Very quick stuff (Wake game)...

[gary-7]

...and that was both a good win and (unfortunately) a must win.

Look, this is gonna be brief, because 1) I watched with nothing to write notes with, and 2) I'm only really concerned with the journey to where we need to be, as I outlined in a thread earlier this week.

- So, let's get the player stuff outta the way in one fell swoop: Leaky carried us offensively til we got our rhythm, then RJ turned into a heat-check machine, Mando looks healthier, McKoy really stepped in when needed, Seth had his best game as a Heel, Caleb stunk it up in the first half but made some huge defensive plays in crunch time, yada yada yada.

- Far more important was the process: We utilized our depth better (at keast in the first half), but make no mistake --- that unfortunate medical delay in the second ended up being a shot-in-the arm for the team, rescuing us from fatigue setting in from a shorter rotation. In fact, it was Wake who looked to be dragging in crunch time. Also, a VERY judicious timeout by Hubert when the under-4 would seemingly never come.

- Before the delay our defense had been frankly spotty, and so much of that was dependent on the given level of intensity and effort. On that note, someone on the bench musta lit the guys up during that break, because everyone went that extra step.

- The consistent bad news defensively was vs special situations, especially OB plays --- just yikes with the concentration lapses.

- But back to the process: In the middle of the second half the announcers mentioned correctly that we weren't pushing the ball (once again) as much. Fortunately, what saved us was we generated (and Wake handed us) enough TOs that those generated TRANSITION, and when we got it, we finished pretty damn well. The other trait that we occassionally forgot, but thankfully did enough of, was playing INSIDE-OUT. Mando's touches were collectively the magic touch, as it were.

Anyway, this was indeed a must-win, but the larger key is the process I outlined earlier --- getting to the point of playing 2 halves of Carolina basketball. So... are we there yet? Well, nope. BUT, if tonight was a (winning) step in that direction?... then yeah, I'll take it, and look forward to anoher step in the next one....

-

 

[Ozheelfan]

Thanks Gary.

I only watched the second half and it seemed that Trimble added some much needed energy on defense…: he fights through screens, isn’t afraid to guard a big when switched and thoroughly menaced Applebee.

Yes, he fouled a 3 pt shooter off the inbounds, but with all the great ‘D’ leading up to that foul you can take one mistake.

His presence also seemed to wake up Caleb… so much so that the 3 guard line up was pretty effective down the stretch.

I just wish Hubert would go to his bench more, especially when the most talented starter keeps missing simple lay-ups.

 

[ChiShankCity]

Good sign that we win a game despite a clunker from Caleb. Hopefully RJ can be a reliable perimeter threat the rest of the way.

Glass half empty: you probably expect a more convincing win if you get that kind of production from Leaky. Glass half full: we’ve shown we can win with a bad Caleb game.

You always look better when you make some shots.

Could it be that this is just a bad road team? Fortunately you don’t play any true road games in the tournament right?

 

[DaveChapelle]

Could it be that this is just a bad road team? Fortunately you don’t play any true road games in the tournament right?

Oh there are plenty of examples of home crowds in the tourney. Whether it's when we get a site in NC, or having to play Michigan State in Detroit back in 2009.

You might see a teak like Houston playing the Final Four in Houston this year.

 

[gauchoheel]

On-ball defense and pick-and-roll D is still really bad. Love is not himself offensively. Those are the two things to work on the next couple months IMO.

 

[Tarheel75]

Gary, I agree with you specifically about playing 2 halves of basketball. The guys seemingly wait for someone to take the lead before we get into any kind of groove on either side of the ball. Last night it was Trimble setting the tone defensively that energized the defense, which in turn energized the offense. I think that I have said many times in my history of posting that defense is the key to good offense, and it showed just that last night.

Pete is still suffering from back spasms and may miss Saturday's game against ND. I was happy to see some more help from different guys off the bench. Washington was the victim of one official- (Jeffrey Anderson). When I saw the officiating crew come onto the court, the first sentence out of my mouth was "what will he screw up tonight?". Well, if you watched it, you saw it. So, no use wasting space on that idiot.

