Addition by Subtration

One of the biggest offseason questions will be whether or not Ed Davis does go pro. At the beginning of this year, I would have said that was a bad idea, but that’s when I thought Ed Davis was going to be an 18 and 11 guy every night. Since Davis was not like that and then was injured, I’m not convinced he would be willing to stick around and risk another injury. Most mock drafts have him as a top 10 pick. In fact, I can’t think of one that doesn’t have him as a top 10 pick.

If Davis did leave, I don’t think it would be the end of the world. In fact, I think this team would be better for a few reasons:

1) I don’t think Davis is a true team player. He doesn’t strike me as a team oriented guy. Not to say that he is a selfish guy who demands the ball all the time, but that fact that he doesn’t seem to put a lot of work into his game and that can hurt team chemistry because people see that he doesn’t work very hard and is still getting playing time. Ed Davis is a talent, but it seems like he is Ty Lawson as a freshman, where Lawson was not allowed to start because he kept messing around. Ed Davis is not a trickster like Lawson, but he just seems to not put the effort in, similar to how Lawson was, when he just got by on talent and not being a complete player.

2) If Davis leaves, I think that would open the door for Tyler Zeller to emerge as a main threat on offense. Zeller is obviously more offensive minded than Davis, but with John Henson on the weak side, Zeller could probably get away with more than he normally could because of Henson’s shot blocking ability. I was very impressed with Zeller as he came back from injury and really picked up where he left off. He was good for 9 points and 5 boards a night, which is good as your 6th man and I think if he starts, those numbers are only going to go up with more minutes and shot opportunities.

3. With Davis gone, the line-up would probably be Zeller at center, Henson at the power forward, Harrison Barnes at the other forward, with Will Graves, Dexter Strickland, Larry Drew II, or Kendall Marshall in the backcourt (which will probably remain a question mark until we get closer to the season. But the front court would still be strong with the 2 above bigs and the Wear twins playing the backup role. I believe if we needed to go small, Barnes could slide over to the 4 because of his height.

This is all speculation at this point, but if Davis does opt for the NBA, I don’t consider it a huge loss and the pieces will fall back into place soon enough. My honest hope is that he does go pro, but we’ll see what happens.

Point Guard of the Future?

In watching the Duke/UNC game, I couldn't help notice how many unforced errors there were in the game (shocking, I know). But it seemed a good majority of the turnovers came from the point guard, Larry Drew II.



I like Larry Drew II and think he has done a serviceable job as the point guard for this year's team, but I'm not sure if he isn't just the second coming of Quentin Thomas. Many times this season, we have seen Drew drive the lane and try to have an amazing pass, but only for the rock to end up in the hands of the opposing team, which is why I question him as the point guard of next year's team.



I'll be honest, I don't pay close attention to recruits until they arrive on campus, but with the struggles this year's team has had, it's hard not to focus on next year's class a bit more than in the past. UNC is bringing in Kendall Marshall, a 6'3" PG, who is rated a 4 star recruit and is the 32nd ranked player in his class, but the the 9th overall PG.

For comparison's sake, Larry Drew II was the 71st rated player, and the 10th overall PG in his class.



In reading about Marshall, he is said to be the best passer in the class, according to ESPNU. Here is what rivals says about Marshall:


With a superb basketball IQ, Marshall plays with surprising poise and at a deceptive pace. He sets up for a burst that is just fast enough to beat his man and controlled enough for him to read the situation with precision. The leftly also has a more-than-reliable jumper and has a knack for delivering the pass with timing whether it is off his penetration in the half court or a
pass up the court in transition. Improving his explosiveness and improving on the defensive side of the ball are his next challenges.


Here's what Rivals said about Drew during his senior year of high school:

With a good mind for the game, Drew has a knack for running a team and finding an open man. Perhaps the best thing he does, however is shoot the ball from behind the arc. His foot speed and overall athleticism is an area for concern as a high-major prospect although.

Now, on paper it appears that Drew is the better shooter, which is most likely accurate and Marshall is faster and a better passer. But next year, Drew will have 2 years under Roy Williams' system, but the turnovers can be such a team-killer, especially when you are a team that's built for making runs.

I don't know who will start next year, but I posted this to pose the question of what could possibly happen next year. Personally, I like a pass-first point guard and while Drew has shown that at times, I'm not sure it translates as well as Marshall's game could in the UNC system. We'll see what happens. It could be worth noting that this situation could play out similar to Bobby Frasor and Ty Lawson during Lawson's freshman year. That year Frasor started the first 6 games and then Coach Williams took the reigns off of Lawson and the rest is ACC Player of the Year history.

Tar Heel Tid-Bits

Just some random articles and my thoughts on them.

*Dick Vitale put out his top 40 for the 09-10 season. UNC comes in at #8 and Vitale says that they will reload. Yes, UNC will most likely only have to reload now because they are in good shape. I know people have always said that Roy Williams is a great recruiter and a good coach, but I think he is an excellent recruiter and an excellent coach.

*Andy Katz put out his top 25 and has North Carolina at #5. He says this might be too high, but that a Roy Williams coached team doesn't often disappoint. I agree and think that this will be a good year.

*NBA Draft.net is an interesting website. I read it because it does a lot of scouting for me, but I find some of their material ridiculous. Nevertheless, they also produced a top 25 list and they included a projected starting line-up for next year's team. Interesting to note that they do not have Larry Drew II in the starting line-up, but rather, Leslie McDonald and Dexter Strickland, at SG and PG respectively. The only way I see that happening is if Drew gets injured or gets suspended for some very odd reason. I know Williams started Ty Lawson as a freshman for most of that season, but Lawson was a speed demon and I think Ol' Roy was looking at the big picture that Lawson would be better than Bobby Frasor in the future.

This time though, I think Roy will go with experience. I'm not saying that Strickland won't see some time at point, but I do not see him starting unless something crazy happens.

*That NBA Draft.net article got me thinking more about the starting lineup for the upcoming season. I have thought about this before, but I'm just not sure what is going to happen. Maybe there won't be a solid 34 game lineup all the time; maybe Coach Williams will mix it up somewhat. Maybe the 6 starters makes a comeback? I'm not really sure, but here is the lineup that I think will happen:

C - Ed Davis

PF - Deon Thompson

SF - Marcus Ginyard

SG - Leslie McDonald

PG - Larry Drew II

Here's a line-up that I would like to see at some point in the season:

C - Ed Davis

PF - Deon Thompson

SF - John Henson

SG - Marcus Ginyard

PG - Larry Drew II

Not a huge change, but it definitely makes the Heels talllllllll, with 3 players at 6'8" or taller. I'm really excited about Henson's potential this year. Rumor on the streets is that he is one of the three best players Williams has every recruited. That just sounds amazing for fans and awful for foes! Henson was a shooting guard as a junior because he was only 6'4" and then he grew 6 more inches, so he's got the height of a big man and the handles of a guard. I've heard people compare him to Kevin Durant. If he is anything like Kevin Durant was as a freshman then that would be stupendous! I'm going to like Henson; I just hope he sticks around for a while.

