Quick stuff (FSU game)...

[gary-7]

...and here comes Carolina.

I didn't have sound, so yeah, I had to wonder if Wes used his dad's comeback catch-phrase?
But yeah, that was a Carolina classic.

- was afraid we might have a let-down between TN and UConn, and boy, did we.,. everybody not named Cadeau or Bacot looked like they were running thru syrup...;. we weren't stepping into shots with confdence, got out-scrapped for loose balls and our 3-point defense was non-existent.

- granted, you could usually leave those guys in a gym by themselves and they couldn't shoot like that, but we gave too little reisstance in the first half, and meanwhile, we couldn't hit crap from deep

- all this while Roger's crew allowed a first half of FSU mugging, undercutting, phony head-snapping and cheap shots, and we didn't finish thru contact.

- BUT... as I've said over and over, yer gonna have those days, and the key to being a championship team is how you react

- So.,.. three things turned this one around at the half, even though we still clunked 3s:
1. Looked like Hubert's exasperated lobbying finally took on the zebras, as they actually started calling the mayhem
2. We started finishing better, and
3. MOST OF ALL, we hit em with Carolina Scrambles

- Look, I watched these guys blow a 17-pt lead at home to friggin UGA. They do NOT like to be pressed and I was yelling for it. Welp. Hubert delivered and we 44ed em into a 21-0 run and grabbed back control.

- on that note, their length gave us trouble, not so much at the Guard spots as the Forward spots, and as I've said, being multiple and speeding opponents up is the best way I know to mitigate that

- FT shooting continues to be a key, plus having your Big knocking them down is huge.

- on the concern side. Withers still looks lost ---- let's hope he snaps out of that --- and Cormac is visbly still not himself, having trouble with footwork on both ends. We need him healed up. Fortunately, Seth really stepped up, playing his perfect role as a defender and slasher.

- BTW ---> EC +16, Mando +15, Seth +24 (did his best work during that big run)

- RJ continues to thrive the more he plays off the ball. Little guy had 27 and some key shots and takes, but was net (-) with Cadeau out of the game

- Finally, I hope ya'll appreciated that EC steal-and-dime in one motion with his left hand... just ridiculous IQ-on-the-fly. That's just not normal, folks...

Anyway, we scroed 49 in the second half vs another strong defensive team... big comeback and an important ACC opener win. I'll take it. Let's come with out best from the tip at what will be a de facto home game for UConn...

 

[ChiShankCity]

Classic letdown and look-ahead game sandwiched in one. Good sign that they made a second half comeback. Good sign they got a win despite some regression in their shooting. Ingram wasn't going to shoot 49% from 3 all season.

One game in the next 14 days. Hopefully, it will give Ryan a chance to get healthier.

What is Withers good at? I'm genuinely curious.

I know I'll catch flack for this, but I wouldn't have cared much if we didn't win today. It was a weird sandwich game and the type of game you won't see in March when all games carry significance. I know you don't want to get in the habit of playing down to your competition, but this was a unique game on the calendar this particular season. Good sign they fought back and won. That's what good teams do.

 

[al would]

Finally, I hope ya'll appreciated that steal-and-dime in one motion with his left hand... just ridiculous IQ-on-the-fly. That's just not normal, folks...

I saw it and thought the same thing... that's instinctive and this team goes no where fast without EC on the floor because players learn good things from being around players like that .. and that's a positive. He truly is one of those special players and he's just a frosh.

Ryan really struggled on both ends of the floor and I question the minutes he's getting this soon after an ankle injury ... and it shows more on D than O. May have also been a factor in his lack of offensive rebounding and may have had something to do with both that and his shooting #'s/%.

Seth continues to impress on both ends of the floor. His athleticism is freaky and his court IQ continues to improve .. maybe another benny of being around EC.

Still wondering about Ingram ?? Terrible shooting % today. Not a good handle with not the best defensive footwork I've seen. Does a lot of things he shouldn't be trying to do at the most inopportune times (often). Thinking that's a slot Wash/position could grow in to with some more bulk and PT. Really like Wash's upside.