Do we need to put Caleb Love's offensive game on a milk carton and see if we can help find it? For the most part, he was not good at all, however, he did hit a critical 3 pointer and had some nice defensive play late in this game. He's really going through a rough patch currently and we can just hope he pulls it all together soon.

I thought that Nickel would have helped us last night, but he never got the call. I, like many of you, do not understand our substitution patterns, as they definitely change from game to game. The only thing that makes sense is that from practice-to-practice different players are earning some court time. Well, I'm not going to criticize Hubert for subbing, as it just may be situational substitution.

We play ND @ 11:30 am on Saturday. They have not won a league game to date, but generally give us fits no matter how bad they are. So, it will be an interesting watch for myself. Hopefully, we will play even better than we did last night.

 

[dtodd4475]

That was as bad a offensive night as Caleb can have, I was curious how he would respond in the 2nd half while struggling. He certainly contributed in other ways, played hard in other areas, eliminated the turnovers, was good to see.

RJ was a bit passive in the 1st half, he was smokin' and seeking looks in the 2nd. When we shoot the 3 we are a different animal. Tonight it was RJ and Leaky giving that dimension to compliment Mando working inside.

The small ball 3 guard lineup was key, with creating turnovers being huge. If Nance is down for extended time, we may see much more of it. McCoy played hard, but they put him in the wash defensively, got the matchup they wanted with him and attacked him pretty easily. He gives little offensively. Puff gets muscled very easily with extended minutes at the 4. Mr. Washington hopefully is ready for more minutes.


ND does little inside, I do think the upcoming matchup gives a variety of solid options for that role though. Needed the win badly against Wake, have to get rollin' now and build some momentum.

 

[39 Feet Above Sea Level]

Good to get a win directly after the Wolf Pups steamrolled the dookies.
Crazy positive stat: Carolina scored 32 points off Wake's 15 turnovers. The defense WAS the offense.

I loved the crowd's response when Caleb finally hit that three. He exasperates
us all, but when he gets it going, we win games. Others have highlighted how the three guard lineup
energizes our defense and creates space and off the ball opportunities for RJ. That was key for the win
and l hope we see it often. Lots of guys played and those contributions were needed.

Hubert should wake these dudes at 4:30 on Saturday and make sure they are
fully awake for ND. DO NOT SLEEP ON THE IRISH!!!

 

[Tarheel75]

Good to get a win directly after the Wolf Pups steamrolled the dookies.
Crazy positive stat: Carolina scored 32 points off Wake's 15 turnovers. The defense WAS the offense.

I loved the crowd's response when Caleb finally hit that three. He exasperates
us all, but when he gets it going, we win games. Others have highlighted how the three guard lineup
energizes our defense and creates space and off the ball opportunities for RJ. That was key for the win
and l hope we see it often. Lots of guys played and those contributions were needed.

Hubert should wake these dudes at 4:30 on Saturday and make sure they are
fully awake for ND. DO NOT SLEEP ON THE IRISH!!!

Word of caution to all about the 3G line-up. It worked really well last night because our guards matched up well with Wake. Where it presents problems is when you play a team with bigger, stronger wings with quicks. Having Caleb, RJ, Dunn, & or Trimble in on a 3G line-up can be a good thing, but also, they will have to guard those players all the way to the basket, which can be dicey at best at times. Keeping the bigger, quicker wings and guards from driving or shooting over the top of you will be an issue in the games with those types of opponents.

So, be careful what you wish for.

 

[Lewis&Miller]

Just a tremendous game from Seth. He is getting more comfortable handling the ball, understanding his options when attacking the basket, and brings a much needed complete player to the lineup. He seems to be a winner, who is learning and executing(thru court time) how to attack a defense. Seth presence functions as an alternative the the monotonous high screen n roll. He is a guard that can energize Bacot(by purposely feeding him the ball) in the half court and enliven Leaky(by becoming a 94' player, not just a corner outlet in failed sets) in the full court.

Not going to happen, but give me more Trimble. His presence draws attention to what is not being done by the guard without the ball (Caleb) in the offense. Trimble is a variation to this stifled offense. He had a give and go with Bacot in the half court set that has rarely been seen from a wing this year.