Top 5 Most Important Players Continued

So here are the rest of the top 5:

3. Deon Thompson is who I think is the third most important player for this upcoming season. In the first 12 games of this past season, Deon averaged 14.6 points per game. Now some games were with Tyler Hansbrough and some where not, but that's still a good amount for him to put up. In all 12 games, he scored in double figures, whereas in the last half of the season, he only averaged 8.8 points per game and only scored in double figures in 10 out of the last 26 games. Now a few things to consider here. 1. Deon Thompson was the fifth option on the floor as a starter. 2. Thompson also had the last 2 ACC players of the year on his team. 3. Deon is Deon and sometimes gets down on himself. This year, Deon needs to be the man for this team. I'm not sure if he would be the leading scorer or not on this team, but he needs to be up there because he has two years of starting experience and we all know what he is capable of this. Those first 12 games of last season were awesome to watch; Thompson was abusing people (Remember that dunk he had on Harongody in Maui?). Simple put, Deon Thompson needs to do the things he has shown he can do all season. He cannot be up and down; it is his turn to shine. I strongly believe that Deon can average 15 and 8 for this team, but he has to show it.

2. Larry Drew II is not Raymond Felton or Ty Lawson and right now, he doesn't need to be. He needs to be Larry Drew II. If he can play in his role and not force the issue, but play Roy Williams style and be the floor leader, not necessarily, the team leader, UNC will be successful. What I like about Drew is that he is a pass first guy and I always appreciate that as a fan. Ed Cota was one of my favorite players because he was a pass first (and often pass second) point guard. Now Lawson and Felton are more scorers, but they have had plenty of assists as well. Drew did not shoot well this past year, but from what Roy Williams has said, Drew has improved. But again, he does not have to be a scorer for this team to be successful. If he can limit turnovers and run the offense, he will be fine for us this year. I would also like to see Drew on the defensive end this year because from what I have heard, he's a good defender, but it's hard to see that in 2-3 minute spurts like he received this past year. That won't be an issue this year.

I'll reveal #1 later. It probably won't be a huge shocker, but you still keep reading, right?

Draft Thoughts

Ok, I realize that my blogging has been poor as of late, but I promise that will change. June was a very crazy month for me and now that it is over, I should be more consistent. I apologize and hope you readers out there do not think any less of me.

But the draft has come and gone and I’m just going to give some thoughts on where each Heel was drafted and what I think about it.

Tyler Hansbrough went #13 to the Pacers. I was sure surprised by the fact that he was a lottery pick. Who would have thought the guy who had been nit-picked at for 4 years would be the first Heel to be drafted, let alone a lottery pick? When I look at the Pacer’s roster, I know that Psycho-T can play on this team and get some significant minutes. The Pacers don’t seem to have a truly skilled big man, so they went with a safe pick on this one, which some experts say wasn’t good, but I’d rather be safe than sorry. There are a lot of North Carolina ties on this roster, like Josh McRoberts from Duke and Roy Hibbert from that fateful Elite 8 game in 07.

Ty Lawson was originally drafted by the Wolves at #18 (and their plethora of picks and point guards), but then traded to the Nuggets. I think Lawson might be in the best situation of all of the draftees because he will be the primary back up. There is no way he is starting over Chauncy Billups, but Billups will be an excellent tutor for Lawson to learn under. Also, the Nuggets play at a fast pace, which should help Lawson make the transition from the Carolina system to the NBA. Hopefully he will do a little better than Raymond Felton did at making the transition.

Wayne Ellington was drafted by the T-Wolves as well at #28, but they kept him. I’m not sure what to expect with the T-Wolves with their coaching situation up in the air. He’s really the only shooting guard on the team, unless you count Ricky Rubio, who is the same height as Ellington, but everyone else on the roster should be a point guard going on by their height. Now that Kevin McHale is gone, there won’t be a doghouse for Ellington to get in like Rashad McCants was, so hopefully he can get some playing time. Ellington was quoted as saying that he had a chip on his shoulder to prove the other 27 teams wrong, so I would think we would see him play well.

Danny Green was the lone second rounder. I really like this pick for the Cavs. They don’t really have a lot of wing players and Green can bring some things to the table that they can use. He joins Jawad Williams on the roster, so I imagine we will see some mentoring there. He also joins LeBron James and it’s hard to imagine that LeBron won’t want Danny Green to do his best and help him out along the way. I think if Green can earn a spot on the roster, he could get some spot minutes on this team.


So those are some thoughts from the draft from my head. I know I’m giving a best case scenario for all of these players, but I truly think that these things can happen. Again, I wish them the best and thank them for their years of service to the UNC, especially that National Championship thing. That’s a pretty big deal.

So that NBA Draft Thing...

I Know it's been awhile. It has been rather busy around this side of the blogosphere, so I apologize.

Here's some info on where the Heels are projected at:

Tyler Hansbrough
Draft Express - #20 to the Jazz
NBA Draft.net - #20 to the Jazz
SI - #24 to the Blazers
Fox Sports - #20 to the Jazz

Ty Lawson
Draft Express - #17 to the 76ers
NBA Draft.net - #25 to the Thunder
SI - #14 to the Suns
Fox Sports -#25 to the Thunder

Wayne Ellington
Draft Express - #28 to the Timberwolves
NBA Draft.net - #19 to the Hawks
SI - #26 to the Bulls
Fox Sports - #19 to the Hawks

That's all I can get because I don't have ESPN Insider. Danny Green was not included because he is a second round pick and most sites don't project that deep. Here are my thoughts on these players and their future careers:

Tyler Hansbrough has been criticized by NBA people since the dawn of time. He is too slow, then not tall enough, not explosive, etc. Well here’s my opinion on him at the next level. At worst, he will be a rotation player. He has a high basketball IQ and can shoot, rebound, and defend. He’s not going to be buried on the bench. Best case scenario is that he becomes a Carlos Boozer. Yes, I did just mention a former Duke player, but when Boozer was drafted, I said adamantly he would amount to nothing because he was too short, not fast enough, etc. Well last time I checked, Boozer played on the Olympic team, makes more money than he should and has been an all-star at least once, if not more. I believe Hansbrough will have a fruitful career and look forward to following him (not watching him though because the NBA is stupid.). Even if he does get picked late in the first round, that would be better for him because he will be playing on a good team and can probably step in right away.

Ty Lawson is who I thought would have been drafted first for the Heels, but I'm not sure anymore. His stock has dropped considerably so I'm not sure what to tell you He has been mentioned as a lottery pick or mid to upper 20’s pick. It’s hard to tell where he will land, but I do see him similar to the last North Carolina point guard drafted – Raymond Felton. Felton has been up and down it seems, but his learning curve is on the better end than it was last year, but Ty Lawson could be very similar in the fact that he is a back up or occasional starter to eventual full-time starter. I think Lawson is better than Felton because it seems Lawson’s shot is more accurate and Lawson can get in the lane any time (at least on the college level). Lawson’s ¾ court sprint time seemed slow, but he is still amazingly fast. I've read articles that say that Johnny Flynn is way better than Lawson, but there’s no way. Flynn is good and I have enjoyed watching him play, but he is no way better than Lawson. Flynn relies on the three too much and has way too many turnovers. I know the critics say they worry about Lawson's shot being released low, so he's easy to block, but it's hard to block shots when you're double teaming someone else.

