Quick stuff (Mich St game - NCAAT)...

[gary-7]

...and as the old watch commercial goes, we took a lickin' and kept on tickin'.

So yeah, scary scenario early --- MSU being allowed to play their game and shooting outta their minds (at he start of BOTH halves), but our guys responding to adversity:

- got stuck with a zebra crew who were allowing mayhem, but that's when it's good to have our own tough-guys. And after some early, um... encouragement from Hubert, our guys gave it right back.

- we got ourselves in trouble early by letting them run their deep curl actions without much challenge, but once we brought our defense higher and made their Guards have to work for a living, they got less and less out of that.

- MSU is a "flash" opportunity team in transition, meaning they'll try to get a quick shot when it's there, but then they're gonna grind tempo. The best way to disrupt that was to get in our own transition game, and sure enough, it was key. We didn't get enough for my taste, but our bursts forced just enough tempo to make them uncomfortable.

- Nice adjustment to their block double-teams, sending Withers baseline opposite --- which convinced them to stop that noise and Mando got some nice one-on-one looks down the stretch

- despite missing too many close shots, both Mando and Ingram were grown-ass men in the trenches, and honsestly EVERYBODY who played flat got after it in the scrums for rebounds and loose balls. You hafta put on a hard-hat vs these guys on the boards, and we lost the battle there, but we cleaned the glass at crucial times in the second half.

- defense was key again... can't say enough about Mando on that end. Big guy had some key blocks, and Seth had a big stretch of saving blocks (when we had lost continuity and let them back in the game) --- even Cormac and EC got in on the block party.

- Good energy minutes again by Pax and JWash.

- Man, RJ is a tough little nut. He got the crap beat out of him and once again delivers.

- Damn... if Eliot can just get past the yips on the 3-ball. MSU basically laid his guy into the paint. I can stiill remember some teams would do that to Butter and he had to hit the occasional 3 to keep them honest --- c'mon EC, just 1 or 2 a game would make a huge difference!

- with that said, anybody who thinks he was "ineffective" must've been watching another sport. Eliot played a brilliant floor game on both ends, and once again, when he is out for any length of time our continuity disappears. For example, down 26-14 at the 9 minute mark, Eliot returns and we finish on a 26-5 run for our halftime lead, then in the second half, after letting MSU get as close as 3, he returns at the 6:57 mark and we get a 17-10 run (once stretching it to a 17 pt lead) to be up 14 by the time Hubert starts subbing offense/defense in the last 2 minutes.

- Finally, there are no gimmes and every team is dangerous. Moving forward, we need 40 minutes of the effort we put out once Hubert got the guys' attention!

Anyway, good to know we have guys who can play like a Ferrari but also drive the tank into the trenches. Good win and on to LA!...

 

[r_u_worthy]

Good summary Gary- flat out loved that everybody who got on the floor did something good! Bodes well moving forward. 2nd half playing through AB was really smart. HD lit a fire at that 1H media TO and the guys responded big time! Loved that too!

 

[UNC Blue Hup]

This team has it all !! EC just needs to play his game, he’ll hit a big 3 at some point. He’s valuable in so many other ways as you stated. Mondo was great tonight, this team plays together and that D was great too. I love our position now. Great write up as usual G Withers and Seth wooooeee! Go Heels !

 

[Prof C]

Major props to the bench! Washington, Withers, Seth, and Paxson battling in this game!

 

[dtodd4475]

First off I thought Hubert was EXCELLENT today. Helped change the momentum after the slow start and utilized his rotational strengths very well.

Everyone played to their strength. Cadeau not shooting, but protected the rock, and moved the rock on offense. Trimble not shooting, but dawg dee, even as a rim protecter. Withers not shooting, banging the glass for put backs. Washington his normal good 8 minutes to give Mando a blow. Even the Wojcik cameo. Our rotation knows their roles and the time expectations.