Its obvious Hubert went into this game with at least one idea. That is, show he is totally committed to playing/riding with Love, regardless. That this team is only going as far as Love can take it. Just from one point of view, that game management last nite was ridiculous. Caleb Love had one of the worst games(from the get-go) and put up a game high 15 shot attempts, 1-7 from 3, 4 early turnovers(several leading to direct baskets), and yet played 38 minutes. He took almost 50% more shots than Bacot on a nite where he stunk it up from the jump. Wow.

Trimble plays team ball every possession. Carolina was built on that tradition and should be rewarded.

 

[gunslingerdick]

I actually watched the first half of last night's game and then turned it off because I was so incensed with Hubert for not sitting Love. We were up 8 points with Leaky and Love on the bench and then Hubert brings Love back in and leaves Leaky (who was having the game of his life) on the bench. Wake goes on a run and pulls within 2 due to turnovers by Love and consistently getting beaten by his man and bad shot selection.

To put it nicely, I simply don't understand WTF Hubert is thinking with his substitution patterns and I'm getting increasingly annoyed with his refusal to sit Caleb's ass on the bench until he starts playing better, showing more effort, etc.

A comment from Childress during the first half said a lot to me:

"there has never been a player in the history of UNC basketball that had the green light like Caleb Love has the green light." He said this after a possession where Love hoisted up 3 bad shots and missed them all. I took it as a slight dig to Hubert who keeps allowing Love to play this way. I just cannot understand.

 

[Tarheel75]

Just a tremendous game from Seth. He is getting more comfortable handling the ball, understanding his options when attacking the basket, and brings a much needed complete player to the lineup. He seems to be a winner, who is learning and executing(thru court time) how to attack a defense. Seth presence functions as an alternative the the monotonous high screen n roll. He is a guard that can energize Bacot(by purposely feeding him the ball) in the half court and enliven Leaky(by becoming a 94' player, not just a corner outlet in failed sets) in the full court.

Not going to happen, but give me more Trimble. His presence draws attention to what is not being done by the guard without the ball (Caleb) in the offense. Trimble is a variation to this stifled offense. He had a give and go with Bacot in the half court set that has rarely been seen from a wing this year.

Its obvious Hubert went into this game with at least one idea. That is, show he is totally committed to playing/riding with Love, regardless. That this team is only going as far as Love can take it. Just from one point of view, that game management last nite was ridiculous. Caleb Love had one of the worst games(from the get-go) and put up a game high 15 shot attempts, 1-7 from 3, 4 early turnovers(several leading to direct baskets), and yet played 38 minutes. He took almost 50% more shots than Bacot on a nite where he stunk it up from the jump. Wow.

Trimble plays team ball every possession. Carolina was built on that tradition and should be rewarded.

I and most others feel ya pain. As it stands, we are just going to have to ride it out
and hope Caleb shakes off the bad play on both sides of the ball. He can play defense and he can quit on defense, that's plain to see. What makes his engine run wide open is when he is making shots. Let's hope for the best where he is concerned.

 

[FlaTarHeel]

Washington was the victim of one official- (Jeffrey Anderson). When I saw the officiating crew come onto the court, the first sentence out of my mouth was "what will he screw up tonight?". Well, if you watched it, you saw it. So, no use wasting space on that idiot.

1. Ted Valentine
2. Bert Smith
3. Jeffrey Anderson

I'll let the board interpret that anyway they choose. 🤐

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Player	1st half min	2nd half min	Total min
BLACK,L	14	20	34
LOVE,C	18	20	38
DAVIS,R	18	20	38
BACOT,A	18	20	38
NANCE,P	2	0	2
TRIMBLE,S	8	14	22
DUNN,D	3	0	3
WASHINGTON,J	4	0	4
JOHNSON,P	4	0	4
MCKOY,J	11	6	17

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Do we need to put Caleb Love's offensive game on a milk carton and see if we can help find it?

LOL

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I thought that Nickel would have helped us last night, but he never got the call. I, like many of you, do not understand our substitution patterns, as they definitely change from game to game.

Has Hubert given up on some of these guys - Puff, Styles, Nickel - or are there other reasons why they aren't getting minutes?

