By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — Coach Hubert Davis said that No. 20 North Carolina’s three-game skid had left his team “wounded,” and a down-to-the-wire win as an 18-point favorite wasn’t exactly the best treatment for that.
Georgia Tech, which came into the game with a 180 NET ranking, gave the Tar Heels a scare before they pulled out a 68–65 win Saturday in their ACC opener at the Smith Center.
“It was hard,” Davis said of the losing streak. “I think our team, a little bit has been wounded by that and didn’t play fast and free but play tight and tentative. My hope is this week before our next game, it comes at the perfect time for us to heal so that we can play fast and free and play the best that we can play.”
Despite seeing a lot he didn’t like in the game, Davis stayed positive with the team in the dressing room after the game, saying he wanted to see smiles on their faces.
“We needed something good to happen to us,” Davis said. “We didn’t play our best game. But to be able to get a win goes a long way for this group and us trying to find ourselves.”
For the first time since Davis took over for Roy Williams, the players ran punitive “33s” — running the length of the court three times in 33 seconds — when they made mistakes in practice Thursday and Friday.
“I’ll play whatever card I need to play in order to get them [playing better],” Davis said. “I want them to be great, and so I’m not going to settle for anything less than the best that they can be out there on the floor. And so if it has to be 33s, then it does. If it has to be sitting on a bench, then it does.”
(Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics)
After a tough game in the Wednesday loss to Alabama, Seth Trimble rebounded with an outstanding effort (19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 seals and six drawn fouls) to lead the way, with RJ Davis (16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals) and freshman guard Ian Jackson (15 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks) also spearheading the Tar Heels (5–4, 1–0 ACC) offensively.
Trimble said it felt like it had been “forever” since the team won and RJ Davis said it felt like it had been a month.
“I think a lot of guys on this team are feeling just stress and pressure from the media, from maybe their families, whatever it was,” said Trimble, who said 33s were inflicted for turnovers, not talking on defense and doing the things that have caused the losing streak. “I definitely think guys are feeling it. It was kind of taking a toll on them on the court.”
All the running didn’t help the perimeter shooting. UNC was 5 of 24 from 3-point range and is 10 of 56 outside the arc in the last two games. Trimble was 5 of 6 from the floor, and the rest of the team was 18 of 53.
RJ Davis said that combining the Tar Heels’ preseason expectations with the struggles that started in Maui has taken some of the joy out of the team.
“For us to play like I know we can, we just got to just relax a little bit,” he said. “I think we’re trying to be too perfect, even for myself. Just go out there and play basketball, play together and have fun at the end of the day, because sometimes I think you could put too much pressure on yourself. It takes the joy out of it. You don’t really play like how you know.”
UNC continues to dribble too much at times on offense, producing either perimeter shots or hit-and-miss drives with the sloppiness that led to a season-high 18 turnovers.
“We don’t need home runs. We just need singles,” Coach Davis said. “I felt like tonight we were going for homeruns, one-handed passes, behind-the-back passes in between four people. I say to make routine plays routinely [when] simple works. I am going to go back to them and show the team how it wasn’t simple, how it wasn’t a routine play, that it was trying to hit home runs, and that’s something that we need to get away from.”
UNC couldn’t pull away despite the Jackets (4–5, 0–1) going six minutes without a field goal starting at the 9:39 mark of the second half.
“We held them [without scoring] for a long period of time, and then we just weren’t executing,” RJ Davis said. “Guys weren’t making shots. Sometimes shots were forced. But then also our spacing. That’s one thing that we’ve been practicing. The practice was our spacing.”
A season-high 48 rebounds were positive for UNC, but Hubert Davis lamented his team’s inability to consistently get offensive rebounds, although the Tar Heels rebounded 33.3% of their misses.
It was a mixed and frustrating bag for sophomore point guard Elliot Cadeau, who made a huge late 3-pointer and had nine points, six rebounds and four assists but a career-high seven turnovers (topping the six against Dayton.
Trimble took a moment to chat with Cadeau after one particularly bad turnovers.
“I could tell Elliot was frustrated on himself,” Trimble said. “That’s just my job now. I’m a vet. I’ve seen it; I’ve been through it. He has, too.”
Georgia Tech used dominant rebounding to jump out to a 14–6 lead on Lance Terry’s 3-pointer in a sloppy first eight minutes.
A transition Trimble dunk, his sixth consecutive point, tied it 16 at the 7:52 mark — leading Jackets coach Damon Stoudamire to call a timeout — to start a 13–0 run to go up by five on a Davis 3-pointer.
Georgia Tech finished the first half with a 10–5 run, and UNC led 31–30 at halftime with its fewest points in a first half this season. The Jackets shot 34.3%, the lowest by a UNC opponent in a first half this season.