And last but not least I gotta give some big love to the UNC coaching staff for some really good in game coaching and using the UNC athleticism to press/scramble and totally exploiting and disrupting the FS lack of ball handling. What took you guys so long to figure it out?

Got to win the home games and defend your home turf. Great ACC win against what may well be a NCAAT team. GO HEELS !!!!

 

[al would]

What is Withers good at? I'm genuinely curious.

Taking up a scholarship roster spot ?? I really liked the 3 guard line-up today. It was the right time though.

 

[Ozheelfan]

Thanks for the write-up as always Gary.

RJ might have scored a ton, Mando another double deuce, EC controlled the tempo…. But todays MVP was the full court press.

UNC couldn’t hit the side of a barn, and you get days like that, so the press made the difference.

As for withers, I believe he has a role to play - he just needs to play it! He blocks shots, can rebound and can be a strong physical presence. He can’t dribble well, his passing should be limited to hand-offs and short outlets and he should take opportunistic baskets around the rim.

 

[dtodd4475]

Great win. When you are ice cold from 3, they are hot, and build a double digit lead your margin of error is slight.

The old adage of pressing teams not liking to be pressed was in full affect. Turned the game.

Ingram struggled offensively, but was a menace at the point of the full court pressure. Ryan struggled shooting, but battled. RJ is the bucket guy, kept attacking. Mando was Mando.

Cadeau is the difference, a DAWG, with the pure point mentality. A defensive rebound around the 8 minute mark showed me the dog, his acumen to attack when available again showed me his feel.

That is a win when it does not go right night. Great sign.

 

[Heelicious]

Classic letdown and look-ahead game sandwiched in one. Good sign that they made a second half comeback. Good sign they got a win despite some regression in their shooting. Ingram wasn't going to shoot 49% from 3 all season.

One game in the next 14 days. Hopefully, it will give Ryan a chance to get healthier.

What is Withers good at? I'm genuinely curious.

I know I'll catch flack for this, but I wouldn't have cared much if we didn't win today. It was a weird sandwich game and the type of game you won't see in March when all games carry significance. I know you don't want to get in the habit of playing down to your competition, but this was a unique game on the calendar this particular season. Good sign they fought back and won. That's what good teams do.

Good post - biUt ACC is weak as we know. We don’t have luxury or cushion of losing at home to a team that might not be in top 50 at year end. We have no margin for error imo. We lose to Kentucky or UConn - ok. No shame on that. But we absolutely need to take care of biz at home against a clearly inferior team.

I have been as hard on withers as anyone but at least today he seemed to work hard on the board and not get a bunch of dumb lazy fouls, or turnovers - dribble driving into no man’s land with no chance of scoring.

 

[Heelicious]

...and here comes Carolina.

I didn't have sound, so yeah, I had to wonder if Wes used his dad's comeback catch-phrase?
But yeah, that was a Carolina classic.

- was afraid we might have a let-down between TN and UConn, and boy, did we.,. everybody not named Cadeau or Bacot looked like they were running thru syrup...;. we weren't stepping into shots with confdence, got out-scrapped for loose balls and our 3-point defense was non-existent.

- granted, you could usually leave those guys in a gym by themselves and they couldn't shoot like that, but we gave too little reisstance in the first half, and meanwhile, we couldn't hit crap from deep

- all this while Roger's crew allowed a first half of FSU mugging, undercutting, phony head-snapping and cheap shots, and we didn't finish thru contact.

- BUT... as I've said over and over, yer gonna have those days, and the key to being a championship team is how you react

- So.,.. three things turned this one around at the half, even though we still clunked 3s:
1. Looked like Hubert's exasperated lobbying finally took on the zebras, as they actually started calling the mayhem
2. We started finishing better, and
3. MOST OF ALL, we hit em with Carolina Scrambles

- Look, I watched these guys blow a 17-pt lead at home to friggin UGA. They do NOT like to be pressed and I was yelling for it. Welp. Hubert delivered and we 44ed em into a 21-0 run and grabbed back control.