 

[DSouthr]

Player	1st half min	2nd half min	Total min
BLACK,L	14	20	34
LOVE,C	18	20	38
DAVIS,R	18	20	38
BACOT,A	18	20	38
NANCE,P	2	0	2
TRIMBLE,S	8	14	22
DUNN,D	3	0	3
WASHINGTON,J	4	0	4
JOHNSON,P	4	0	4
MCKOY,J	11	6	17

WW, really appreciate this chart of minutes, I think it is educational to see the minutes broken up by each half. Looking at this broken out this way some really interesting things pop up.

First, Love, Davis, Bacot all 3 played 38mins, sorry but that isn't effectively using your bench, none of the 3 came out in the second half, not good!

Second, went to Dunn (3min), Washington (4mins), Puff (4 mins), and Nickel (DNP) in the first half and NONE of them for even a single minute in the second half? But McKoy is 17minutes?

Third, as poor a game as Caleb had, most especially in that first half we could find no way to sit Caleb for even a minute in that second half, telling me Dunn could not get even a single second half minute. While Caleb did FINALLY decide to play defense for the last 10mins of this game, the other 30 he gave us little that was good. After the first 10mins of this game, I know because I checked it at the 10:17 mark, there was a play stoppage, at that point Caleb's stat line was 1-7 shooting, 0-4 from trey, 4 TOs, the game was only 10mins old? Caleb missed a grand total of 2min of pt in the first half and missed ZERO PT in the second? Please explain to me how that makes sense? Yet Nickel didn't play a single second of this game, first half we needed shooting yet Nickel was given the night off????

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Its obvious Hubert went into this game with at least one idea. That is, show he is totally committed to playing/riding with Love, regardless. That this team is only going as far as Love can take it. Just from one point of view, that game management last nite was ridiculous. Caleb Love had one of the worst games(from the get-go) and put up a game high 15 shot attempts, 1-7 from 3, 4 early turnovers(several leading to direct baskets), and yet played 38 minutes. He took almost 50% more shots than Bacot on a nite where he stunk it up from the jump. Wow.

Almost makes me wonder if Hubert gave Caleb a "perform or else" ultimatum. If so, what will Hubert change after Caleb failed to perform?

We're already getting more Seth, so if Hubert is going to cut Caleb's minutes, who gets them?

Dunn? Dunn got 3 minutes against Wake.

Puff? Puff got 4 minutes.

Styles or Nickel? They got zero minutes.

 

[TarHeelMark]

Player	1st half min	2nd half min	Total min
BLACK,L	14	20	34
LOVE,C	18	20	38
DAVIS,R	18	20	38
BACOT,A	18	20	38
NANCE,P	2	0	2
TRIMBLE,S	8	14	22
DUNN,D	3	0	3
WASHINGTON,J	4	0	4
JOHNSON,P	4	0	4
MCKOY,J	11	6	17

Eye-opening... Similar to what we saw at Pitt, isn't it? If Nance wasn't hurting, he likely plays alot in 2nd half as well. I just don't understand Hubert's reluctance to use his bench in 2nd half, as I'm afraid it's going to bite us more often than not. As gary mentioned, the delay in the game was beneficial to us (sure hope the person was ok). Also, good to see that Hubert recognized the fatigue and called the TO with 2+ minutes to go.

 

[gunslingerdick]

Eye-opening... Similar to what we saw at Pitt, isn't it? If Nance wasn't hurting, he likely plays alot in 2nd half as well. I just don't understand Hubert's reluctance to use his bench in 2nd half, as I'm afraid it's going to bite us more often than not. As gary mentioned, the delay in the game was beneficial to us (sure hope the person was ok). Also, good to see that Hubert recognized the fatigue and called the TO with 2+ minutes to go.

It's not necessarily the reluctance to use the bench for me. It's the reluctance to use the bench WHEN ONE OF THE GUYS IS PLAYING LIKE DOGSHIT. Does Caleb have pics of Hubert sniffing blow off a hooker or something? He has to be blackmailing him. There is no other logical reason for why Love is playing as much as he is when he's playing terribly and giving minimum effort. It's astounding.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Caleb missed a grand total of 2min of pt in the first half and missed ZERO PT in the second? Please explain to me how that makes sense?