UNC post players frequently fumbled the ball, and the first field goal from a Tar Heel taller than 6–4 didn’t come until Ven-Allen Lubin’s follow shot at the 16:35 mark of the second half.
An 8–2 Jackets run turned a five-point UNC lead into a one-point Tech edge on a Naithan George 3-pointer at the 12:29 mark. Jae’Lyn Withers’ tomahawk dunk gave UNC a brief three-point lead before the Jackets jumped ahead by two.
Neither team led by more than three after Trimble’s 3-pointer at the 8:49 mark until Davis’ layup with 4:34 left gave UNC a four-point lead.
Cadeau’s 3-pointer with 2:26 left was huge during a 15–5 run to go up by seven on a pair of Ian Jackson free throws with 1:11 left.
The game wasn’t put away until two free throws each from Trimble (with 18 seconds left) and Jackson (with six seconds left).
NOTES — UNC gets a week off before hosting La Salle (149 NET ranking; 152 KenPom ranking) at 4 p.m. Saturday (The CW). The Explorers, 16–17 last season and picked to finish last in the 15-team Atlantic 10, are 6–4 after Saturday night’s 82–68 loss at St. Joseph’s. Carolina is 2–1 against La Salle. … It was UNC’s highest turnover total since committing 18 on Nov. 27, 2022, in a four-OT loss and the most in a regulation game since 30 on March 6, 2021, against Duke. … Trimble has double-figure points in eight of nine games. … Lubin made his first start but came out in favor of Jalen Washington in less than two minutes, and Washington started the second half. … Washington came out with a left-ankle issue midway through the second half but returned. … Georgia Tech transfer center Ty Claude missed the game after suffering a corneal abrasion in his right eye Wednesday against Alabama. … NASCAR sponsored the presentation of the starting lineups. … Former UNC quarterback Marquise Williams and former center Rasheed Wallace were at the game. … Carolina is 58–14 in ACC openers and 64–8 in home ACC openers. … UNC leads the series with Georgia Tech 73–28, including 33–6 in Chapel Hill.
No. 20 UNC 68, Ga. Tech 65
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 4 Duke | 10–0 | 21–1 | 2 |
| No. 20 Clemson | 9–1 | 19–4 | 31 |
| No. 18 Virginia | 8–2 | 19–3 | 16 |
| N.C. State | 8–2 | 17–6 | 25 |
| No. 14 North Carolina | 6–3 | 18–4 | 27 |
| Miami | 6–3 | 17–5 | 37 |
| No. 24 Louisville | 6–4 | 16–6 | 18 |
| California | 5–5 | 17–6 | 55 |
| Virginia Tech | 5–5 | 16–7 | 57 |
| SMU | 4–5 | 15–7 | 34 |
| Syracuse | 4–6 | 13–10 | 69 |
| Florida State | 3–6 | 10–12 | 100 |
| Stanford | 3–7 | 14–9 | 77 |
| Wake Forest | 2–7 | 11–11 | 70 |
| Boston College | 2–7 | 9–13 | 149 |
| Pittsburgh | 2–7 | 9–13 | 113 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–8 | 11–12 | 143 |
| Notre Dame | 2–8 | 11–12 | 86 |
* — Through Wednesday games
Wednesday’s results
No. 24 Louisville 76, Notre Dame 65
California 90, Georgia Tech 85
No. 20 Clemson 66, Stanford 64
Saturday’s games
Virginia Tech at N.C. State, noon, The CW
Syracuse at No. 18 Virginia, noon, ESPN
No. 24 Louisville at Wake Forest, noon, ACC Network
Miami at Boston College, 2 p.m., ACC Network
SMU at Pittsburgh, 2 p.m., The CW
Florida State at Notre Dame, 4 p.m., The CW
No. 4 Duke at No. 14 North Carolina, 6:30, ESPN
No. 20 Clemson at California, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Georgia Tech at Stanford, 8 p.m., ESPNU
Monday’s game
N.C. State at No. 24 Louisville, 7 p.m., ESPN
Tuesday’s games
No. 14 North Carolina at Miami, 7 p.m., ESPN
No. 18 Virginia at Florida State, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Notre Dame at SMU, 7 p.m., ACC Network
No. 4 Duke at Pittsburgh, 9 p.m., ESPN
Wednesday, Feb. 11, games
Virginia Tech at No. 20 Clemson, ACC Network
California at Syracuse, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Wake Forest at Georgia Tech, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Stanford at Boston College, 9 p.m., ESPNU
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 16 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. 11 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. 10 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. 18 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 | 6:30 | vs. No. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| 10 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 14 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | vs. Pittsburgh | ESPN |
| 17 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at N.C. State | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 21 | Saturday | 1 p.m. | at Syracuse | ABC |
| 23 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 24 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 20 Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 4 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
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