- on that note, their length gave us trouble, not so much at the Guard spots as the Forward spots, and as I've said, being multiple and speeding opponents up is the best way I know to mitigate that

- FT shooting continues to be a key, plus having your Big knocking them down is huge.

- on the concern side. Withers still looks lost ---- let's hope he snaps out of that --- and Cormac is visbly still not himself, having trouble with footwork on both ends. We need him healed up. Fortunately, Seth really stepped up, playing his perfect role as a defender and slasher.

- BTW ---> EC +16, Mando +15, Seth +24 (did his best work during that big run)

- RJ continues to thrive the more he plays off the ball. Little guy had 27 and some key shots and takes, but was net (-) with Cadeau out of the game

- Finally, I hope ya'll appreciated that steal-and-dime in one motion with his left hand... just ridiculous IQ-on-the-fly. That's just not normal, folks...

Anyway, we scroed 49 in the second half vs another strong defensive team... big comeback and an important ACC opener win. I'll take it. Let's come with out best from the tip at what will be a de facto home game for UConn...

Mostly good - but it was exactly EC and rj not the wings who were getting lit up by bigger guys from fsu scoring right over the top of them or posting them up Needed the extra size of Seth in the game.

And EC was great again today. Absolutely need him 30+. But he worked his way to he bench by getting two fouls early in first half

 

[TarHeelTroy]

Good to get the W even though we were lost for the first 25 minutes of the game clock. Looked like a sure loss was coming. Hope we put together a full A game for UCONN.

Hope Boeheim never sits in on another one of our game broadcasts. 🤢

 

[Heels5150]

Nice write up Gary as always, thx, We have to get more out of our veteran transfers in Withers, Cormac and Paxson. Cormac’s intensity is there but his focus is not. He is really struggling on both ends of the court. Withers is just clueless and I’m not trying to be mean. The loose ball in the first half where he literally just stood there and watched the ball get stolen thinking RJ was going to get it was hard to watch. Hubert thankfully pulled him right after that as opposed to leaving him in the way he did in the Tennessee game. We were very fortunate to comeback after such a very poor shooting day. Credit Hubert for pressing and the guys getting after it on the defensive end. We didn’t move well without the ball on offense. Bacot was visibly frustrated. Bacot near the end of the game made a very bad decision for a fifth year graduate Senior in which RJ passed him the ball as we were trying to melt the shot clock with 4 and a half minutes left (terrible decision by Hubert) and he tries to make a move with literally 3 guys on him and the ball gets stolen for a break away layup. These are the type of plays in which Bacot has to be much smarter in his decision making. I will say it again our inbounds plays are terrible and they need a lot of work. When we play better guard oriented teams this will continuously be an issue unless this gets addressed. It sure looked like we got more steals than we were credited for in the game. EC and Seth had some incredible drives to the basket in the second half. So happy and proud of Seth. Man, You can just see EC getting better and better as he is getting more comfortable and acclimated to Division One Ball. The kid is so gifted and fun to watch. It was great win in our Conference opener but we can’t play like that going forward. As we have seen you have to bring it every night. In just the last two days Uncw has beaten UK at Rupp, dook goes down at Ga. Tech, Northwestern beats Purdue…etc. Our shots might not fall but our effort needs to always be there.

 

[DaveChapelle]

Any Trimble news?

 

[al would]

the extra size of Seth in the game.

Thinking Seth might be thinking his best option to get in the NBA is as a pg ... although I'm not sure what he calls himself now. Seth has developed a "go" gear to the rack we haven't seen at UNC in a while. And a fng horse fly on D. Loving his game more every time I see him play !! Would love to see Seth spell EC and RJ both. Thinking he has some serious upside on both ends of the floor too. UNC should strive to duplicate the first half ot the TN game and the second half of the FS every time they hit the floor. Sammy Hagar and VH said it .. "Best of Both Worlds" !