I agree.

The only answers I can come up with are these:

1. Caleb sometimes has that extra gear. I don't think any of those other guys have shown that.

2. Hubert doesn't trust the other guys. He may be losing trust in Caleb, but until he trusts someone else (or until he gets desperate), nothing will change.

3. Since Hubert was turning to Justin to replace Pete, maybe he didn't want to confuse things more by replacing Caleb.

Those aren't great answers, but maybe they factored in for this game. If so, Hubert needs to have a better plan the next time this happens.

Who would you turn to in cases like this?

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Naturally after we are all bitching about Caleb, he'll have a mind-blowing outing against Notre Dame.

Some will say that that shows how dumb and faithless we fans are.

I prefer to think that just proves the value of bitching.

 

[DSouthr]

A bit of a workman like game, don't feel like we played especially well, Nance going out forced Hubert to go to the bench to cover the 4 spot. I would have liked to have seen Washington get a few second half minutes no matter how many fouls he may have picked up, the kid needs some court time, hit a really nice turn around jumper. I absolutely would have gone to Nickel at the 4 before I would have McKoy, thou I didn't think McKoy played bad, he isn't a bad defender but his feet are not quick.

It was nice to see Leaky get some shots to fall, good for him, not something I want to rely on but do enjoy it when it happens. I much prefer him driving/slashing to the basket more than sitting outside the three point arch.

Bacot, the man is just a blue collar, pack my lunch for my lunch pail, time to go to work guy! I watch this kid game after game be constantly double and triple teamed, many times being physically assaulted and what does he do game after game, he just plays thru it all. He gets pissed at times, I love when he does but he gets his pay back by just asserting himself even more and scoring. 5 assists guys, 5 assist from Bacot, you know the guy many said a while back was a black hole where the ball goes in and never comes back out, Bacot had 5 assists last night folks.

RJ, may be on the small side, may get beat at times as a defender, may take a questionable shot at times... But that kid is as scrappy as they come and when he gets locked in he becomes one of the most dangerous scorers in the country. At the half, RJ may have had 7pts or so, maybe less but second half, there was no doubt who I wanted taking jump shots if they could get a look, I wanted RJ to take them, he is not shy about taking a shot nor should he be, he was very efficient shooting the ball last night, love that efficiency.

But then there is the guy that changed the tone of this game and in doing so brought up the effort level for his team, you could almost see it like you walk in to a dark room and flip the light switch and the entire room lights up! Seth Trimble folks, you know, the guy I have been going on and on about since well before this season began? You know, the guy that when yet another post says we don't have a PG, I jump in with yes we do, he just isn't getting the minutes he needs and what he gets is not at the point. I honestly do not think it was as much the small ball 3 guard look that worked for us last night as it was the fact Trimble was on the floor disrupting the other team as he always does when given the chance.

I don't want to sound like grover but one series for example, Seth drives is stopped and hits a nice little turn around in the lane, Wake comes down and their guard drives Seth all the way to the basket, Seth with him step for step, guy tries a runner, Seth blocks it. That is the kind of stuff this kid gives us and we need more of it.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

If Caleb is going to be a second half kind of player, maybe start someone else until the 2nd half. Sure, bring him off the bench in the 1st half, but let someone else start and play most of those minutes (unless Caleb blows up when he gets a turn, obviously).

Start RJ and Seth. See what happens.

 

[TarHeelTroy]

Just from a basic level observation standpoint (not getting into Xs and Os) there were 2 big things that stood out to me in that 2nd half.

One was there was a concerted effort to start our half court offense by getting Armando a touch in the post. (Thank you!!! I was screaming for it in the 1st half)

The other thing was the whole team, inspired by Seth I think, turned up the defensive pressure down the stretch (thank you!)

