great beginning this year.
http://kenpom.com/sr.php?team=North%20Carolina&y=2008
I think Roy likes starting a player who can play lockdown defense over offensive firepower and a slightly above average defender. I also think Roy loved having Green as the spark off the bench since he did the same thing with Marvin Williams off the bench and starting Jackie Manuel.
So are you saying that you think that Green will remain as 6th man, but get more minutes?
Do you think that Green overall is arguably, clearly the better player?
And I guess when you say lockdown, referring to Ginyard, you are saying that he has a particular talent for guarding a key opponent in the man-to-man, that doesn’t come through in statistics such as blocked shots, rebounds or steals, which may be statistically plausible.
Of course, even with Zeller gone, minutes are precious on this team. Graves looks fantastic and I am not sure that he doesn’t have more talent than either Marcus or Bobby, both of who clock more minutes.
No, I am saying that is why it was that way last season. I have no clue how Roy will handle it this season. Ginyard is supposedly behind schedule which means he should be back in January. At that point you are talking 2-3 weeks before he is “right” again. At that point Green is a starter for over half the games and the team is in a groove with him at that spot. I say leave him there or else you screw with the chemistry.
I like and admire them both. Roy has difficult decisions regarding all this talent. It is not quite like the 1982 Heels, who usually played the same five guys and who barely went 7 deep.
yes, but when one of those 5 is Doherty, how are you gonna find room for subs? j/k–couldn’t resist
it will be very interesting if Marcus shows as much improvement as Deon when he gets back–hey, it could happen! Deon is da beast–did you see the entry pass assist (with English) he made in the 2nd half last night?? Dude is playing with major confidence. I hope Marcus is taking mental notes.