Wayne Ellington is hard to figure out where he could land. His draft measurements were interesting (who would have known he has a higher vertical that his buddy Gerald Henderson? And where was it during the season? We want to see some slam-a-jamas!), but I don’t know where he is going to go. I’ve heard as high at late lottery and I hear that he may not be drafted until the second round. My guess is that he is a late first rounder – somewhere in the 20’s - which might be the best thing for him because he’s not a superstar, but can be a viable option of the bench or maybe as your fourth or fifth scorer. If he does go the Bulls, that could be a really good fit because Ben Gordon will probably be gone and Ellington can step in and take his place.

Danny Green is questionable to make a team, which I’m sorry to say. No way is he a first round pick. If we could compare him to a former Tar Heel, he would probably be like David Noel, who was a glue guy, but was drafted in the second round. Noel did play for the Bucks for awhile, but now I think he is in the D-League. Danny Green could follow the same course, but I think he stands a much better chance than Noel because Green is more versatile. Time will tell with Danny Green.


That's the information I have, so thanks for reading. Again, sorry it has been so long, but keep tuning in and I will make up for it.

Comparing 05 to 09

I have finally done my comparing of the last two title teams. This would be an awesome game. I could throw out a whole bunch of numbers and stuff, but I’m not that motivated right now. So here’s what I’m going to do; I’m going to break down the starters and the bench as a whole and say who has the edge based on my opinion.

Center: Sean May vs. Tyler Hansbrough
Sean May really hit his stride his junior year about half-way through. Tyler Hansbrough hit his stride all the time. May had really good hands and was a good shot-blocker as well. He also had a number of low-post moves in which to fall back on. Those are about the only things he has on Tyler Hansbrough. Hansbrough didn’t have a ton of post moves, but he was ok at putting the ball in the basketball. Also, the ability to draw fouls, make free throws, take charges, and steal the ball all play into his favor. Then throw in the hustle, determination, and the extended range, it’s not much of a contest. May was good, but Hansbrough is much better.
Edge: Hansbrough

Power Forward: Jawad Williams vs. Deon Thompson
Jawad was an undersized power forward, but he played big in my eyes. A few things that were nice about Williams, was the fact that he could shoot the three and open up the post, which Deon cannot do. Deon defends well with his blocks, but he can be such a head case and be streaky. If it was Deon of the first few games of the regular season, Deon would win, but Williams had that senior leadership quality, experience, and know-how.
Edge: Williams

Small Forward: Jackie Manuel vs. Danny Green
We really have opposites in this area. A defensive-minded stopper against an offensive-minded shooter. Manuel was an excellent defender, but defenses could lay off of him because he couldn’t shoot a lick. Green was the stat-stuffer, filling up the box score on a regular basis. He could shoot, pass, rebound, and block. His on ball defense was suspect, but you always had to be aware of him coming on the help-side defense.
Edge: Green

Shooting Guard: Rashad McCants vs. Wayne Ellington
At the beginning of the year, this would have been no contest to McCants. He has the ability to shoot from anywhere. But he could also drive hard, finish hard, and dunk hard. Ellington is a much better all-around player now. His rebounds were up; assists were good; defense was much-improved. I would have liked to see him take it to the hole more and get fouled because he was a good free throw shooter. Because of that, I think McCants was better. McCants was also a decent shot-blocker as well, which Wayne is not.
Edge: McCants – slightly

Point Guard: Raymond Felton vs. Ty Lawson
This would be a great point guard match-up. One for the ages. Felton was the leader of the 05 team. His three pointer against Illinois when the game was tied at 65 was cold blooded. He also had great court vision, and if he had stayed, would probably be close to Ed Cota’s record for assists. Both of these players underwent severe criticism over their play and both handled it very well. Lawson down the stretch was similar to May’s run in 05. No one could stop him. I believe the only things that could stop Lawson this past year was Lawson, Roy Williams, and Lawson’s toe. Lawson 3% and FG% were amazing and though his assist numbers are not as good as Felton’s, he was the man. This match up would be close and Felton never really got to be the man like Lawson did, so he could have been better, but I’m going with Lawson, barely
Edge: Lawson - slightly

Bench
Marvin Williams, David Noel, Quentin Thomas, Melvin Scott, Reyshawn Terry, Wes Miller, and Byron Sanders vs. Ed Davis, Bobby Frasor, Larry Drew II, Tyler Zeller, Will Graves, and Justin Watts. This is close and it’s a little unfair without Marcus Ginyard in there somewhere, but I will give the edge to the 05 bench. Only slightly. Marvin Williams and Ed Davis have been compared, but Williams was more polished on the offensive end, whereas Davis is a much better defender. Drew and Thomas would be even. Noel would have an edge of Frasor in my mind because he was bigger and could go hard to the hole. Frasor’s defense would be key though. Zeller is better than Byron Sanders ever was. Melvin Scott was just a shooter and not much else and I think Will Graves is better than Terry, but Wes Miller was such a little fireball. The 05 team was deeper, hands down, and more experienced, so they get the slight edge. But if Ginyard played this past year and either he or Green came off the bench, I would tip it to the 09 bench.


So there you have it. I would say that the 09 team would beat the 05 team, but it would be a good game. I think the combination of Hansbrough and Lawson would be too much, but it would be intereting to see Manuel crack down on Lawson or Ellington, which could be the key to an 05 victory. I think the 09 team was better defensively and the 05 team was better offensively, just because almost everyone was a threat. Truth of the matter is that this game could happen since a lot of Tar Heels come back for pick-up games in the summer.

Season in Review: Ty Lawson

More like Ty Awesome. Lawson was simply amazing this season. I really never felt like we should lose because we had this guy on the team. After the 2 ACC losses, he carried the team into the Promised Land, filled with shiny wooden and crystal trophies (did you know the Championship trophy costs $19,000? It’s so ugly looking) This year definitely showed me the Ty Lawson that was promised his freshman year. End to end blazing speed, the sweet jump shot. This guy was truly amazing this year.

Things I didn’t like:
1. Missing some games. We could have easily run away with the ACC tournament championship, especially with the dud that Florida State had in the championship. In the long run, it was fine because we on the national championship, which was the ultimate goal. So I will take it.

2. Court vision. If I could find one flaw in his game, it would be these and that’s because I like a passing point guard. Probably on every play, they could run this offense: Lawson dribble until a lane opens up and either make the lay up or dump it down to a big man for a wide open lay up. Ty Lawson is good passer, but I think he could have been better. Yes, I am nitpicking a bit.

3. Free throw shooting. Yes, he was around 80%, but he could have totally been dominate in the tournament if he hit most of his free throws.

Things I liked:
1. Umm…everything? The shot was there all year and it looked so good. The turnovers were so few, which was awesome. The defense was there for the most part. I think Ty Lawson was amazing this year and I truly did like every part of his game.

