Although there aren’t any true moral triumphs in college basketball, particularly when you’re the nation’s ninth-ranked team, what UNC accomplished in Lawrence on Friday night is unquestionably as near as it gets. It’s amazing that this was ever a game because the Tar Heels were completely flat in the first half, losing by as much as 20 points. They made a significant turnaround and almost missed defeating the top-seeded Jayhawks, 91-89.
For Carolina, the first half was a bit of a disaster. They worked themselves into a world of foul trouble while allowing Kansas to shoot 59% from the field. They would ultimately come up short due in part to that foul trouble. UNC was behind After scoring a bucket at the buzzer, the score was 53-38 at halftime. Eleven players played in the first twenty minutes, but RJ Davis was limited to 1-8 shooting from the field. In the last six minutes of the half, they managed just two shots.
Coach Davis must have given them quite the inspirational locker room speech, because they were a different team to open the second half. The Heels fought back to erase the deficit and take a lead, battling back and forth with the Jayhawks down the stretch. UNC could never quite pull away late, holding a narrow lead that they couldn’t extend. The Tar Heels were up 89-87 with two minutes left in the game but could not find a way to get the ball in the basket from there. They had a chance for a buzzer beater to tie it at the end that just missed.
Seth Trimble was outstanding with 19 points including a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line. The Tar Heels as a whole kept themselves in the game with their free throw shooting, making 28 of their 31 attempts. Davis was second in points with 16, but made just three shots from the field. The rest were earned at the free throw line. Elliot Cadeau scored 12 points and notched seven assists to two turnovers. Jae’Lyn Withers was also a big reason the Heels were able to stay in the game with his 11 points and three made three-pointers.
We’ve seen Carolina teams that have not handled adversity well. This one was able to bounce back in a big way in a very difficult road environment against a very good team. Unfortunately, we’ve also seen this team have to fight back after some lackluster first halves so far this year. Hopefully that is a trend that Coach Davis can nip in the bud. Showing this much fight against one of the best teams in college basketball is certainly a confidence booster they can build off of, even if the end result was not in their favor this time.
UNC has the week off before taking on American in Chapel Hill next Friday evening.
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