 

[al would]

Bacot near the end of the game made a very bad decision for a fifth year graduate Senior

A couple time's especially with some really stupid fouls on O&D .. a 6'11 6th yr. senior should not be playing defense with his hands below his waist and how many yrs. does it take playing to figure out if you dip your lead shoulder whilst going forward if you make contact with an established defender you gonna get called for it !!

 

[gary-7]

A couple time's especially with some really stupid fouls on O&D .. a 6'11 6th yr. senior should not be playing defense with his hands below his waist and how many yrs. does it take playing to figure out if you dip your lead shoulder whilst going forward if you make contact with an established defender you gonna get called for it !!

Guys, it would behoove some of y'all to step back and appreciate what Mando brings to the table in the trenches. He DOES move his feet, which is why he is an effective defensive presence despite not being a traditional rim-protector.

JWash has mad offensive skills but his feet still get him caught out of defensive position too often.

Moreover, today Mando took a pounding and cheap-shot fest and mostly kept his cool. BTW, I LOVED Ingram stepping in and mocking #5 of FSU for his flops. What an ass-clown that guy was.

 

[tarwhiz]

Any Trimble news?

He Is good according to radio broadcast after game. He got elbow to the hip, so just a bruised hip

 

[dtodd4475]

Good to get the W even though we were lost for the first 25 minutes of the game clock. Looked like a sure loss was coming. Hope we put together a full A game for UCONN.

Hope Boeheim never sits in on another one of our game broadcasts. 🤢

I actually liked Boeheim today on the call

 

[tarwhiz]

Guys, it would behoove some of y'all to step back and appreciate what Mando brings to the table in the trenches. He DOES move his feet, which is why he is an effective defensive presence despite not being a traditional rim-protector.

JWash has mad offensive skills but his feet still get him caught out of defensive position too often.

Moreover, today Mando took a pounding and cheap-shot fest and mostly kept his cool. BTW, I LOVED Ingram stepping in and mocking #5 of FSU for his flops. What an ass-clown that guy was.

Mando had his best defensive game in some time today. He was so active with his hands and blocked numerous shots. He was quick on his feet and stayed today. front of p n r guards today.

 

[dtodd4475]

Thinking Seth might be thinking his best option to get in the NBA is as a pg ... although I'm not sure what he calls himself now. Seth has developed a "go" gear to the rack we haven't seen at UNC in a while. And a fng horse fly on D. Loving his game more every time I see him play !! Would love to see Seth spell EC and RJ both. Thinking he has some serious upside on both ends of the floor too. UNC should strive to duplicate the first half ot the TN game and the second half of the FS every time they hit the floor. Sammy Hagar and VH said it .. "Best of Both Worlds" !

As for Seth's pro game, I don't see any chance unless he does one thing, SHOOT IT AT A HIGH RATE. He is undersized as a 3 and dee not an overly athletic 2 by pro standards, and has no point guard attributes. Great 4 year guy in college for a team. Glad to have him.

 

[dtodd4475]

Guys, it would behoove some of y'all to step back and appreciate what Mando brings to the table in the trenches. He DOES move his feet, which is why he is an effective defensive presence despite not being a traditional rim-protector.

JWash has mad offensive skills but his feet still get him caught out of defensive position too often.

Moreover, today Mando took a pounding and cheap-shot fest and mostly kept his cool. BTW, I LOVED Ingram stepping in and mocking #5 of FSU for his flops. What an ass-clown that guy was.

Agreed, Mando is what he is. That is a really good upper classman power guy, demands doubles, can defend. He works hard, and with the covid year he is even more of a physically developed force on the college level. He is still here for a reason, but he is what he is, and that is great for this college roster.

His immense free throw improvement is MAJOR !!!!

 

[TarHeelMark]

His immense free throw improvement is MAJOR !!!!