Ingram stroked it throughout, once the 3ball started to drop, after 0 - 5 start as a team we were in control. RJ and Mando per usual. Cormac good dee, timely 3's, late free throws. I almost failed to mention Mando's poised correct read kick outs when he was doubled. Much improved in that area and it was deadly today.

I also thought the refs were EXCELLENT! As almost 90% of the tournament games have been, teams are not seeing the double bonus until the last 2 minutes if at all. They are not becoming the factor for game play, make plays guys.

Sweet 16, another 4 team tourney to try to win next week.

 

[sdingeldein]

I think in the PG a questioner said EC was +20 . . ..

 

[John_Mexico]

It’s nice that we have a good number of guys who can have big night offensively, and I believe that Elliot can and will be that guy soon. I’ve been expecting another big game from him lately. I hope he keeps shooting that open 3, it will go in!

 

[FlaTarHeel]

- defense was key again... can't say enough about Mando on that end. Big guy had some key blocks, and Seth had a big stretch of saving blocks (when we had lost continuity and let them back in the game) --- even Cormac and EC got in on the block party.

- Damn... if Eliot can just get past the yips on the 3-ball. MSU basically laid his guy into the paint. I can stiill remember some teams would do that to Butter and he had to hit the occasional 3 to keep them honest --- c'mon EC, just 1 or 2 a game would make a huge difference!

1. Seth's 2nd half blocks were the biggest plays of the game in my opinion. He saved six(6) points when they cut the lead to 4 on two occasions.
2. If Elliott can get just 1 to go in his confidence will raise to another level, and it's already pretty high if you ask me.

 

[39 Feet Above Sea Level]

GDTBATH
Sparty's hot start blew Hubert's fuse and the resulting effort took us from 17-28 to 40-31 at the half.
That is a helluva Carolina run and the contributions came from EVERY player on the court.
In half two, we stopped their spurt just in time and took control right when things got tight.
We made lots of winning, hustling plays and that wins ball games!
Sweet Sixteen and Tom IzNO just can't beat the Heels when it matters.

 

[gary-7]

I think in the PG a questioner said EC was +20 . . ..

+21 I believe, and in 22 minutes. Speaks volumes.

 

[montana_heel]

Had our 3rd and 4th scorer tonight. That's all we need if we play D like this.

 

[al would]

First off .. as the NCAAT goes on the stupid mental and effort lapses will not be so easy to overcome so you best get your heads out of you headphones, boom boxes and a$$es and come to play 40 minutes out of the gate !!

Good to see Bacot FINALLY starting to show an "outside the lane game" with the nice baby hooks and baseline jumpers from 10 ft. Something I have bitched about since his 2nd yr.

I have been one of Seth's biggest fans for his defensive prowess all year and tonight he was exceptional!! but I'm not sure how good him and RJ are on the floor together?? UNC's offense just does not flow as well without EC on the court .. is what it is.

Yuge props to the both Wash and Wit !! There was a time when us fans might cringe a bit when Wash came in but no more, at least not me. He just continues to blend in and do the little things be it moving without the ball, rim protecting, put backs and clean-up on misses ... he just keeps improving and moving better each game. Withers is the same. He has really started to exert himself as the season has gone on too. Grabbing boards, PLAYING PHYSICAL,.. and providing quality minutes whenever he's on the floor.

Last but certainly not least .. EC .. you are the only one that makes the motor run like it should but your outside shot needs help. I'm not a shooting guru but it just looks like your shooting with to much arm and to little wrist but it will come in time and hopefully sooner rather than later but with your intuitive pg skills, and your quickly improving defensive chops, this team would really struggle without you.

Onward we go with a great win but the mission is not complete. GO HEELS !!!!

 

[Rabidfrog]

Listening Tom Izzo’s Presser he was respectful of us… but he was I think really disappointed because he felt they were positioned to make a run in the tourney. Sounded like he was expecting a long run and we got in their way. He felt this was a reaaaaally good team he had.

