Where: Dean Smith Center, Chapel Hill, NC
When: Sunday, January 10th, 7:45 PM
TV: Fox Sports South
Live Stats: SCACC Hoops
Records: UNC 11-4, 0-0 ACC; VPI 12-1, 0-0 ACC
The dangers of ACC play have already been on full display this weekend with Duke dropping a game in Atlanta to Georgia Tech and NCSU finding a way to lose at home to Virginia. Conference play means pretty much anything can happen. With UNC that is magnified given the various issues we have seen this season plus the injures.
UNC enters the season opener against Virginia Tech without Marcus Ginyard. Will Graves and Leslie McDonald are questionable. Now would not be the best time to have injuries in the backcourt but it is what it is. The hope is that Dexter Strickland and Larry Drew locate a bottle of whatever it was they drunk prior to the Michigan St game. That game stands as the only glimpse we have had of what this team could be if all the cylinders are firing. Unfortunately we have not seen much of that team since then, especially against quality competition.
Virginia Tech is a team that, as of late, knows how to play UNC tough. The Hokies have enough balance to give UNC issues, even if PG Malcolm Delaney does not play. The Hokies general struggle to win games they are supposed to win prior to the conference slate which has always left them fighting for an NCAA berth later on. That has not been the case this season with VPI off to a 12-1 start and coming off an impressive win over Seton Hall. Dorenzo Hudson scored 41 in the OT win. Delaney missed that game and watching it I was immediately seized with trepidation at the thought of this guard playing against UNC given his ability to drop that many points. Making certain that does not happen will be a tough assignment for the UNC perimeter players, especially with Ginyard which hurts the depth at guard.
Still, playing at home cures a variety of ills. UNC needs to purge the bad taste from the College of Charleston loss. Despite the fact Virginia Tech is a tough opponent, I think UNC will take the opportunity in this game and four of the first six ACC games at home to right the ship a little bit. Given the troubles on the road, dropping a home game is not really an option.
UNC 77 VT 71
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“The Hokies have enough balance to give UNC issues, even if PG Malcolm Delaney does not play.”
I’m not not sure I agree with this. It is sort of similar to saying BC would have had enough balance to give UNC problems if Tyrese Rice were out last year. Delaney is a big-time scorer who is playing at an All-ACC/ACC POY level. If he’s out, that is a huge advantage to UNC.
i think we win. if this was another ranked team, and they had just lost to someone they shouldnt have, and we were about to play them, i’d be saying…ugh, they are going to be ready to play today.
for chuck on the previous thread…i dont think we’re “writing them off”. i dont even know what that means. we have 16 ACC games and an ACC tourney we HAVE to play.
we just all have various degrees of criticism.
yes, Davis has more minutes. more minutes generally increases your stats even if you do nothing more PER minute. i went with my gut and said i dont see any significant upgrade in his offense from last year. shot distance, difficulty, FT shooting, etc.
i’m still all good. still in the glow of being 2009 champs.
oh, here’s a blip from tarheelblue.com…
note its Roy relating a self-assessment…not Roy’s words:
Williams related Tyler Zeller’s self-assessment of what the big man needs to do to earn more playing time: “Quit being stubborn and get down in a stance.” Even with the overtime session, Zeller played just 14 minutes in Charleston, one of his lowest totals of the season.
also from tarheelblue.com:
Carolina has been in six “close” games that got down to seven or fewer points with five or fewer minutes remaining. Of those, it has been outscored 84-66. In the earlier minutes of each second half, the score was much more even at 167-161. Carolina had outscored College of Charleston 36-24 in the first 15:58 of the second half, then Charleston outscored Carolina 21-7 in the final five minutes of regulation and all of overtime. In that final 9:02 (including overtime), Charleston scored nine of its 21 points off of either offensive rebounds (three) or Carolina turnovers (three). Carolina forced just two turnovers in that span, hitting a three-pointer and missing both free throws on another. Carolina got just one offensive rebound after pulling down nine in the first 15:58 and missed a three. Charleston turned its three offensive boards into five points.