 

[TarHeelTroy]

The 3 guard lineup was really working. Would like to see it more.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

A bit of a workman like game, don't feel like we played especially well, Nance going out forced Hubert to go to the bench to cover the 4 spot. I would have liked to have seen Washington get a few second half minutes no matter how many fouls he may have picked up, the kid needs some court time, hit a really nice turn around jumper. I absolutely would have gone to Nickel at the 4 before I would have McKoy, thou I didn't think McKoy played bad, he isn't a bad defender but his feet are not quick.

The things I like about Justin on defense are that he is energetic, relentless and annoying. Sure, he gets beat a little too often, but he's wearing their guy down and being disruptive to their game plan. Those are good things.

With guys like RJ, Leaky, Seth and Armando scoring so well, we can afford to have Justin in that role. If a couple of those guys had worse scoring nights, we probably lose to Wake.

 

[TarHeelMark]

Since Hubert was turning to Justin to replace Pete, maybe he didn't want to confuse things more by replacing Caleb.

He gave Jalen the first opportunity, but the dude racked up those quick fouls (whether all were legit or not) and that was the end of that. Justin was playing decent D at first it seemed, but I noticed a few times when he got lost during switches, and then falling down multiple times was not helpful at all. Glad that Hubert went small w/ Seth. That young man might be giving up some height/bulk, but he plays hard and brings some positive energy.

 

[DSouthr]

I agree.

The only answers I can come up with are these:

1. Caleb sometimes has that extra gear. I don't think any of those other guys have shown that.

2. Hubert doesn't trust the other guys. He may be losing trust in Caleb, but until he trusts someone else (or until he gets desperate), nothing will change.

3. Since Hubert was turning to Justin to replace Pete, maybe he didn't want to confuse things more by replacing Caleb.

Those aren't great answers, but maybe they factored in for this game. If so, Hubert needs to have a better plan the next time this happens.

Who would you turn to in cases like this?

Well, I kind of answered this question in the starting line up thread but I would not have gone to McKoy for as long, if at all. I would have gone more to a Nickel/Puff/Washington (likely with Nickel getting the most PT of those 3, I want his shooting but the kid has a lot of grit I like).

Now yes, Caleb does have that extra gear, even flashed it a little bit in those last 10mins but I would have moved Seth to the 1 or at very least the 2 and sat Caleb. I believe it would help Caleb a ton to actually have to sit and watch the game for a while just to remind him how much he should value the minutes het gets, to light that fire inside to get back in to the game and to give the effort that will allow him to stay in the game. I really think that would help Caleb more than hurt him.

Want to say this about Caleb, I know I have been hard on him for a while, some may consider it to be to hard on him. But I heard a old thing pretty much every coach in the country has said a few thousand times, if I am hard on you it is because I believe you to be capable of much more, I just want you to realize and reach as close to your potential as you can. Don't worry about me yelling at you, don't worry about me being hard on you, worry when I STOP doing those things because that is when i have given up on you. I have not given up on Caleb, I know he is capable of so much more than he has EVER shown as a UNC player, his ability is frankly amazing, I just want him to stop being his own worst enemy, for the first 30mins of last night's game, Caleb was his own worst enemy...

 

[DSouthr]

The things I like about Justin on defense are that he is energetic, relentless and annoying. Sure, he gets beat a little too often, but he's wearing their guy down and being disruptive to their game plan. Those are good things.

With guys like RJ, Leaky, Seth and Armando scoring so well, we can afford to have Justin in that role. If a couple of those guys had worse scoring nights, we probably lose to Wake.

Yeah but, I know, why is there always a but from me! LOL What did concern me about McKoy was that he just could not handle the high screens, he was hedging out to far such that he could not recover back to the peeling big back down the lane. Wake went to that over and over when he was in.

Now normally the guy I would have wanted to replace Nance would be Washington, then Puff, then Nickel (in that order). However Washington is basically still in early season mode, still testing that knee, not yet really strong enough to hold position well, I do think he needs to begin to pick up more and more minutes but has to watch out for the reaching and grabbing so that he is not picking up as many quick fouls.

Puff, geez, I think Puff is a great kid and I know he is capable of giving this team a lot more than he has. But I watch him play and I have to ask myself, do I see any improvement in his game over last season, do I see any development? Honestly, not so sure I do and that for me is a concern, a concern that started before this season began, when they took height and weights for the players, Puff I believe actually lost about 5lbs? A kid that clearly needed to get stronger and add some bulk comes in to this season having lost 5lbs? Puff has struggled this season, has had some nice flashes but the consistency in my eyes is not there and it needs to be there.