Speaks
1) to how good we needed to play to beat them
2) how all of us who felt this was a haaaaaard matchup, were reading the situation correctly… and we still won by double digits.
3) HD new rotation has been great for keeping us fresh - we struggle a bit in the first half because of it, but can also close games sooooo much stronger playing deep. His continued wrinkle adds some on O are also making us harder to defend (withers crashing on the double for a pass, EC setting screens for RJ when his man sags off, etc)

 

[Heels5150]

And we’re off to another record Sweet Sixteen!!! This was a great win against a very dangerous second round opponent in Mich. St. Starting games so slow needs to end now! We can’t afford to keep digging ourselves into holes and fighting our way back. Paxson did a great job in helping igniting our run in the first half. His 2 assists and 2 rebounds were infectious with both assists coming on three pointers. EC did a great job in managing the game! I was happy and proud of him by taking the open three point shots that were given to him. Be confident and let them fly and when they start to fall that should put the fear of God into opposing teams! When EC came back into the game late in the second half and he immediately took the ball to the rack and made the layup I said that’s the game right there. I thought RJ had a very poor second half by his standards. Btw, what does RJ have to do to get ref’s to blow their whistles when he gets hit on his jump shots in every single game??? He gets hit in the face and or knocked down in every single game in that he plays to no avail by the refs. I loved seeing the team shaking off their slow start by getting completely fired up and locked into the game. I did get concerned that both Ingram and Bacot were getting close to being T’d up for taunting by talking to the MSU players.Trimble’s blocks along with his defense were huge in the second half. Cormac’s driving to the basket is great at times but he needs to be smarter in doing so because he is not athletic enough to make contested layups. Withers had some key plays but he scares me to death. Only 16 Teams left, let’s keep it going Tar Heels!!!!!!!! GDTBATH

 

[Indy_Heel]

I was surprised to see Bacot only had 7 rebounds. He was so active felt more like 11+. lol. Oh well if Ingram keeps hitting those wide open shots we will be hard to beat. The rim protecting against Hoggart made him crap himself and stopped trying to drive to hoop. You could see him hesitate and think about it.

Paxson’s Assist highlight
Paxson’s assist to Davis on that big run with the no look run away with the hand up in the air celebrating before the ball even when it in for 3... priceless! He’s had some good energy and contributing the last couple games in meaningful minutes.

 

[montana_heel]

Trimble's plus minus was -6 just to give you an idea how misleading that can be.

With that said. Good game by everyone. Heard or read where someone said that our players know their jobs and do a good job doing it and not straying too far away from it. Think that was spot on.

Loved how we valued the ball. Without that, we could have been down worse in the opening 10 minutes. Really showed us something by not trying to get it all back at once and just start working to reel them in. Impressive showing. So fun to watch when we get that additional scorer.

Been meaning to post this the last few weeks. If someone wanted to brag up Cadeau, I think it would be how much more effective he has become defensively. He has really progressed in that area in my view.

 

[tarwhiz]

I was surprised to see Bacot only had 7 rebounds. He was so active felt more like 11+. lol. Oh well if Ingram keeps hitting those wide open shots we will be hard to beat. The rim protecting against Hoggart made him crap himself and stopped trying to drive to hoop. You could see him hesitate and think about it.

Paxson’s Assist highlight
Paxson’s assist to Davis on that big run with the no look run away with the hand up in the air celebrating before the ball even when it in for 3... priceless! He’s had some good energy and contributing the last couple games in meaningful minutes.

Paxton could very well find himself on " One shining moment " with that play, and reaction.

 

[imajericho]

Unc did a good job being resilient today. It woulda been easy to fold when we got down big early. Instead they came back with ferocity. How about Ingram today? They said MSU highlighted him as someone who needed to be stopped or would hurt them. He hurt them alright.

 

[sdingeldein]

+21 I believe, and in 22 minutes. Speaks volumes.

