By R.L. Bynum
Two days later, North Carolina’s defensive effort in its 102-96 victory Saturday over Boston College still befuddles Coach Hubert Davis.
That frustration translated into some frank discussions with his team.
“They weren’t conversations. It was a monologue by me,” Davis said Monday morning in the weekly ACC Zoom press conference ahead of Tuesday’s 9 p.m. game at Pittsburgh.
He rattled off a litany of issues, listing problems with ball pressure, half-court defense, defense on out-of-bounds plays, defense underneath and in transition, guarding one-on-one, guarding in the post, discipline, staying down for shot-fakes, boxing out, getting through screens, talking and communicating.
“There was a departure of all of that against Boston College and I’m not sure why,” Davis said. “So, I’m very thankful that we were able to pull it together and, down the stretch, make the plays that we needed to make in order to win against a Boston College team that played extremely well. And we’re very fortunate to come away with the win.”
Here’s what Davis said on many other subjects:
—On Jalen Washington’s assertiveness around the basket:
“I do think he was really effective for us, and it really helped us being able to score around the basket. I always say that I want to dominate points in the painting post and penetration. His ability to be able to finish around the basket was huge for us to stay in the game against Boston College and ultimately be able to pull out that win.
“I was really proud of him from that standpoint. Just the consistency of being able to finish around the basket as a low-post presence force is just really huge. It became a big for us against Boston College.”
—On the areas of Washington’s game that have gotten better:
“He can really shoot the basketball. He’s only made one three, that was against Wake Forest toward the end of the game. That’s an area for us offensively that can make us even better. Having a five who can pick-and-pop and knock down consistently from three, it just opens up the space even more for us to put the ball on the floor to drive to attack. He’s only hit one this year, but he can really shoot the basketball. And, so, my hope is at some point this year, he can get on a roll, shoot the ball from the outside, and be able to knock down multiple threes in the game.”
—On Seth Trimble’s progress after coming back from the concussion and getting his conditioning back:
“I think rhythm-wise, he’s a lot closer to where he was prior to him sitting out 2½ weeks. It’s not easy just to come back and just get back into the flow. Seth is just one of those players that he just has the ability to make an impact in so many different areas. He was able to score for us, especially down the stretch. He could knock down free throws. For him to get 12 rebounds? He’s just one of those guys that can just impact a game in so many different areas, and he was able to do that against Boston College, and without him, we don’t even have a chance to win.
—On challenges Pittsburgh will present:
“They’re just a really good team. Coach [Jeff] Capel does a great job coaching them. They’re very tough. They’re very physical. They can do a number of things defensively on the ball. They’re really good on the ball. A key to them is rebounding. When they rebound, that puts them in a position to be successful. But, from an offensive standpoint, they’ve got a number of guys that can get hot from three. They’ve got guards who, just with the ball —whether it’s one-on-one, pick-and-roll situation — can create shots, not only for themselves, but for their teammates. They’re a really good basketball team. It’s a Pitt team skilled, tough, competitive, and that’s what it will be [Tuesday] night at nine.”
—On how the tough non-conference schedule has helped the team:
“The non-conference schedule that we played — we’ve seen it all. There’s nothing in conference that we should be surprised at in regards to an individual and as a team. Us being able to have success against those really good teams, and for us to barely fall short, gives us the experience of what it takes to be able to compete and beat good teams on a consistent basis, and so that’s just going to be huge for us. The remainder of the ACC is, how consistent can we be? How consistent can we be offensively, taking good shots, taking care of the basketball? How consistent can we be defensively, hitting stops, rebounding and defending without fouling? That’s just gonna be the key for us, our consistency.”
—On how the starting lineup might vary:
“It is a fluid situation. It’s not fluid in some positions, but in other positions, it is fluid. And it’s all determined, really on the rhythm of us and just the matchups in terms of who we’re playing. Every game, I look at it that way. There isn’t going to be a set five. It will be determined by matchups and how guys are playing and rotations. There’s a number of factors that will go into who starts the game.”
—On the energy that Ty Claude brings to the team:
“He brings that [to] practice [and to] shoot-around. He brings that in the locker room. The guys love being around him, love playing with him, and love teasing him and joking with him because he’s the oldest player on the team. So, a couple of guys call him grandpa and just different stuff like that. That gets him going. His instinctive energy and effort [are] something that this group has needed on a daily basis. So glad that he’s here this season, and he played really well in the five minutes against Boston College. It was huge minutes for us.”
UNC season statistics
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 10 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. 19 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. 9 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 | 8 p.m. | vs. East Tennessee State | ACCN |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | 3 p.m. | vs. Ohio State | CBS |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | 8 p.m. | vs. East Carolina | ACCN |
| 30 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Florida State | ESPN2 |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | 2:15 | at SMU | The CW |
| 10 | Saturday | 6 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 14 | Wednesday | 9 p.m. | at Stanford | ACCN |
| 17 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | at California | ACCN |
| 21 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Notre Dame | ESPN2 |
| 24 | Saturday | 2 or 2:30 | at No. 24 Virginia | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 3 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. 11 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 3 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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