Though Charleston is the worst example, this is not a new problem. And perhaps the reason Coach Williams was so “ticked” after Rutgers was in the final 5:11 with a ten-point lead, Carolina outscored the Scarlet Knights just 13-9. But it was also because Carolina continuously wasted opportunities with carelessness. In the last three games, Carolina has scored on 42.3% of its offensive rebounds compared to 55.4% scoring in the first 12. The Tar Heels have missed 20 two-pointers and two three-pointers (missing on 42.3% of its second chances) while turning it over seven times. In the first 12 games, Carolina missed 59 baskets on 175 offensive rebounds (33.7%) while turning it over 17 times (9.7% of the time).
As for now I am not confident in our play. I think VT takes us down hard. 10-20 points. Hopefully Roy has put some fire in ‘em.
^That was my intuition going into Charleston, that we were in for a put-down, but I dared not blog it. Your courage is a light, kieth!
Now, about them Heels today.
I hope after today that can be, “How ’bout them Heels!”
To get to that, my belief is that they need simply to greatly increase their defensive aggressiveness and play. Seems to me that the Roy Offense is just so reliant on the break-out baskets that without the defense to disrupt & produce the ball, there is geometrically diminished hope for our offense. I hope I don’t regurgitate as I write this, but a friend of mine once exclaimed watching a Dook-Heels game, “I wish they played defense like Dook does!!”
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
(Sorry for the break…had to make it to the toilet.)
-Russfuss
P.S. Making 70% of our foul shots – a once-Carolina hallmark – wouldn’t hurt either.
If they get off to a decent start, nerves will be less of a factor.
I would like to see one lineup play together for a significant stretch. Then it will be clear who is paying attention to instructions and assignments. If not, start somebody else in second half and leave them on the bench. Just not for the first bobble or miss!
Since there are no true stars this year, let them play! It took Ellington
many games to get out of his slump last year, for example.
Foul shots! Why can’t players work on this on their own? I would make this part of “better play” gets more playing time from the Ol Roy playbook.
the one ‘kick in the pants’ we ahve not yet suffered is an embarassing HOME loss; I just hope that we aren’t speculating in 6 hrs whether THAT will ‘light a fire’ under this team….
we’re winning today. just sayin.
Just let me say that I am without my laptop today and the Heels are 1-0 this season when I don’t have my laptop.
Frankly, I think we will win this one as long as Delaney is out. If he’s not, I’m not sure we have anyone who can handle him with Marcus gone.
We should be fired up, if we’re not, I don’t know anything about the rest of the season.
someone posted this at Wral. wow, i got goosebumps. what i wouldnt give for another 1000-assist point guard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzzvvfWkm8c
obviously, carter and jamison…but the way he made Lang, Okulaja, Forte and even Evtimov look good…just amazing stuff.
passes at about 1:00 and 3:15…mercy.
^If they are going anywhere this year, fired up for sure!
Vegas has VT +8.
Just asking – any would-be takers here?
My own reaction is, Geez, these bookies don’t make it easy, do they.
I don’t care for LV or anything associated with it. Tiger or not.
With Delaney questionable (but will play), at UNC, where the Heels are undefeated, and given that UNC hasn’t lost 2 straight in almost 3 years, I’d give the points.
Those are comforting stats C. Michael. But this game must turn significantly on positive player emotion and consistent effort, I think.
“But this game must turn significantly on positive player emotion and consistent effort, I think.”
Agreed, but I actually think that a big reason why UNC has not lost 2 in a row in so long is that “positive player emotion and consistent effort” have generally been ratcheted up following a loss.
Sure.
Veteran teams are better at comebacks. But this team is due. So let’s see how it plays out!
Zeller having a Deon vs Texas like night.
That is a true shame if UNC only has one player (Ginyard) who can allegedly guard the other team’s best player. If that is true, then I think that Roy is not all he is cracked up to be as a recruiter….
We have very limited ability to create in the half court. When our transition offense doesn’t produce, we are stuck.