Your after game posts are the reason I saunter over here off the Four Corners forum after a game. Thanks for doing so.

Yes about speaking volumes. But him shooting threes right now reminds me of Serge Zwikker shooting a long shot and telling Dean he was. wide open. Dean said, "There's a reason you're wide open . . . "

 

[sdingeldein]

I was surprised to see Bacot only had 7 rebounds. He was so active felt more like 11+. lol. Oh well if Ingram keeps hitting those wide open shots we will be hard to beat. The rim protecting against Hoggart made him crap himself and stopped trying to drive to hoop. You could see him hesitate and think about it.

Paxson’s Assist highlight
Paxson’s assist to Davis on that big run with the no look run away with the hand up in the air celebrating before the ball even when it in for 3... priceless! He’s had some good energy and contributing the last couple games in meaningful minutes.

I loved him with the three fingers up before the ball went in running back to get on D.

 

[notashelbyfan]

If Elliott can get just 1 to go in his confidence will raise to another level, and it's already pretty high if you ask me.

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

 

[TarHeelMark]

EC's already improved at the FT line, hitting 28 of his last 37 (76%). So I'm sure he'll work hard to improve his perimeter shooting in the off-season. For now, it would be fantastic if he could just hit one in the next game. I'm praying to the basketball gods that he does.

 

[RP12]

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

Nope. As pointed out his FT shooting has been solid over the last couple months. I honestly think he’s still looking for the pass as he starts his shooting motion which is just his mindset. Add to that a definite hesitation due to confidence and that what is keeping him from being serviceable from 3.

 

[Kool1234567]

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

It’s just strange…I have watched his HighSchool games and he is knocking them down like it’s nothing…He has to keep shooting it…He has to give this team some points…Early in the season he looked good on the pull up jumper for 2…Good lord if he could get it going this Team takes a huge leap on what it could do in this Tournament..

 

[DSouthr]

First thing, about Paxon's walk away assist for the trey from RJ, Pax, you better be glad that shot from RJ dropped...

This was a powerful win, MSU is a solid team but you knew that a Izzo coached team was not going to be easy. It was really physical and I would rather see that than those quick whistle games where fouls were called early season because the ref assumed there was going to be a foul. Felt the refs called the game same for both sides, about all we can ask for.

Big time scoring game from Ingram, after bit of a slow start, felt he was about due for a solid scoring game. Early game Hubert pulled Cadeau and Ingram and Withers and Seth came in, felt like JWit gave us some good energy and paved the way for Ingram to take it up a notch when he came back in. I will get to Seth in a second. Izzo was bringing a hard double to Bacot on the catch but rather than force Bacot to turn toward the double they gave him the base line? LOL When they did start to try to turn Bacot in to the help we got some nice off side cuts and Bacot found the cutter, JWit had a really nice one. After that early foul I don't recall Bacot picking up another one. Between Bacot, Ingram, and Bacot, we see your physical play and we raise you, now go find a dentist. LOL

Didn't feel like this MSU team was great in any particular aspect but they were good in about every aspect, not great jump shooting team but still pretty good. Point being they didn't hit a lot of hard shots but they didn't miss a lot of easy ones either. WE got down 12-14 early and stormed back with a great extended run, thankfully we started running guys off the 3pt line and they could not match us shooting 2s, add in a forced TO here and there and our margin built after they had spurts to begin both halves.

Ryan chipped in some needed buckets and played really solid defense, Jalen came in and showed why I want him to look for that jumper more, love to see what this kid would do with 10 shots in a game? Paxon, moving past the walk away assist (LOL) kid has given us something good the last 3 or 4 games he has played, he has been played some really nice defense lately, those couple games where Seth was out with the concussion seems to have helped Paxon find his legs, wish his jumpers would fall for him.