2. The DUI. I truly think this basically gave us the championship. I don’t think Lawson would have been back otherwise. Thank you for having a lapse in judgment Ty Lawson. Also, thank you Chapel Hill Police Department for catching him. It’s true, if Lawson wasn’t there, Hansbrough, Ellington, and everyone else would have played differently, but it’s a lot more comforting to know he was there.

Ty Lawson had a great year. Maybe his stats don’t blow you away, but to the true fan, he was the man.

Final Four Wrap-Up

Just some thoughts about the Final Four that I was too lazy to post yesterday.

*With the glory of a Championship, usually means the mass exodus of the team. We know that Hansbrough, Frasor, Green, Copeland, Tanner, Moody, and Wooten are gone. Ty Lawson is probably 95-98% gone already. Ed Davis is coming back (Hooray!). I feel that Wayne Ellington might be back. No way am I saying he will be, but I am about 50/50 or this. Probably more like 60/40 that he will go pro, as of right now at least. He had a great tournament and a great second half of the year. Clark Kellogg talked about it in a few games, I’ve talked about it here: he has simply been on fire. I know his draft stock is high now because he has proven he is more than a shooter with his ability to put the ball on the floor, rebound, and even pass the ball. I’m just not sure. NBAdraft.net has him as the #12 overall pick and if that were to actually happen, he would be stupid to not go. Like I said, it’s just a feeling and tomorrow he could declare.

*How did Ty Lawson not win the MOP? Now I love Wayne Ellington, but how did Ty Lawson not win the MOP? Lawson was magical throughout the tournament AND the Final Four. Wayne was great, but not magical. I think you could give it to Lawson based on his Championship game performance. 8 Steals! 8!!

*I think one of my favorite plays of the game was when Bobby Frasor got a steal and could have passed it to Danny Green for a dunk, but he took it all the way. Go Frasor-Flave!

*If MSU won, the economy would not have been saved, like every writer and commentator was saying. I was soooooo sick of that story line.

*Tyler Hansbrough does not look good in a hat. Rather a net looks much better. Also he has cemented his status as the best player in UNC history. If you look at this list, I have no arguments, but it is interesting to note that before Monday night, Hansbrough was only 4th on the list.

*Where are these players going to store all this stuff that they have accumulated over the years? If you think about the senior, junior, and sophomore class, they have won the ACC regular season 3 times, ACC tournament twice, been to 2 Finals Fours, won Maui, and won an NCAA championship. Plus think of all the accolades that Hansbrough and Lawson have won. I know they donate some to the Carolina Museum; some is probably given to their families, but still. Hansbrough will probably have a room set aside someday; at least, I would if I were him.

*I’m excited about next year (I will do a post soon previewing next year, once the draft situation gets cleared up). But this team could be very similar to the 06 team because they are young and only have a few upperclassmen, but they will be exciting to watch. If you think that another Sweet 16 trip is out of the question, you better check your head.

*Don’t get me wrong by the following, but to me, this championship just doesn’t feel the same as the 05 one. But to me, that’s totally weird because I think this team is so much better and I like this team more than the 05 team. (I’m actually going to do a post comparing the 05 to 09 team soon, so hold onto your horses) I have a few theories 1) The 05 game was closer and you didn’t know that UNC had it in the bag until about 30 seconds to go, whereas the 09 game was decided in the first 5 minutes. 2) That 05 team was not anointed champs in June. Most of us knew they had the talent to go all the way and they did start out the year #1 (stupid Santa Clara). But after the three came back, they were picked to win it all. I know some never doubted, which is fine, but I’ve seen enough college basketball where anything can happen. 3) My other theory is probably the correct one. I have not been a fan for as long as many of you have been. I don’t frequently watch any games from the late 80’s and early 90’s. I didn’t start watching closely until 2000-2001, so in 05, that was my first championship and it was special. I still like this 09 team better, no question, but it’s like your first kiss or something – you don’t forget it.

*Also interesting to note how people compare champions to other champions (I do the same thing), but check out these two: One from ESPN.com's Page 2 and the other is from Fox Sports. Notice how they differently they treat the 01 Duke team.

Season reviews for each player will begin soon. I plan on starting with freshman and working my way up numerically, so Larry Drew gets it first. I will only be doing scholarship players too, because who am I to judge the walk-ons who work so hard. I will also review Roy as well. Take the time to read the articles about the UNC from yesterday’s post. I know there are a lot, but just about every major sports site put out 3. It took me a long time to go through them all. Also check out photo galleries if you come across them. Thanks for reading and, again, feel free to comment.

Destiny is Calling

I can’t describe the joy I felt when Hansbrough hugged his coach. That big grin on Roy’s face was priceless and the big man’s excitement was equally priceless. He was running around like a fool out there when the final horn sounded and it was funny. Four years of hard work for this year’s class culminated last night with a National Championship and it was special. Unfortunately, the game wasn’t close, but that may have been a good thing with the anxiety and nervousness I was feeling before tip-off. But when the score was 12-5, I didn’t think we would have a chance to lose. Too much will and determination. That first half was special, I hope you realize: 55 points, 21 point lead. Michigan State was lucky to not be down by 30 with as many turnovers as they had. They did shoot 44% in the 1st half, but those turnovers did pile up.

They piled up to the tune of 9 steals. 8 of them by Lawson – an NCAA championship game record. I don’t know how many points they scored off them, but it was one-sided. The effort was amazing, even if the shots weren’t fall in the second half. The defense was great. I have said on this blog that good offensive and average defense will win us games, but it turned out the last 3 games that good defense and average offense won us the championship.

And that Championship takes the monkey of the back of so many people:
1. Roy Williams for winning a championship with his own recruits and being a "game" coach instead of a recruiting coach (a lot was made of Izzo being a great coach on strategy and quick turn arounds)
2. Tyler Hansbrough for going down as the greatest player in UNC history and one of the top 10 in college basketball history and a National Champion.
3. Wayne Ellington, silencing his tournament critics, when they related the past tournament failures to his own shooting woes.
4. Ty Lawson, proving again how tough he is and how important he is.
5. Bobby Frasor for being able to survive the whole year and win.
6. Deon Thompson proving he can produce in games that matter.
7. The North Carolina team, saying that talent doesn’t win championships, and that a good offense beats a good defense.

Destiny was in the house, but it was on UNC’s side. If I could pick a theme for the year, and I think Roy Williams would agree with me, mostly because we're golfing buddies (I wish), would be overcoming adversity It's unfortunate that we never saw this team at full strength. Ginyard missed most of the season; same for Zeller, Graves was suspended. Bobby was never really Bobby. Ty Lawson was hurt towards the end of the year. Hansbrough missed some time. Ellington struggled early on. But as Wayne Ellington said at his post game interview, they all came back for this moment and all the hard work has paid off.

UNC 83 - Nova 69

You should go check out the box score right now, because it's pretty ugly. Probably the only 3 good stats in the box score are the 3 point percentage, the free throw attempts, and the final score. Everything else is very non-North Carolina-like numbers. This was a very ugly game, mostly the second half because we were playing very well in the first, except that lapse there at the end of the half to let Nova be within 9. Oh well. You have to be happy with the results.