So having said what I just have my pecking order may be for the guy to replace Nance, Nickel/Puff/Washington. Nickel is a battler, he is just going to come in and fight ya tooth and nail, he can score in a lot of ways, he isn't just a jump shooter. He may miss a defensive switch at times but heck he is just a freshman after all, our starting back court at times needs a matador's cape, I am not going to bang on Nickel for the occasional miss on the defensive end. Kid is a solid 6'8" and weight in around 220-225lbs, decent size for a 4 in todays game.

 

[Realfreedom]

My biggest concern is why the team must suffer while Love "shoots" his way back? While the issue may be in his head, the real problem is his shot selection and turnovers. That makes me disappointed in Hubert. When Love keeps committing turnovers and poor shot selection he needs to come out.

 

[gunslingerdick]

He gave Jalen the first opportunity, but the dude racked up those quick fouls (whether all were legit or not) and that was the end of that. Justin was playing decent D at first it seemed, but I noticed a few times when he got lost during switches, and then falling down multiple times was not helpful at all. Glad that Hubert went small w/ Seth. That young man might be giving up some height/bulk, but he plays hard and brings some positive energy.

For the record, Jalen's third foul was a direct result of Caleb getting beaten like a rented mule by the man he was guarding.

 

[Heels5150]

Make no mistake about it in that the stoppage of play in the second half helped us out tremendously. Armando was becoming fatigued like he was at the end of the Pitt game. Armando is playing some of his best ball right now. I do wish he would stop complaining to the ref’s when he gets frustrated. I know he has been getting killed down low with everyone hanging all over him and ref’s not calling very obvious fouls. He needs to say something during a dead ball situation and not while the other team is taking the ball down court on us. In actuality Armando should be shooting about 5-10 more free throws a game on average with the miss or no calls against him and this is with me not being biased at all. I have seen some of the absolute worst officiated games this year than I can ever remember and it’s not just against us. McKoy played hard but he got absolutely abused in the second half. Wake went right after him. Gary, 75 with your association with the program, coaching experience, playing, etc…how would ya’ll coach this team if you were the head coach? Plus anyone else of course who would want to weigh in as well. I know what I would like to see happen but with ya’ll’s experience I’d be curious to know in some detail what you would do.

 

[gunslingerdick]

Armando was becoming fatigued like he was at the end of the Pitt game. Armando is playing some of his best ball right now. I do wish he would stop complaining to the ref’s when he gets frustrated. I know he has been getting killed down low with everyone hanging all over him and ref’s not calling very obvious fouls.

I wish refs were calling fouls like they should be. Was a memo sent out telling refs to officiate Mando like the NBA did Shaq in his prime? It's ridiculous.

 

[DSouthr]

My biggest concern is why the team must suffer while Love "shoots" his way back? While the issue may be in his head, the real problem is his shot selection and turnovers. That makes me disappointed in Hubert. When Love keeps committing turnovers and poor shot selection he needs to come out.

Hammer meets nail ! "My biggest concern is why the team must suffer while Love "shoots" his way back?"... EXACTLY

The thing that drives me off the reservation is that is not how you get a player's game going, what you do with Caleb when his shot is not falling is NOT to leave him in to miss 5 more in a row, that is how leads disappear and all the sudden you went from 10 up to 12 down, and that is how a kid's head blows up and he gets mired in a nasty slump, like Caleb is right now. How do you go from BLOWING OUT a team in the first half of a natty game to losing the game, you let a guy go 5-26. It ain't about the 5 he hit, it is about the 21 he missed, the potential for 42 more points that you got none of.

Rather than let him continue putting up miss after missed shots, you take him out, you sit him next to Jeff Lebo and you have Lebo talk to him, get his head right, let his competitive fire re-ignite, then put him back in. I mean, if you are grilling steaks and the fire goes out, do you just keep putting more steaks on the grill or do you maybe elect to re-ignite the fire before adding the steaks to the grill, not hard to understand.

