By R.L. Bynum
RJ Davis is the ACC Player of the Week for the second time this season, becoming the first Carolina guard to earn the honor multiple times since Joel Berry II did it four times in the 2016–17 season.
Davis scored a game-high 23 points with a game-high five assists without a turnover in No. 9 Carolina’s 81–69 win Wednesday over the previously unbeaten Sooners, who were No. 7 but now are No. 12, in Charlotte in the Jumpman Invitational.
Davis, who shared the honor with Virginia Tech senior center Lynn Kidd, leads the ACC in scoring (21.7 points per game) and free-throw percentage (94.6%). He’s second in minutes (34.5 per game), fourth in 3-pointers per game (2.9) and eighth in 3-point shooting percentage (38.1%).
Davis has scored at least 23 points in seven consecutive games.
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The senior guard from White Plains, N.Y., scored 13 of his 23 points in the second half, including one of his five 3-pointers with 2:46 to play. That three ended a 17–8 Oklahoma run that had cut the Tar Heels’ lead to five points.
Davis made five of nine 3-point attempts and all four free-throw attempts. He has made 45 of his last 46 free-throw tries, making a school-record-tying 41 in a row during that stretch.
Davis also earned the weekly honor when he scored 23 points against Villanova and tied his career high with 30 in a win over Arkansas during the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas. He shared the honor that week as well, as Florida State redshirt junior forward Jamir Watkins also was honored.
Davis has scored 23, 30, 27, 27, 26, 27 and 23 points in the last seven games, the most (183) by a Tar Heel in a seven-game span in 16 seasons.
Davis’ last seven games
| Opponent | MP | FG | 3PFG | FT | R | A | TO | S | Pts | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs. Villanova | 41 | 8-22 | 2-8 | 5-6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 15.8 |
| vs. Arkansas | 35 | 9-18 | 2-5 | 10-10 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 30 | 18.2 |
| Tennessee | 38 | 8-17 | 5-11 | 6-6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 19.4 |
| Florida St. | 38 | 8-17 | 3-9 | 8-8 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 27 | 20.4 |
| vs. UConn | 38 | 8-17 | 4-8 | 6-6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 26 | 21 |
| vs. Kentucky | 37 | 8-18 | 3-9 | 8-9 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 27 | 21.6 |
| vs. Oklahoma | 35 | 7-18 | 5-9 | 4-4 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 23 | 21.7 |
| Date | Month/day | Scores | Opponent/event (current ranks) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. BYU in SLC | Exhib. |
| 29 | Wednesday | W, 95–53 | vs. Winston-Salem St. | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 94–54 | vs. Central Arkansas | 1–0 |
| 7 | Friday | W, 87–74 | vs. No. 17 Kansas | 2–0 |
| 11 | Tuesday | W, 89–74 | vs. Radford | 3–0 |
| 14 | Friday | W, 97–53 | vs. N.C. Central | 4–0 |
| 18 | Tuesday | W, 73–61 | vs. Navy | 5–0 |
| Fort Myers Tip-Off | ||||
| 25 | Tuesday | W, 85–70 | vs. St. Bonaventure | 6–0 |
| 27 | Thursday | L, 74–58 | vs. No. 11 Michigan State | 6–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge | |||
| 2 | Tuesday | W, 67–64 | at Kentucky | 7–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 81–61 | vs. Georgetown | 8–1 |
| 13 | Saturday | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. ETSU | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | W, 71–70 | vs. Ohio State | 11–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | W, 99–51 | vs. East Carolina | 12–1 |
| 30 | Tuesday | W, 79–66 | vs. Florida State | 13–1, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | L, 97–83 | at SMU | 13–2, 1–1 |
| 10 | Saturday | W, 87–84 | vs. Wake Forest | 14–2, 2–1 |
| 14 | Wednesday | L, 95–90 | at Stanford | 14–3, 2–2 |
| 17 | Saturday | L, 84–78 | at California | 14–4, 2–3 |
| 21 | Wednesday | W, 91–69 | vs. Notre Dame | 15–4, 3–3 |
| 24 | Saturday | W, 85–80 | at No. 9 Virginia | 16–4, 4–3 |
| 31 | Saturday | W, 91–75 | at Georgia Tech | 17–4, 5–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 87–77 | vs. Syracuse | 18–4, 6–3 |
| 7 | Saturday | W, 71–68 | vs. No. 1 Duke | 19–4, 7–3 |
| 10 | Tuesday | L, 75–66 | at No. 25 Miami | 19–5, 7–4 |
| 14 | Saturday | W, 79–65 | vs. Pittsburgh | 20–5, 8–4 |
| 17 | Tuesday | L, 82–58 | at N.C. State | 20–6, 8–5 |
| 21 | Saturday | W, 77–64 | at Syracuse | 21–6, 9–5 |
| 23 | Monday | W, 77–74 | vs. Louisville | 22–6, 10–5 |
| 28 | Saturday | W, 89–82 | vs. Virginia Tech | 23–6, 11–5 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 67–63 | vs. Clemson | 24–6, 12–5 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 76–61 | at No. 1 Duke | 24–7, 12–6 |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte | |
| 12 | Thursday | L, 80–79 | Quarterfinals: vs. Clemson | 24–8 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 19 | Thursday | L, 82–78, OT | First round: vs. VCU in Greenville, S.C. | 24–9 |
Photo via Smith Hardy
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