For sure! It's amazing to see this big of a jump after 4 years.

 

[Heels5150]

Thinking Seth might be thinking his best option to get in the NBA is as a pg ... although I'm not sure what he calls himself now. Seth has developed a "go" gear to the rack we haven't seen at UNC in a while. And a fng horse fly on D. Loving his game more every time I see him play !! Would love to see Seth spell EC and RJ both. Thinking he has some serious upside on both ends of the floor too. UNC should strive to duplicate the first half ot the TN game and the second half of the FS every time they hit the floor. Sammy Hagar and VH said it .. "Best of Both Worlds" !

My favorite band of all time Van Halen! lol

 

[Indy_Heel]

Someone mention we need better inbound plays. Don’t disagree but go back and watch the defender in this game. He was guarding with his feet out of bounds. I know it happens on inbounds for everyone but today seemed worse than normal. Like the one inbounds near the end when Ryan was inbounding. The defender had his whole foot out of bounds while he deflected the ball. Don’t care how good of plays you have, hard call a play to beat that. Probably the same Ref missing that is the same ref who called PJ for tripping.

 

[FlaTarHeel]

- granted, you could usually leave those guys in a gym by themselves and they couldn't shoot like that, but we gave too little reisstance in the first half, and meanwhile, we couldn't hit crap from deep

- So.,.. three things turned this one around at the half, even though we still clunked 3s:
1. Looked like Hubert's exasperated lobbying finally took on the zebras, as they actually started calling the mayhem
2. We started finishing better, and
3. MOST OF ALL, we hit em with Carolina Scrambles

- Look, I watched these guys blow a 17-pt lead at home to friggin UGA. They do NOT like to be pressed and I was yelling for it. Welp. Hubert delivered and we 44ed em into a 21-0 run and grabbed back control.


- on the concern side. Withers still looks lost ---- let's hope he snaps out of that --- and Cormac is visbly still not himself, having trouble with footwork on both ends. We need him healed up. Fortunately, Seth really stepped up, playing his perfect role as a defender and slasher.

- BTW ---> EC +16, Mando +15, Seth +24 (did his best work during that big run)

- RJ continues to thrive the more he plays off the ball. Little guy had 27 and some key shots and takes, but was net (-) with Cadeau out of the game

1. Fsu has these type shooting games against us and NOBODY else in America.
2. We have the depth to scramble 30 minutes a game if he would use it.
3. My alma mater(UF) beat the Noles by 20. They game was never close. And trust me UF is nothing to write home about.
4. Withers is in a bad place confidence wise. You can see the doubt on his face. If he can get a few baskets early on it will help him. We are going to need his length and size at some point. We can't keep winning by trying to outscore everybody.
5. Cormac looks like Justin Pierce right now. These dudes come here with great shooting reps and can't hit the Old Well with a magic wand.
6. Our best defense to transition is with EC and Seth on the floor together.
7. RJ is a ball stopper. It's overlooked when he's knocking down shots but what happens teams start to game plan to for him?

 

[tarwhiz]

Someone mention we need better inbound plays. Don’t disagree but go back and watch the defender in this game. He was guarding with his feet out of bounds. I know it happens on inbounds for everyone but today seemed worse than normal. Like the one inbounds near the end when Ryan was inbounding. The defender had his whole foot out of bounds while he deflected the ball. Don’t care how good of plays you have, hard call a play to beat that. Probably the same Ref missing that is the same ref who called PJ for tripping.

Bobby Knight instructed Daryl Thomas to hit Iowa player ( Brad Lohaus) in the face with the ball in the late 80's when IU struggled with Dr Tom Davis full court press. Lohaus bled from the nose the whole 1st half of the game from what I remembered

 

[dtodd4475]

Bobby Knight instructed Daryl Thomas to hit Iowa player ( Brad Lohaus) in the face with the ball in the late 80's when IU struggled with Dr Tom Davis full court press. Lohaus bled from the nose the whole 1st half of the game from what I remembered

It may be overdone, but that's one thing I like about the replays, reverting to cheap shots to deal with basketball skills can't be done today, you will get caught.

