Davis says Heels have to get better in ‘trenches’

By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — Against physical teams, Coach Hubert Davis says that No. 16 North Carolina is going to have to be tougher inside and win the battle in the “trenches.”

That comes after the Thanksgiving Day loss to No. 7 Michigan State in a game defined by bruising play. The interior challenge might not be quite as stiff at 9:30 Thursday night at No. 18 Kentucky (ESPN), but Davis said his team’s resolve to block out and battle inside will still be important.

To Davis, Carolina’s toughness has to start with the basics that aren’t optional.

“From an offensive standpoint, our execution has to be better,” he said during a Monday press conference at the Smith Center, pointing to missed screens, low activity on the offensive boards, and opportunities lost because of falling short on “those little things that make big things happen.”

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Defensively, his assessment was more blunt after the Spartans rebounded 41% of their misses because UNC didn’t box out consistently.

“Those are things that aren’t good,” Davis said. “And for us to be successful, those are things that we have to do well, and we have to do well consistently.”

For Davis, boxing out can never be something a player remembers only after a coach screams at him.

“We don’t think about breathing,” Davis said. “It shouldn’t be something we have to write down on the things-to-do list to box out. It should just be instinctive.”

Davis shifted to a football metaphor when explaining to his team what needs to happen against teams with punishing interior play.

“You can have the best quarterback, the receivers, the running backs,” he told the team, “but all that [success] is done in the trenches. It’s done on the offensive and defensive line.”

In basketball terms, that means taking care of the ball, dominating inside and eliminating 50-50 balls.

“When the ball goes up in the air, and it goes on the ground, it can’t be 50-50,” Davis said. “It’s got to be all UNC.”

Michigan State also threw extra bodies at freshman standout Caleb Wilson, a tactic Davis expects to continue, forcing him to adapt. St. Bonaventure double-teamed him and, as Spartans coach Tom Izzo termed it, Wilson then got the “Jordan Rules” treatment.

He praised Wilson’s growing poise under the added attention, emphasizing that the forward’s value extends beyond scoring.

“He can score, but he’s also a gifted passer and a willing passer as well,” said Davis, who pushed back on the suggestion that Wilson has “forced” some shots in the last two games. “That word is nowhere near Caleb in any form or fashion.”

The Tar Heels endured multiple field-goal droughts against Michigan State, something Davis noted has appeared in other early-season games. The Spartans had a 13–0 run after St. Bonaventure had a 17–0 run and Navy a 17–0 run.

“There are stretches that either take away a lead that we have or put us in a hole where we can’t get back,” Davis said, adding that solutions include taking good shots, executing, getting to the offensive glass to protecting the interior and boxing out.

Davis said that Kentucky presents a different challenge — but potentially an even more dangerous one.

“They’ve got guys that have deep range, and can really shoot the basketball,” Davis said. “They can penetrate and get to the basket. Very versatile.”

Defensively, the Wildcats bring length and the ability to switch on defense, with 7–0 freshman Malachi Moreno, who has shot-blocking ability.

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Davis admitted that the team is still learning its identity as it navigates playing without senior leader Seth Trimble, who he said is “in a real good spot” in his recovery from a left forearm injury. He said it will be like another team when Trimble returns, but didn’t give a timeline about when that will happen.

“You’re always trying to figure out the team,” Davis said. “But I think, for us, maybe even a little bit more.”

There’s no clarity on who will consistently back up Henri Veesaar at the five spot. After Zayden High got the first minutes off the bench in the first six games, James Brown was the first reserve center to enter the game against Michigan State. Both have struggled.

“There’s nothing to read into who I called off the bench first,” Davis said. “We’ve got versatility. Caleb has even played the five at times. We can put a number of different lineups out there.”

Carolina’s first trip to Rupp Arena since 2014 will also be the Tar Heels’ first true road game this season.

“You have two historic programs, and to be able to play each other on each other’s campuses is really special,” he said. “Obviously, playing them there and when they come to Chapel Hill is something special and something that I like, and our players like to compete against.”

Team	League	Overall	NET*
No. 6 Duke	5–0	16–1	3
No. 22 Clemson	5–0	15–3	28
Miami	4–0	15–2	32
No. 16 Virginia	4–1	15–2	16
N.C. State	3–1	12–5	31
Syracuse	3–1	12–5	65
Stanford	3–2	14–4	69
No. 14 North Carolina	2–2	14–3	22
No. 24 SMU	2–2	13–4	25
Virginia Tech	2–3	13–5	59
No. 20 Louisville	2–3	12–5	20
Notre Dame	1–3	10–7	76
Wake Forest	1–3	10–7	61
Pittsburgh	1–3	8–9	111
California	1–4	13–5	67
Georgia Tech	1–4	10–8	142
Boston College	0–4	7–10	184
Florida State	0–4	7–10	132

* — Through Tuesday games
Tuesday’s results
No. 22 Clemson 74, Boston College 50
Miami 81, Notre Dame 69
No. 16 Virginia 79, No. 20 Louisville 70
Syracuse 94, Florida State 86
Wednesday’s results
Stanford 95, No. 14 North Carolina 90
Pittsburgh 89, Georgia Tech 66
SMU 77, Virginia Tech 76
No. 6 Duke 71, California 56
Saturday’s games
No. 16 Virginia at SMU, noon, ESPN2
Notre Dame at Virginia Tech, noon, ACC Network
Georgia Tech at N.C. State, noon, The CW
Syracuse at Boston College, 2 p.m., ACC Network
Miami at No. 22 Clemson, 2:15, The CW
No. 14 North Carolina at California, 4 p.m., ACC Network
No. 6 Duke at Stanford, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Wake Forest at Florida State, 6 p.m., ESPN
No. 20 Louisville at Pittsburgh, 8 p.m., ESPN2
Tuesday’s games
N.C. State at No. 22 Clemson, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Florida State at Miami, 7 p.m., ESPNU
SMU at Wake Forest, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Wednesday, Jan. 21, games
Notre Dame at No. 14 North Carolina, 7 p.m., ESPN2
Pittsburgh at Boston College, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Virginia Tech at Syracuse, 9 p.m., ACC Network

Date	Month/day	Time	Opponent/event (current ranks)	TV/ record
	October
24	Friday	L, 78–76	vs. No. 11 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. 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. 12 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	4 p.m.	at California	ACCN
21	Wednesday	7 p.m.	vs. Notre Dame	ESPN2
24	Saturday	2 p.m.	at No. 16 Virginia	ESPN
31	Saturday	2 p.m.	at Georgia Tech	ACCN
	February
2	Monday	7 p.m.	vs. Syracuse	ESPN
7	Saturday	6:30	vs. No. 6 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. 20 Louisville	ESPN
28	Saturday	6:30 or 8:30	vs. Virginia Tech	ESPN or ESPN2
	March
3	Tuesday	7 p.m.	vs. No. 22 Clemson	ESPN or ESPN2
7	Saturday	6:30	at No. 6 Duke	ESPN
10–14	Tues.-Sat.	ACC tournament	Spectrum Center, Charlotte