Seth Trimble, I just can't help but think, every coach in the country wants a kid like that on his team. I mean he is un-selfish to a fault, he is like Kenny Williams in that aspect. He is a bit to hesitant at times, I said to a fault didn't I? LOL But as a defender, I have watched Beekman play, have watched a lot of guards play, I have not seen a better on ball guard defender in the country nor a more athletic guard. Weird thing seemed to happen in that game, I think they give credit to Seth and Cadeau, if not they should, those 2 PGs each blocked MSUs center's shot and Seth's he went up up and up to block it, freakin amazing! That on ball defense, being able to put Seth on the other teams hot guys is such a weapon. Because as of late Seth has been coming in for Cadeau which move RJ to the point, we are going to play slower, any time RJ is our PG we play a half court game mostly so our pace is going to be slower with Seth in and the +/- stuff reflects some of that just should not be put on Seth, he isn't handling the ball and offenses are not going on runs scoring over him.

Ah, the mercurial Cadeau, best he has played in my view since we played duke last or should I say since we beat duke last? LOL Did he give a open court TO, I don't recall one off top head, solid assist game. One decision, son, your 6'10" 245lbs center is running hard and he has a defender in front of him, appreciate you wanting to run the secondary but maybe don't give it to your big man in that position because it is a charge waiting to happen. Now as for Cadeau's jump shooting, his form is awful, so was Reggie Millers, kid shoots exclusively on feel and it is in his head. The other team is giving you a wide open look, all the commentators said he has to take those shots, no he doesn't, in fact why would you want him to take a shot be does not believe he can make? Taking a shot you do not believe 100% you will make for a guard is nearly the same as a open court TO, it leads to a board and a break op to many times. As Roy said many times, son there is a reason they are leaving you wide open, they want you to shoot it. Should we do what the other team wants us to do or do we dictate what we do? Drive and force a defender to commit to you and look to kick it. My game ball goes to Ingram but RJ gets a solid mention because he didn't force things, he picked his ops and trusted his mates!

Big time power win against a darn good team that is better than it's record just not at our level, even thou UNC plays out of the ACC, you know, the conference that is supposed to be so weak and all? LOL Someone remind me again, how strong is the SEC, Big 10, and the Great 8 or so Kansas led conference again? UNC and the wuff wuffs are in the sweet 16, duke very likely to punch their ticket today and if Clemson can find some magic to get past Baylor we could see a full quarter of the sweet 16 be ACC teams but the ACC is so weak? LOL

 

[gary-7]

Your after game posts are the reason I saunter over here off the Four Corners forum after a game. Thanks for doing so.

Yes about speaking volumes. But him shooting threes right now reminds me of Serge Zwikker shooting a long shot and telling Dean he was. wide open. Dean said, "There's a reason you're wide open . . . "

You're welcome and I appreciate it.
Yeah, it has gotten in Eliot's head. If you noticed on his and-1 shot it was just instinct and he looked like he did in HS, but he's clearly thinking before he shoots open 3s.

 

[gary-7]

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

It most certainly is a confidence issue.

 

[gary-7]

Nope. As pointed out his FT shooting has been solid over the last couple months. I honestly think he’s still looking for the pass as he starts his shooting motion which is just his mindset. Add to that a definite hesitation due to confidence and that what is keeping him from being serviceable from 3.

100% ^^^

 

[UNC-75]

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

But it is clearly improving. I believe he hit the rim once yesterday. 😩

 

[dtodd4475]

Nope. As pointed out his FT shooting has been solid over the last couple months. I honestly think he’s still looking for the pass as he starts his shooting motion which is just his mindset. Add to that a definite hesitation due to confidence and that what is keeping him from being serviceable from 3.

In the MSU game it seemed like all of his attempts were from a stationary starting point, an afterthought basically. I would like him to step into one by getting into shooting position when he receives the kick out or swing pass.

 

[DSouthr]

I disagree his shooting isn't a confidence issue, his shooting issues are he just can't shoot you don't fix that with just seeing a couple go in.

MSU stood 6 feet from him when we was beyond the line and dared him to shoot it and he did 4 times and missed them all.