Things I didn't like:

1. Rebounds. I think we forgot how to box out as Nova had 19 offensive boards, but you must understand that, despite the lack of size that Villanova has, they play tough and actually out-rebound their opponents by 4 or 5 per game. Case in point is this game 50-46.

2. Shots. Yes, we did shoot 50% from 3 land, but we did shoot 22 times. I don't like it when we fall in love with the longball. I feel we should have taken the game in the paint, but they might not have gotten a lot of the calls because they weren't getting them to begin with (there should have been a few loose ball fouls or away from the ball fouls. This went both ways). I think there was a lot of excessive hitting going on, which may have attributed to the low shooting percentage, but some of the shots were forced. I also hope we don't fall in love with the 3 on Monday.

3. Free Throws. Mostly Hansbrough and Lawson, but as I have said before, they will bounce back.

4. Turnovers. We looked pretty careless out there, especially at the beginning. Lawson had 4 turnovers, which was very shocking. We need to do a better job protecting the ball on Monday.

Things I liked:

1. Defense. Last 2 opponents have attempted a bazillion 3's and only made 7 of them. UNC is playing great defense and as I have said, average defense and good shooting (45-50% area) should win us most of our games. Even though North Carolina did give up way to many offensive rebounds, I though Hansbrough, Thompson, Ellington, Lawson, Davis, and Frasor all had strong rebounds throughout the game. Villanova is a scrappy team, and UNC was able to hold them off.

2. Ty Lawson. You probably saw the sign during halftime - "He laid down the LAW, SON" or something close to that. Well, we had another excellent game, minus the 4 turnovers and poor free throw shooting. He's pretty special to watch and I love watching his emotion and him beating his chest. Thankfully he did get his number 5 back as well. I was worried #25 would doom us for awhile.

3. Hustle. Bobby Frasor had 5 offensive rebounds. Only Dante Cunningham had more with 7, but he is a long and active big man. I think on just about all of his offensive rebounds, Bobby was running the ball down and then pulled it back out. How about the play where Ty Lawson somehow picked up the ball near half court, without going out of bounds, and raced down court, dumping off to Hansbrough who was fouled. Or with Ed Davis shooting some free throws, he missed them both, but Danny Green tipped the ball up, it hit the rim, and then he pinned it against the cushion on the bottom of the backboard until he could grab it, and kick it back out. All of these were big plays and shows that this team is competitive, determined, and focused. They have the fire in their eyes. Just look at Lawson when he makes a big shot or gets an and 1. Look at Ellington when he is stroking it. Look at the bench, cheering on the team.

This game was not pretty and there are several fundamental things that can be fixed. I can't find the link (there has only been a 100 UNC stories to read since last night's game), but Danny Green, when he looked at the box score said that these things can be fixed and I have no doubt that they will be fixed by Monday.

Monday's game is the rematch of a brutal slaughter earlier in the year, but both teams have changed since then. Yes, MSU has a home court advantage, but remember in 05, Illinois was playing in their backyard in St. Louis. UNC is a very good road team, case in point the earlier game against MSU. No, MSU was not at full strength, but neither was Hansbrough (still playing through shin and ankle problems), Ellington (wasn't really the Ellington we knew until the ACC season), Davis was still learning, Zeller was out, and Lawson was still playing second fiddle to Hansbrough. I know the game will be a lot closer; we will see who wants to more.

ACC/Big Ten Challenge Part II???

Well, I'll admit it, I thought the road to the championship game was through the Big East, but that's not the case. Michigan State is not the same team that played in December; they are on a roll, but they don't have Ty Lawson, who is the engine. He had a great game and would have had a monster game if he could hit his free throws (maybe he won't gamble tomorrow and he'll practice free throws). But we win and the season comes down to Monday night. This is all we as fans have hoped for since the middle of June, when everyone came back. This is the hype that put us at Number 1 at the beginning of the season. I'm ready. And the Heels look ready too.

SuperNOVA...Bad?

Remember that '05 game against Villanova. I do, so I’ll tell you my story. I was at a friend’s house out in the Midwest and they obviously were showing regional coverage, so it was like Wisconsin or some other average team. This was also before CBS started broadcasting games online. When I first saw the score, UNC was down by 10 or maybe even 16. It was awful and I started to get really nervous. They closed the gap to within 4 at half and then were up by 10 with about 5 minutes to go.

Then the bad stuff started happening (which was about the time that CBS switched over to the game). Namely, Raymond Felton fouled out. The last inbounds play that 'Nova had, yeah we all know it wasn’t a travel (not that it was a foul either). But if you saw me and didn’t know me, you’d think I was on drugs or something because I was pacing and praying and hoping and wishing.

Well, now is 09. Villanova is a tough team. They have to be to play in the Big East (or at least that’s what the Big East keeps telling me). They do present some match-up problems with the 4 guard line-up. Some experts are comparing them to Maryland because of the lack of size, and we know what Maryland did against the Heels.

Well here is my counter. First, UNC is the most experienced team in the Nation. You can’t tell me that because of the last 2 (even the last 3) tournament nightmares, that they are not playing with a chip on the shoulder.

Second, last time I checked, UNC can still go small too. Hansbrough, Green, Ellington, Frasor, and Lawson is a pretty good lineup. But at the same time, I think we should capitalize on our size and get everybody in foul trouble. Hansbrough is the best perimeter defender of the big men, but I think Deon Thompson has gotten a lot better.

Third, Maryland has Vasquez, who is a 6'5" point guard and a tough match-up. He's the one who killed us, not Maryland. Plus we killed ourselves by shooting in the 30's percentage wise. Did you see what DeJuan Blair did against Nova? I don't consider him to have a lot of post moves, just a good rebounder, who cashes in a lot, but if he goes 9 for 9, I have no reason to doubt that Hansbrough can't have a big game. Also, remember that Hansbrough only had 8 points last game and will be looking like a man on mission.


One other note. About the whole Ty Lawson gambling issue. First, he is only 21. I'm sure you did some stupid stuff at that age too. Second, chill out a bit. It's not like he's doing it the night before the game. Third, here's what Roy had to say about it, providing more information than was originally given, like Marc Campbell going and them both being supervised. Roy's cool, Ty Lawson's cool, Marc's cool, so I'm cool about it.

March to Detroit

This game seemed to be everything that we do not expect in a North Carolina game: slow-paced, half-court, defense, getting the short end of the fouls. But it was a good game. I like the strategy that Roy put into place about doubling Griffin and letting the other guys beat us, because it worked to perfection. Now I heard some Syracuse fans ranting about how cold Oklahoma was after torching them, but I really believe the Heels played solid defense. I’m not always sold on good defense vs poor shooting – is it because there was a hand in their face or because the shooter is off? – But I think this game was a good defensive game. You don’t force back-to-back shot clock violations because the shooters are off. You do it with good defense.