 

[DSouthr]

Make no mistake about it in that the stoppage of play in the second half helped us out tremendously. Armando was becoming fatigued like he was at the end of the Pitt game. Armando is playing some of his best ball right now. I do wish he would stop complaining to the ref’s when he gets frustrated. I know he has been getting killed down low with everyone hanging all over him and ref’s not calling very obvious fouls. He needs to say something during a dead ball situation and not while the other team is taking the ball down court on us. In actuality Armando should be shooting about 5-10 more free throws a game on average with the miss or no calls against him and this is with me not being biased at all. I have seen some of the absolute worst officiated games this year than I can ever remember and it’s not just against us. McKoy played hard but he got absolutely abused in the second half. Wake went right after him. Gary, 75 with your association with the program, coaching experience, playing, etc…how would ya’ll coach this team if you were the head coach? Plus anyone else of course who would want to weigh in as well. I know what I would like to see happen but with ya’ll’s experience I’d be curious to know in some detail what you would do.

5150, you know the one thing I have never seen happen in a basketball game? I have never seen a player that was called for a foul and argued with the refs and the refs change the call due to the players argument. Never seen it, suspect I never will. Sure, ask the ref to clarify why they called it a foul, that is fine, players should do that but arguing it can have the refs make you their example and call even the slightest touch fouls on you, you don't want the refs upset with you, they got whistles.

 

[Indy_Heel]

Hopefully someone is recording Love and showing him how he reacts when things aren't going his way. I feel like I’m watching kids playing in a req league with his mood swings. Watching him jog back after a turnover just frustrates me.

One observation about the refs besides they suck, what was up with the very late calls after our shots were missed. I mean after Bacot was hacked a couple times and the ball had already been rebounded and was moving the other direction. It happened at least twice maybe 3 times. Felt like I was watching the NBA waiting to see if the ball went in.

 

[Heels5150]

5150, you know the one thing I have never seen happen in a basketball game? I have never seen a player that was called for a foul and argued with the refs and the refs change the call due to the players argument. Never seen it, suspect I never will. Sure, ask the ref to clarify why they called it a foul, that is fine, players should do that but arguing it can have the refs make you their example and call even the slightest touch fouls on you, you don't want the refs upset with you, they got whistles.

My grandfather use to be head of the psychology department in Chapel Hill and he was one of Coach Dean Smith’s closest friends. Coach Smith to me was by far the greatest teacher, innovator and coach that there has ever been in any sport and he was even a better person. I know that sounds like a cliche but it’s not. His brain was like a computer. Analytics in sports literally started with Coach Smith. I remember my grandfather and Coach talked in great lengths about many different topics and one in depth was how to deal with people in all walks of life. Some of my greatest memories were hearing stories between the two of them. Point being that I remember Coach Smith taught me at a very young age in regards to sports that there is always a time and place for everything and that you have to be respectful in order to be respected. I don’t mind Armando questioning calls and getting upset when play is dead. Armando as I have said is getting mugged all throughout games but I know that Coach Smith would nip that in the bud right away. And yes I remember Rasheed and a few other players and it’s a different era but Armando knows not to put his emotions above the Team. I know Armando is not trying to be disrespectful but as I said there is a better time to address his frustrations. Much bigger issues with the team than this of course

 

[Tarheel75]

Has Hubert given up on some of these guys - Puff, Styles, Nickel - or are there other reasons why they aren't getting minutes?

I just don't have a straight answer for your question. It appears to me that Hubert is substituting as the situation dictates.

 

[Tarheel75]

1. Ted Valentine
2. Bert Smith
3. Jeffrey Anderson

I'll let the board interpret that anyway they choose. 🤐

Actually, I hold no ill will towards TV Teddy. I have watched him officiate a lot of games, and other than his drama queen "look at me" antics, his officiating is fair IMO.

Remember that TV Teddy was the only referee that I can recall that K tried to get the league office not to assign him to any of their games. Can you believe that? Also, Teddy will also have my respect for being one official of very few, who would not brook a second argument about a situation that had already been discussed from K and called more technicals on K than any referee in the last 45+ years.