This has to be fixed in the off season, with work in the gym, I feel he will put that work in and we will see it next year.

A kid like Cadeau that struggles to jump shoot does so for 1 of 3 reasons, either form, feel, or confidence. Cadeau has a shooters feel, his form is terrible, his confidence in that shot is zero, he is now trying to steer it in. But you can build a solid shot off of feel as your starting point, he should spend a lot of time with Marcus in the coming off season. When you see a shooter start to try to steer it in rather than just shoot it you have to realize it is a confidence problem, Seth has a confidence problem with his jumper as well. On the other hand you look at a shooter like RJ, solid form but RJ 100% believe every shot he takes will go in, you have that kind of belief in your shot and the bank will even be open at times. Reggie Miller was one of the best shooters in the NBA in his playing days and had awful form but he had that great release and superior confidence.

I agree, it is going to take a lot of work, but the kid is a gym rat and is a great place to start. I don't think he will ever really be seen as a great jump shooter but he doesn't have to be, he just needs to shot well enough that defenders can not afford to play him exclusively to drive. I expect every team we play here on out will give Cadeau open looks from outside and if he does not feel great taking the shot don't take it. Set him a screen to allow him to drive and force the defense to react and look off that drive to pass it rather than try to finish, unless he has a clean path to the basket. A wrinkle I would love to see, bring Jalen in, have Jalen set a screen for Cadeau to drive and have Jalen slip out off the screen for his jumper, RJ did this a couple times recently with Jalen and both times Jalen splashed treys.

 

[Heelicious]

Trimble's plus minus was -6 just to give you an idea how misleading that can be.

With that said. Good game by everyone. Heard or read where someone said that our players know their jobs and do a good job doing it and not straying too far away from it. Think that was spot on.

Loved how we valued the ball. Without that, we could have been down worse in the opening 10 minutes. Really showed us something by not trying to get it all back at once and just start working to reel them in. Impressive showing. So fun to watch when we get that additional scorer.

Been meaning to post this the last few weeks. If someone wanted to brag up Cadeau, I think it would be how much more effective he has become defensively. He has really progressed in that area in my view.

Great post. I agree with all of this. I know probably few others think this way - I sure want them to go as far as capable, and hang another natty banner - like we all do, but getting to S16 winning the ACC outright and sweeping Dook - when we were picked to finish 3rd in the conference, with a bunch of question marks via transfer portal - it’s already been a successful season beyond my expectations. Miles beyond last year - with many of same players and all same coaches.

I think like people have said above - EC contributed way more than what showed in the box score. Seems he should have more than 4 assists especially if you would count them like hockey assists. I didn’t think he made any bad plays yesterday. Zero tos, played with hustle and great attitude, solid on d. I don’t even think he needs to contribute from 3. Rj HI Cormac are enough. If they leave him wide open he can pull up closer for say a ft line shot, or drive and dish where he’s at his best.

And Trimble. What can you say? How lucky are we to have him? Can jump out of the gym. His blocks are just huge motivation swingers.

And how awesome is it to have someone we can place on someone from other team who is best scorer or in fire that day, and hubs and Trimble say “ nice. Cute. But your day of scoring is basically over!” Man is he LOCKDOWN!

 

[DSouthr]

It’s just strange…I have watched his HighSchool games and he is knocking them down like it’s nothing…He has to keep shooting it…He has to give this team some points…Early in the season he looked good on the pull up jumper for 2…Good lord if he could get it going this Team takes a huge leap on what it could do in this Tournament..

Hey, want to see some really cool stuff go back and watch Seth play in high school, it blew my mind! LOL Cadeau in high school ball, don't know that I have ever seen a more confident guard totally dominate games. The kid totally believed that he was the best player on the court, no matter who his teams played. Welcome to college young man, he has now had to learn that he is not the best player on the court and that shakes a kid. Stuff he used to be able to get away with in high school isn't the same when you are playing grown men that are all former high school stars.