Never a fan of cheap shot moves to deal with a lack of ability.

 

[gary-7]

Mostly good - but it was exactly EC and rj not the wings who were getting lit up by bigger guys from fsu scoring right over the top of them or posting them up Needed the extra size of Seth in the game.

That is simply not the case. Look, I don't mean to be prickly, but I don't track these things for my health.

Exactly three of their 3s came over our starting backcourt, and one of those was a late lomg-distance desperation that you teach NOT to contest in college (unless Steph Curry is coming back to college) because all you'll accomplish is picking up a foul.

Ryan was picked on most (but he has bad ankles) and then our front line not closing out on kick-outs or switches.

 

[gary-7]

Someone mention we need better inbound plays. Don’t disagree but go back and watch the defender in this game. He was guarding with his feet out of bounds. I know it happens on inbounds for everyone but today seemed worse than normal. Like the one inbounds near the end when Ryan was inbounding. The defender had his whole foot out of bounds while he deflected the ball. Don’t care how good of plays you have, hard call a play to beat that. Probably the same Ref missing that is the same ref who called PJ for tripping.

Actually, we have some very nice inbound plays. The key is the trigger. Guys need to cut hard to their spots.

 

[gauchoheel]

Going to say it louder for those in the back: this is a 6 man roster. No one else has shown that much this year. Withers is the same he's been his entire career: too many mistakes to add much value. Washington is the one with the best chance to be another contributor at some point, but he's not there now for numerous reasons.

RJ deserves some respect. If Cadeau had 27 and 5 this board would be over the moon raving about it. RJ has limitations, but dude is our best scorer.

 

[DaveChapelle]

Going to say it louder for those in the back: this is a 6 man roster. No one else has shown that much this year. Withers is the same he's been his entire career: too many mistakes to add much value. Washington is the one with the best chance to be another contributor at some point, but he's not there now for numerous reasons.

RJ deserves some respect. If Cadeau had 27 and 5 this board would be over the moon raving about it. RJ has limitations, but dude is our best scorer.

It's the beginning of December. We have the whole season for players to continue to grow and get better.

 

[Ozheelfan]

It's the beginning of December. We have the whole season for players to continue to grow and get better.

Agreed…. I also hope Hubert is prepared to give time to the bench against ‘softer’ opponents or during blowouts.

 

[sdingeldein]

I think Withers is blown away by having to adjust to actually playing coached basketball instead free lancing all the time. He has the skills. He will get there. This is all mental adjustment to a new situation. IMHO.

 

[gauchoheel]

It's the beginning of December. We have the whole season for players to continue to grow and get better.

Withers, Wojcik, and Okonkwo have been in college for years. They are who they are.

I have more hope for Washington of course; he can learn more on defense and get stronger over time. He doesn't kill the team when he plays but needs to do both of those things. High has some promise, but he's not skilled enough to meaningfully contribute this year I think. Hopefully he is okay with the limited role he's going to have in most games this year.

 

[tcb22]

I actually liked Boeheim today on the call

Me too. I thought he brought good insights with a sense of humor.

 

[tarwhiz]

It may be overdone, but that's one thing I like about the replays, reverting to cheap shots to deal with basketball skills can't be done today, you will get caught.

Never a fan of cheap shot moves to deal with a lack of ability.

Agree, Iowa was destroying IU with their press at home

 

[tarwhiz]

Withers, Wojcik, and Okonkwo have been in college for years. They are who they are.

I have more hope for Washington of course; he can learn more on defense and get stronger over time. He doesn't kill the team when he plays but needs to do both of those things. High has some promise, but he's not skilled enough to meaningfully contribute this year I think. Hopefully he is okay with the limited role he's going to have in most games this year.

