NCAA WEST REGION SECOND ROUND
No. 1 CAROLINA 85, No. 9 MICHIGAN STATE 69
MARCH 23, 2024
SPECTRUM CENTER, CHARLOTTE, N.C.

UNC Scoring Leader: RJ Davis 20
UNC Rebound Leader: Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram 7
UNC Assist Leader: Elliot Cadeau 4
Team Records: Carolina 29-7, Michigan State 20-15

Carolina
... 133-49 all-time in the NCAA Tournament (the most wins in NCAA Tournament history).
... 25-8 in the round of 64 since the field expanded in 1985.
... 36-2 in NCAA Tournament games in the state of North Carolina, including 14-1 in Charlotte.
... 65-12 as a No. 1 seed.
... advanced to the Sweet 16 for the 16th time as a No. 1 seed (first time since 2019).

... advanced to a regional final for the 38th time, the round of 16 for the 36th time and to what the NCAA calls the Sweet 16 for a record 31st time.
... trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half, its largest comeback in an NCAA Tournament game since trailing Southern California by 16 in the 2007 Sweet 16 in the NJ Meadowlands.
... overcame a double-digit deficit in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since Washington led by 11 in a second round game in Spectrum Center in 2011.
... 17-0 run in the first half was UNC’s largest in an NCAA Tournament game since a 19-0 run vs. Marquette in the Sweet 16 in 2011.
... 20th game this season the Tar Heels went on at least one 10-0 run

... fifth time this season UNC went on at least a 17-point run (22 vs. Florida State, 19 vs. Notre Dame, 19 and 17 vs. UC Riverside and 17 vs. Michigan State).
... committed five turnovers, equaling the fewest this season (Charleston Southern and vs. Duke at home) and the fewest in the Hubert Davis era.
... five turnovers are the fewest in an NCAA Tournament game since UNC committed four vs. Gonzaga in the 2017 championship.
... four Tar Heels scored in double figures. UNC is 20-1 this season when four or more score in double figures.
... first time UNC was outrebounded in 25 games, since Oklahoma did so in the Spectrum Center on Dec. 20.

... made 10 three-pointers (UNC is 7-1 this season when it makes 10 or more).
... made 19 of 23 free throws for 82.6%. Carolina improved to 13-1 this season when it shoots 80% from the line.
... held an opponent to fewer than 70 points for the 18th time in 36 games.
... held its opponent to fewer than 70 points for the fifth time in eight NCAA Tournament games under Hubert Davis.

RJ Davis
... led UNC with 20 points, the 26th time he led or co-led UNC in scoring this season.
... 2,072 career points, fifth most in UNC history.
... 768 points this season, most in a season by a Tar Heel since Tyler Hansbrough’s 882 in 2007-08.
... 23rd 20-point game this season, the fifth most by a Tar Heel in a season and the most since Tyler Hansbrough had 27 in 2007-08.
... 41st consecutive game he made a three, tying Marcus Paige for the second-longest streak ever by a Tar Heel (Paige’s 41 from 2014-16). The record is 45 by Caleb Love.
... three 3FGs, the 32nd time in 36 games this season he made multiple threes.

Armando Bacot
... 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
... eighth time in eight career NCAA Tournament games he scored in double figures. His double-double streak in NCAA Tournament games ended at seven and his streak of NCAA Tournament games with 15 or rebounds ended at an NCAA record-tying six.
... 2,238 career points. He passed NC State’s David Thompson (2,310), Virginia’s Jeff Lamp (2,317) and Duke’s Mike Gminski (2,323) for ninth in ACC career scoring.

Harrison Ingram
... tied his career high with five three-pointers (also vs. Duke in Feb. 3 win in Chapel Hill).
... 17 points, most since he scored 22 vs. NC State on March 2.
... 26th game scoring in double figures this season.

Cormac Ryan
... scored in double figures for the 20th time this season and 77th time overall.
... two three-pointers, the 21st time he made two or more this season (UNC 17-4 in those games).

Elliot Cadeau
... game-high plus/minus of +20, the seventh time this season he led the Tar Heels.

Seth Trimble
... tied his career high with two blocked shots

UNC-Michigan State
... the Tar Heels are 13-4 vs. the Spartans, 6-0 in the NCAA Tournament (2-0 in the round of 32).
... was the first time the teams played since 11/26/2017 and the first time in an NCAA Tournament game since the 2009 championship game in Detroit.

6'11" athletic freshman center is transferring from Oklahoma State bc his coach got fired.

