/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57690815/usa_today_10429170.0.jpg)
There are two real options for UNC’s player of the game in the win over Stanford, and neither is really a wrong answer.
Kenny Williams scored a career-high 20 points, all coming in the first 10 minutes of the game. He went 6-7 in that period, finished 6-8 for the game, and also had four rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
After Williams settled down, Joel Berry took over and saw the Tar Heels through to a win. Berry finished with 29 points, just two shy of tying his career high. He knocked down five threes of his own, also picking up three assists and a rebound.
Williams gets the slight edge because he filled up all columns of the box score a little more, and had his scoring outburst when it was still a close game. Williams’ final points came on a three that put the Tar Heels up eight. For a while, he was the only UNC player that was doing anything on the offensive end. Were it not for Williams’ hot shooting, Carolina genuinely might have found themselves in a decent sized hole.
By the time Williams got to his 20 points, Berry still hadn’t scored. Then the senior took over, and by the time he was done for the day, the lead was in the 20-point neighborhood. It was almost like they took turns.
Either choice makes perfect sense, so if you prefer Joel Berry, just know that you’re not wrong. But for doing a little of everything, and keeping the Tar Heels around when the rest of the offense was struggling, we’re going with Kenny Williams.