Either Withers or High MUST give us backup min at the four that doesn't make us want to poke our eyes out. December is a great month for growth in College basketball. Lots of practice time and no school after Finals for a few weeks. This will be make or break for Withers. Shit or get off the pot for High.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I think Withers is blown away by having to adjust to actually playing coached basketball instead free lancing all the time. He has the skills. He will get there. This is all mental adjustment to a new situation. IMHO.

Fingers crossed.

 

[ChiShankCity]

Going to say it louder for those in the back: this is a 6 man roster. No one else has shown that much this year. Withers is the same he's been his entire career: too many mistakes to add much value. Washington is the one with the best chance to be another contributor at some point, but he's not there now for numerous reasons.

RJ deserves some respect. If Cadeau had 27 and 5 this board would be over the moon raving about it. RJ has limitations, but dude is our best scorer.

We have a good team but I tend to agree. I think it's an 8 man rotation with 6, maybe 7 you feel relatively comfortable with. Withers has to play because he plays an important position. Our depth has been overstated. Wojcik and High are specific, situational players right now. It would be nice to see more of High IMO, but hard to play him yesterday when you're chasing the game like that. It would be nice if Wojcik could become a legitimate rotation option.

Davis has been awesome.

We're going to need to blow some teams out. Since our depth is overstated, we're not going to get players below whatever magical minutes limit people had in mind. Our starters are going to play a lot. Unless Withers completely turns things around, we're going to be led by our starters.

And starters playing HEAVY minutes isn't unique even in December. When UConn played Kansas on Friday, UConn played 7 dudes and their bench combined for 30 minutes. Kansas played 8 dudes and their bench combined for 18 minutes.

And I hope people don't compare minutes to last year. Ingram playing 33+ minutes/game is a lot different than Leaky because Ingram is a much better all-around player. Cormac Ryan playing 30+ minutes/game is a lot different than the 30+ minutes we got from Caleb Love last year.

 

[gary-7]

Going to say it louder for those in the back: this is a 6 man roster. No one else has shown that much this year. Withers is the same he's been his entire career: too many mistakes to add much value. Washington is the one with the best chance to be another contributor at some point, but he's not there now for numerous reasons.

Sorry, but that is just incredibly short-sighted.

 

[gary-7]

I think Withers is blown away by having to adjust to actually playing coached basketball instead free lancing all the time. He has the skills. He will get there. This is all mental adjustment to a new situation. IMHO.

That's actually an interesting perspective. He indeed has skills for his size, but yes, he's obviously lost right about now. Having him playing confidently could be a big boost to the efficacy of our 4/5 rotation.

 

[tarwhiz]

We have a good team but I tend to agree. I think it's an 8 man rotation with 6, maybe 7 you feel relatively comfortable with. Withers has to play because he plays an important position. Our depth has been overstated. Wojcik and High are specific, situational players right now. It would be nice to see more of High IMO, but hard to play him yesterday when you're chasing the game like that. It would be nice if Wojcik could become a legitimate rotation option.

Davis has been awesome.

We're going to need to blow some teams out. Since our depth is overstated, we're not going to get players below whatever magical minutes limit people had in mind. Our starters are going to play a lot. Unless Withers completely turns things around, we're going to be led by our starters.

And starters playing HEAVY minutes isn't unique even in December. When UConn played Kansas on Friday, UConn played 7 dudes and their bench combined for 30 minutes. Kansas played 8 dudes and their bench combined for 18 minutes.

And I hope people don't compare minutes to last year. Ingram playing 33+ minutes/game is a lot different than Leaky because Ingram is a much better all-around player. Cormac Ryan playing 30+ minutes/game is a lot different than the 30+ minutes we got from Caleb Love last year.

Really good post. In a perfect World Leaky would have been a superior defensive piece to bring off the g e bench for 18-22 min and everyone on this board would have raved about him as a Tar Heel rotation piece. But that wasn't the case and the longer he played the more exposed his weaknesses became.