Things I didn't like:
1. Refs. Let's be honest, if UNC breathed on Blake Griffin, they were called for a foul and that's just the honest truth. I could hardly watch the 2nd half because there were some ridiculous fouls. If they had been calling it on the other end, I wouldn't have minded as much, but you can't tell me that Blake Griffin never fouled Ed Davis or Deon Thompson. Yes, the fouls were even at the end, but only because OK needed to foul at the end of the game (which I'm surprised they called). If you look at Ed Davis's 4th foul, he was called for a block...I'm pretty sure that's solid defense to cut someone off at the baseline.

Things I liked:
1. The fact we can have a half-court game and win. I think that since Ty Lawson has been hurt, UNC is a better half-court team. He's not playing as fast, but he can still get to the basket pretty easily, which makes him the most dangerous person on the court. You say what he did when he drove and dumped off to Zeller. He probably could do that every play.

2. Bigs played hard. I thought Hansbrough did a good job on Griffin to begin with, but it may have been because he wasn't looking to score yet (you're the best player on your team - you should be looking to score), but then came the fouls and Griffin spent the rest of the game hitting layups. I really thought UNC did a good job though. Davis, Thompson, and Zeller, even though they are not physically, did a good job and making his work and that's one of the things that made a difference.

3. Danny and Deon playing well. Around here, Lawson, Ellington, and Hansbrough get a lot of the credit, but that doesn't mean that I don't appreciate these guys any less. Despite the fact that Griffin is an outstanding offensive player, he really isn't that good on defense, as Deon Thompson scored 8 in the 2nd half. When you think of Deon, please don't get too down on him. Remember that hot start he got off to? I think he's capable of doing the same thing next year. As far as Green, good time to carry the team. Sure Lawson played as Lawson does, but Green was the man out there.



I think North Carolina is the best team in the nation. I also think that everyone agrees that they are the best team in the nation when they defend decently and when Ty Lawson does amazing things. I think they are capable of both in the Final Four.

Revenge on Gonzaga

Sorry it took me so long to post. I've had a busy day. I thought North Carolina looked great. I was expecting the game to be a lot closer, but every time the Bulldogs made a run, UNC answered. Hansbrough looked like he wanted revenge, Lawson came out smoking, Green had an awesome stat line, and Wayne Ellington did his damage. Then throw in what everyone else did and you had the score you had.

Things I didn't like
1. Free throw shooting. This game could have been over way before it was over it we hit our free throws at our season average. Thompson and Davis were the big culprits.

2. Not putting them away. Gonzaga had me worried a few times, by going on runs, but ultimately they didn't have enough. I thought we had some lapses in the game, but that happens, so it's almost a mute point.

Things I liked
1. Basically everything else. Defense was pretty good. Rebounds were there. Everyone did their role and didn't try and didn't try to do it all by themselves.


As for the Oklahoma game, this match-up is very appealing to the eyes. Griffin is an amazing basketball player and I'm not sure if we should just let him score his points and shut down everyone else, or try and frustrate him. I do not think that Oklahoma has enough answers on defense for Ty Lawson (who has though?).

GO HEELS

Lots of Goodies Today

Ok, a lot to get to today, so let's get into it.

Tuesday Talking Points
Here's the link and I'm only going to comment on 2 of the points.

1. "Danny Green has shot better than 50 percent from the field in just two of his career 13 NCAA tournament games."
Well, that's not good. Sure, I could speculate about what the reason is - Seasons is wearing on him, pressure to succeed, the ball is a little flat. I realize this stat is true, but don't buy into too much. Green is a shooter and shooters always bounce back, especially the good ones.

2. "Wayne Ellington has played 138 minutes of a possible 160 over the last four games; the next-closest Tar Heel, Tyler Hansbrough, has 121 minutes. In that stretch, Ellington is shooting 57.6% from the field, 51.9% from three-point range, and has an A:TO ratio of nearly 3:1."
They should have just said that Wayne Ellington is on fire because he is. Go to this article that Scout wrote about him because it is exactly what I've been thinking and most of what I've been posting. The rebounding has impressed me quite a bit, but look at his scoring as well:

"Ellington averaged just 12.8 points on 43.2 percent shooting (34.6 from 3-point range) through UNC’s first 17 games of the season. Over the last 17, his numbers have soared as he’s averaging 18.7 points on 52.0 percent shooting (115-of-221), including knocking down 44.8 percent (47-of-105) of his attempts from beyond the arc. He has also increased his rebounding totals from 4.1 to 5.5 during this stretch run."

I love the fact that he has just been dominate in the second half of the season because that's where I want him to dominate. I also like the fact that he has been attacking the basket more over the second half the of year. Keep it up Wayne!

Roy Williams Radio Show Quotes
I like the radio show because it gives me something else Tar Heel related to read and blog about. This particular segment was does by Joe Holladay and he was asked this question:

On preparing a scouting report: “Eric Hoots is our video coordinator. Since the first day of the basketball season back in November, every night he’s had four or five recorders going [with the help] of DirecTV and satellites. So we have recorded every basketball game on television this year. So when the brackets are announced, we’ve got 10-15 games of Syracuse, 15 games of Oklahoma and 15 games of Gonzaga. We’re prepared. So the first thing you do is you start watching tape, and that’s what C.B. [McGrath] is doing right now on this Gonzaga team, and then we’re seeing what we can do against them and what weaknesses they may have or what strengths that we have that might affect them.”

Having Holladay do this radio show and McGrath watching tape made me think of something: I love the assistant coaches. I think they do a good job. If you watched the senior night speeches, all of them mentioned the different coaches and how thankful they were for them. I don't know a lot about them, but I know they do a great job. I hope they never leave, but at the same time, wish them the best, so if they do move on - good luck - unless you go to Duke.

Other Notes
1. Ty Lawson looks to be a go this weekend, which I think everyone knew anyway. He will not be 100% the rest of the season, but if Saturday taught us anything, it's that an 80% Ty Lawson is better than a 0% Ty Lawson.

2. The debate all year was who was better - Big East or ACC. Well I think the Big East answered that one, but does that mean they will stay the dominate conference? No. The ACC has easily been the top conference different years and even the Big 10 and SEC (that hurts to say). The point is that each of the major conferences has been the best at sometime since college basketball started and this year, it happens to be the Big East, so congratulations. But also keep in mind that if UNC follows my bracket picks, going through Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and then Louisville, then I'm going to tout the ACC and ask Louisville to give us the Big East trophies (Kinda like in 05 when we won the Big 10 conference - Wisconsin, Michigan State, and Illinois). One thing I would like to see is a ACC-Big East challenge. Let's face it the Big 10-ACC challenge or whatever they are calling it now does not have the luster it did in year 1 when it was any one's challenge to win and it's been like 10 years or so.

3. That's it for today. Thanks for reading and feel free to leave comments.

No, Sportsline No!

Oh Sportsline, you did it again. Just when we start thinking about national title with Lawson back, you have to go and do this. In case you don’t read the article, this is the Triumphant Tar Heel summary. Freeman questions Ty’s toughness. Now it’s not the “oh, it’s just a toe” toughness. No, it’s the injury prone toughness, specifically how it will affect his draft stock. He says that it is admirable to play through the pain, but it could hurt him in the draft if he does not heal properly or quickly. Also this is another issue about his long-term injury history with his ankle last year and now his toe.