Now what I am waiting to see consistently from this kid, that I have seen flashes of but not consistency is for him to just lose himself in the game, not thinking but reacting. I watch RJ play, in most of his games and in every game where he really gets off, you can see it, RJ gets lost in the game, he couldn't tell you how many points he has, at times I doubt he even knows what the score is, the crowd doesn't matter, everything seems to slow down, you are tuned in to the flow of the game and nothing outside of that matters. That is the place Cadeau went to in high school, he lost himself into the flow of the game. Cadeau is thinking to much, sounds strange but thinking is bad for a player, you don't have time to think and your brain can make you think the wrong thing. You only have time to react so you have to train your reactions. RJ does not think, he reacts properly due to the work he has put in both on and off the court. That is why you run the same drills over and over in practice, to train your reactions, that is why you hear DO IT AGAIN so dang many times! LOL

 

[Heelicious]

Unc did a good job being resilient today. It woulda been easy to fold when we got down big early. Instead they came back with ferocity. How about Ingram today? They said MSU highlighted him as someone who needed to be stopped or would hurt them. He hurt them alright.

Right on. I think they lose this game last year. Totally different better play together toughness mentality from players and hubs this year.

 

[Heelicious]

Paxton could very well find himself on " One shining moment " with that play, and reaction.

Maybe so. And loved what he contributed yesterday.

In a time of all around questionable hair styles he needs a haircut consultation IMO. 😏

 

[TarHeelMark]

And Trimble. What can you say? How lucky are we to have him? Can jump out of the gym. His blocks are just huge motivation swingers.

And how awesome is it to have someone we can place on someone from other team who is best scorer or in fire that day, and hubs and Trimble say “ nice. Cute. But your day of scoring is basically over!” Man is he LOCKDOWN!

Those blocks by Seth were HUGE, especially that one on the dude that's about a foot taller than him. I think all 3 were when Sparty was still within a couple possessions, and then we went on that 14-2 (IIRC) run to put the game away.

 

[Heelicious]

Nope. As pointed out his FT shooting has been solid over the last couple months. I honestly think he’s still looking for the pass as he starts his shooting motion which is just his mindset. Add to that a definite hesitation due to confidence and that what is keeping him from being serviceable from 3.

I agree. Anyone can see he’s thinking about the threes too much instead of just taking them. Hesitating. “Are you really daring me to take this shot?” “Yep. We’re daring you.”

At that point it’s too late and I feel his chances go way down, overthinking it and over aiming and over wishing it to go in. At that point he’s better off driving toward the lane, drive and dish or get the 8-10 foot jumper.

 

[gary-7]

I think like people have said above - EC contributed way more than what showed in the box score. Seems he should have more than 4 assists especially if you would count them like hockey assists. I didn’t think he made any bad plays yesterday. Zero tos, played with hustle and great attitude, solid on d. I don’t even think he needs to contribute from 3. Rj HI Cormac are enough. If they leave him wide open he can pull up closer for say a ft line shot, or drive and dish where he’s at his best.

Yep, and he also freed up several of his teammates' 3s with impromptu screens.

 

[gary-7]

Right on. I think they lose this game last year. Totally different better play together toughness mentality from players and hubs this year.

Yep, and as we know, that could be said of more than one game this season.

 

[TarHeelMark]

I agree. Anyone can see he’s thinking about the threes too much instead of just taking them. Hesitating. “Are you really daring me to take this shot?” “Yep. We’re daring you.”

At that point it’s too late and I feel his chances go way down, overthinking it and over aiming and over wishing it to go in. At that point he’s better off driving toward the lane, drive and dish or get the 8-10 foot jumper.

The overthinking / hesitation was reminiscent of Leaky's first few seasons, wasn't it? But to his credit, Leaky did make them at ~33% his senior year. I'd love to see Elliot make 1 of 3 per game right now.