Our biggest need at the moment is a STRONG center who can defend strong/fat opposing centers. Bacot is the only guy who can do that on our current roster and he's leaving at the end of the season. I'm not sure this kid fills that role unless Jonas can get him to bulk up, but he's definitely the best center prospect in the portal so far.

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We've got a loaded staff here today. Jacob, Bryant, Trey and I are on press row, and Kevin is shooting.

Right here:

Hoggard, Atkinson and Walker who one is a junior, one is a senior and the other Walker is a graduate student average about 40 points a game with Walker leading with 18 ppg.,

The big problem is that two of that trio are 6’4 and the other is 6’1., Anyone who watched the Mississippi State game watched those three guards go off shooting threes and driving to the hole with no problems.

If Carolina has one problem that has bothered them all season is that their guards are small and teams have constantly attacked them with success.

I would not be surprised at all if Trimble gets a ton of time because of his height and defense and I would not be surprised to see Ryan playing at two allowing Withers to play up front with Ingram playing the three.

Michigan State like most Big ten teams are very physical and Withers should be able to help Bacot rebound both offensively and defensively.

I would prefer NOT to have Cadeau out of the lineup because of his passing skills but sometimes match ups make more sense especially in this case.

Michigan State Spartans​

20-14

CBS
3/23
5:30 PM

1

North Carolina Tar Heels​

28-7



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NORTH-CAROLINA Odds: Schedule, Matchups, & Stats - VegasInsider​

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Gone, gone, gone! The G League Ignite team was 2-18 his past season. OUCH! NIL strikes again folks.

" Between the struggles of the Ignite and the dawning of college basketball’s NIL era, it’s easy to wonder if the NBA has the appetite anymore to pay top prospects to develop in the G League. The Ignite does not have a public commitment from a top prospect in the 2024 class, though five-star Karter Knox has said he’s considering the G League route. Of the current players with the Ignite, only promising 17-year-old Dink Pate has said he intends to return'.
The comments that Silver made during All-Star weekend will only fuel speculation about whether the Ignite continues beyond this season and, if so, in what form.

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/nbas-g...longer-exist-after-this-season-201858783.html

https://pr.nba.com/nba-g-league-ignite-final-season/

https://pr.nba.com/nba-g-league-ignite-final-season/

...and we took care of business.

Look, this was your basic 1/16 game where ya just don't wanna end up on the wrong end of a trivia question, so yeah... TCB. Not too much to talk about, but quickly:

- took us a while to get our continuity in place, which happens after conference tourneys. We looked like a combination of too hyped-up (EC) and searching for our "legs" to get into the flow (Seth) but we never let them seriously challenge, and more than answered all their efforts at runs.

- the obvious remedy was getting the rock INSIDE and we did that early and got a smaller team in foul trouble --- even went Big at one point with Ingram at the 3. --- but, geez, we need to finish better Saturday! Mando had big numbers but it ain't gonna be that easy vs MSU.

- Fortunately, Withers put on an energy show in his homecoming --- cleaning up misses, defending, running the floor. Man, I hope he comes back next season.

- Some of the sloppiness with the rock we need to credit to Wagner's staff doing a good job of scouting our transition tendencies, and doing a really good job of getting into defensive transition lanes. That finally disappoeared once they were gassed in the second half.

- speaking of that, sticking with it was key. We didn't press, but starting off in 24 immediately set a tone and we were actively forcing tempo, then pushing the rock. As as a result we had HALF of our points in transition, mostly the Secondary.

- due to the above, and then with them going Zone, we seldom resorted to set plays, and with their overplaying of entries, RJ went to town, and the skip passes were always open.

- finally, Pax's minutes were very productive and Cormac was in constant motion, which paid off. Also good to see some Blue Steel minutes and congrats to Rob Landry for getting some points in a NCAAT box score!

Anyway... that one is outta the way, but now it gets real. The only down side of being a 1-seed is that your 2nd round opponent is gonna be a legit threat coming outta the 8/9 and we all know that Izzo's teams always peak in March. We are better --- but that works ONLY if we come to play like it's dook across the way! Our Guards better be locked in on both ends, our frontcourt guys better be ready to finish thru CONTACT, and fight for every rebound...

Michigan State and North Carolina are ranked 6th & 7th respectively in KenPom’s Adjusted Defensive Efficiency ratings. Tar Heels are at their best in these type of games. They stay more buttoned up. I'm actually more concerned about a potential Sweet 16 game with Alabama as far as playing style is concerned. The Heels can tend to lose their possession by possession defensive intensity in those type of games. But back to this one. UNC is undefeated when giving up 70 points or less, and I think they keep it om the right side of that total. North Carolina 72 Michigan State 70 in a back alley battle.