See this is what I don’t like. I have seen several sites talking about the draft now that the NCAA tournament is here. Now players are put under more pressure to perform because if not, they don’t get a big paycheck. Seriously, why do you bring this up? I’m sure some of the players know who are scouts and who are fans and I am a fan. I do not care about where players like Ty Lawson and Blake Griffin are going to be drafted. Right now, I care about the tournament. If Ty Lawson is hurting his draft status, I don’t think he cares right now or he would be sitting on the bench. Actually, he would be playing pick-up games or watching Sponge Bob now because UNC’s season would be over.

I actually do care about where North Carolina players go, because I check up on them, but this is not the time. I’m glad the players don’t pay much attention to the media because I’m sure it would really do some damage.

So as Freeman is writing about how it could negatively affect his draft status, I think the opposite and how it could affect his draft decision. Maybe at the end of the year, this requires surgery and because it's a long recovery or something, teams won't draft him or draft him as high and he could return. Yes, it's a bit wishful thinking, but anything is possible.

Random Blog Notes
1. After the season is over, I will be doing a season in review post and a player-by-player season review, starting with the freshman and working my way up.

2. I am a "what if" kind of guy and I will be throwing hypothetical posts out here (like the Lawson-doesn't-go-pro scenario). Just for example, what if Jamison and Carter had stayed? Or what if any of the 3 juniors stayed after the 05 season? What if Wayne Ellington hits the 3 against Georgetown? Those are just to wet the appetite for awhile. These are gonna be sweet!

3. No news on Lawson's toe, but apparently, after the Duke game, he did some home remedy and that was why it swelled up so much. So Lawson, don't do that again.

Round 2 - Fight!

Dear Ty Lawson,

Thank you for playing today and putting on a wonderful show. I hope you are able to walk tomorrow and can rest up for the Gonzaga game.

Sincerely,

Triumphant Tar Heel

Wow! Did you see him? I think I heard his toe pop a few times too. Insane game. How tough is Ty? Too tough. That killer crossover? AMAZING! The 3 pointers? CLUTCH! The and-ones? HOLY! Magical, extraordinary, jaw-dropping. And that was just the 2nd half.

But were you worried? I was for awhile. You really never knew when the toe would suddenly break off and then it's just Bobby. Apparently Larry Drew hurt his back in practice, so we again, had very little for a back court (Remember when we were so deep at the beginning of the season?). LSU came swinging out of the gate in the 2nd half and Marcus Thornton was playing like a man possessed, hitting shots everywhere. Ellington had another solid game in a row. Clark Kellogg mentioned that no guard is playing better then Ellington right now and he may be correct. Again, I see the fire in his eyes, not so much this game, but overall. He had 4 assists and I thought played good defense and had the big tap out to Danny Green for 3.

Things I didn't like:
1. Larry Drew not playing much. He hurt his back during practice. That again limits our depth, which we seemingly don't have a lot of. He will probably be fine for the Zag's, but you would have liked to have seen him get some more minutes tonight to face some pressure because LSU is not Radford.

2. Danny Green not shooting well. He was 3-10 from the field, 1-4 from 3 land. His shot might be stuck in Chapel Hill the way he has been playing, but he did have 6 boards, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Like I've said before, Danny Green is the stat-stuffer and glue guy.

3. Ty Lawson playing. I know, you're thinking "What? Why? We wouldn't have won without him?" Well, like Roy said, we will never know, but this was kinda of a win-lose situation. If he doesn't play, you can't guarantee that UNC advances, but if he does play, you wonder what the effects will be on his toe come Sunday morning. Ty even said himself that the pain on a scale of 1-10, was at a 6 or 7. Not very encouraging. Sure, the game would have been different in the fact that Hansbrough would have gotten the ball more, and so would have Deon Thompson, Green, and Ellington, but we will never know.

4. Deon Thompson not playing much. Thompson didn't do much in the game and didn't play much. He was 3-3 and the jumpers looked silky smooth, but I think he didn't play much because of his defense and the athletic ability of LSU's bigs. Ed Davis seemed to match up a little better, but of the 4 bigs in the rotation, I think Hansbrough is the best to guard someone on the perimeter (like a Kyle Singler-type player). Now I haven't watched much of LSU at all (just this game actually), but it seems that Mitchell is an inside-outside player, so Hansbrough would be better suited to guard him and let Davis roam the paint (nice blocks by the way Eddy).

Things I liked:
1. Ty Lawson playing. Win-lose situation. He looked sluggish out there, easily not at 100%. He didn't look to push the ball in transition very much. He was passing the ball up past half-court. He went out and looked to be done for the game. He was a step slow, and couldn't hit anything. Then came the 2nd half and wow did he carry them. Very similarly to the Duke game at Cameron, he put the Heels on his 5'11" body and carried them. On ESPN, Steve Lavin was saying that he thought North Carolina could get to the Final 4 without Lawson. I beg to differ. He's a game-changer and I have no idea what would have happened without him, but I sure know what happened with him.

2. Defense. I believe from the 7 minute mark on, UNC went on a 21-7 run to close out the game. And they did it with defense, which led to scoring on the break. A few steals, some good rebounding, and Ty Lawson cruising. You could see Roy Williams pleading for a stop on the sideline. They forced 15 turnovers and had 11 steals, but they were out-rebounding, but they battled back on the boards because they were getting crushed for awhile. I think I saw a stat that UNC had out-rebounded LSU 10-1 the first 4 minutes of that final run. Well done Heels.

3. Advancing to the Sweet 16. I was watching the end of the Purdue-Washington game (I picked Washington, and I'm still not sure why) and when Purdue won, they were celebrating like they had just won the National Championship. We at UNC expect so much: Winning the ACC conference, beating Duke twice, winning whatever pre-season tournament we are playing in, going undefeated in our non-conference schedule, thinking we can go undefeated during the whole season. We should consider ourselves fortunate to cheer for a program like North Carolina. Roy Williams has done a great job of making our team competitive year in and year out. Are we satisfied with a Sweet 16 berth? No, absolutely not. But seeming a team like Purdue, who will not win the National Title, be super excited about advancing. This is a dream for all college basketball players and I think it's unfair that we are unhappy with things. Take last year for example, some people were calling for William's job after the loss to KU (the sticker may have had something to do with that), but he led us to the most wins in the school history, the ACC regular season, the conference tournament, and the Final 4. That's a really great season. Don't get me wrong, I want to win the National Championship and will be disappointed otherwise, but I'm just saying we should be thankful that our team is this good. Sweet 16 for the 4th time in 5 years.

Ok, LSU was a good team. They did win the SEC regular season and were probably more deserving of a higher seed, despite how bad the SEC really was, but they did give North Carolina a run for the money. But one of the biggest downfalls of LSU may have been the fact that they hadn't beaten a ranked team this season and now they still haven't. Onward Heels.

Other tournament notes
1. Wake Forest - Thanks for showing up.

2. Texas - Thank you for blowing the game against Duke. You should have won that game because Duke played poorly

3. ACC - Thanks for being a disaster in the tournament so far, except North Carolina

4. Western Kentucky - Thanks for not being able to play defense for 7 seconds at the end of your game and then failing to call a time-out.

5. UCONN has looked really good their first 2 games.

Round One - Fight!

I didn’t get to watch all of the game today. I only caught about 5 minutes in the first half, and the last 12 in the second, so I didn’t see much of the game. Anything I really am writing about the game is from the box score and highlights I’ve seen.

First, Congratulations to Hansbrough on the ACC scoring record. I remember when Redick broke it and I didn’t think it would be broken again, but at the time, I didn’t really know about this Hansbrough guy. If this were the regular season, he would probably get another column written about him on espn.com, but the Heels have their minds on bigger things.

Second, Artsiom Parakhouski, the guy who was supposed to give North Carolina fits, didn’t really too much. He struggled to a double-double, but with only 10 pts and 10 boards.

Even though Radford wasn’t the best competition, I think our make-shift point guards did well. If you don’t count the guys who get regular minutes, UNC only had 8 turnovers. One other thing to remember about our point guard situation is that Ellington, Green, and even Hansbrough can push the ball up in transition, but, yes, I would rather have Lawson running around out there.

Things I didn’t like
-It looked like Tyler was forcing it (again, remember I watched less than a half of action) with his shots. In the second half, it seemed like there were 4 or 5 possessions and Tyler shot on all of them. Typically, I don’t mind if Hansbrough takes shots, but he should be in the paint. I know he has improved his shooting, but still, take it to this team, especially in preparation for LSU, who can be hammered on the inside.

-Not much else, I could say the shooting percentage, but when it’s this type of game, it happens. Plus Mike Copeland shooting 2-7 doesn’t do much for it. But I did enjoy watching him play.

Things I liked
-Danny Green bouncing back, which I think everyone thought he would. He didn’t rely on the outside shot so much and took it in and was active on the boards. Nice job.

-Wayne Ellington dominating. He shot 11-16. I don’t care who you are playing against. That’s good. I think I’ve seen the fire in Wayne’s eyes, especially in the ACC tournament. Part of that may be because they are playing without Lawson, hence another chip on the shoulder.

-Defense. Held the Highlanders to 28% shooting (yes, they are a 16 seed, so what?) and had 11 steals and 8 blocks. The commentators said they thought North Carolina set the tone defensively. I do not know if that is true or not.



Up next is LSU and I do not know much about them. They only have 3 guys who score in double figures but from what I can gather, they can be beat on the inside. I mean, if Matt Howard can torch them for 22, then I don’t see why our bigs can’t eat their lunch in the paint. Thorton is a scorer and Wayne most likely draws the assignment from him, so good luck to him. I’m sure Bobby can play against him too. I am preparing for Ty Lawson not to play, but keep in mind; I’m a pessimist when it comes to the tournament.


One other note, I was reading Our Daily Bread this morning and they had a little devotional about Jason Ray, the old mascot, so check that out. And Go Binghamton Bearcats!

Oh It's the End of the World...

It's really not, but I did have to convince myself for a while there too. Let's face facts: ACC Player of the Year did not play, Danny Green has not been Danny Green over the last 2 games, Bobby Frasor has not played consistent point guard in almost 2 years, and Larry Drew is just a freshman running the one of the nation's top teams. Those are just North Carolina facts.

Let's face facts about FSU: Toney Douglas was 2nd in the ACC in PPG and in Player of the Year voting. The 'Noles also shot 67% in the second half, which wasn't neccessarily bad defense, it was just an amazing performance.

It's really not the end of the world. Yes, I would have liked to have won the ACC tournament, but as the years have gone by, I tend to agree with Roy: the season represents a whole year's worth of good play. The tournament only merits 3-4 good days of play. And now that Duke is in the final, it makes this loss feel worse because they really have no business being there. But let's look at the positives from this game.

*Our defense did a good job. Yes, FSU shot 67% in the 2nd half, but they were on fire. They forced 14 turnovers and had 11 steals. They were out-rebounded, but only be 1 (34-35), but with Toney Douglas being the main player, we only had a few people to run after him with Ty being out. So Bobby, Larry, and anyone else that covered him did a pretty good job.

*Ed Davis and Larry Drew looked pretty good over the last 2 games. Davis had several sweet dunks and I get so excited thinking about what he's going to do over the next few years. Drew has not been impressing me lately, but over the last two games, I think he has gained more confidence, which will only pay off in the long run. He still has a tendency to go to far in the paint or to force some things and even some of his passes were erratic even though they got to their intended target, but I feel better about him than I did 2 weeks ago.

*We shot 37% and still had a shot to tie it. In three of the four losses this season, this has been the same story. We have shot poorly, but still were in the game enough to at least go to OT. This means that the defense is keeping us in the game, even if the offense is struggling.

*Tyler Hansbrough is still pretty good. Remember when Lawson went down last year? That was when Tyler Hansbrough really went off to claim NPOY because he took over games and I think he averaged 27 and 12, or close to those numbers. I was thinking he could do the same thing and carry us in the tournament, but alas, it was not meant to be.

*Our players tried hard and will still feel this loss. In most of the post game comments, the players were disappointed, but realized that this now means that every game could be their last. But it will also serve as motivation. Here's a few of the comments:

Hansbrough: "We understand we lose now, it's over."

Lawson: “We wanted to win this tournament real bad, because we want to win every game. But they didn’t want my toe to flare up, so he decided to sit me out this game. Our big goal is to win the [NCAA] championship, so that might have played a little bit into it.”

Frasor was asked if he could accept this loss. "Live with as in accept it? No. We didn't play the way we wanted to play. We didn't get contributions from everyone. Danny's had a rough couple of games, and he usually plays better. We'll watch film and learn from it. The ultimate goal starts next weekend, and that’s what we have our eye on.”

Green: "We've got six games left."

Yes, it would have been nice to win the ACC tournament, but I would gladly take a National Championship over the ACC championship. We didn't have a ton to lose, at least from a fan's perspective because we will be a number 1 seed in the tournament. I believe this loss will help over the next few weeks. The Heels have looked committed on defense since the Maryland game and know that it is all business from here on out. Remember we ran the table in 05 after we lost in the semi-finals. We can do this! Believe!

Three side notes from this blogger. 1) Ty Lawson will be playing in the NCAA tournament, which I think everyone and their mother knew. I'm pretty confident we could have won the first game without him and even the second, depending on the draw. 2) One team I do not want to face in the tournament is Pittsburgh. 3) Uche Echefu is a senior from FSU. I remember he was a late signer and he was deciding between UNC and FSU and I was hoping he would sign with UNC because it was just after the mass exodus of 05 and we were looking at Hansbrough, David Noel, Mike Copeland, and Byron Sanders as our big men. Well, he probably would have done well under Coach Williams, but we didn't miss much. A career 7.2 PPG scorer and 4.7 RPG, but to his credit, he hits his free throws and can shoot the three. But I wouldn't say we've missed much.