By R.L. Bynum
LEXINGTON, Ky. — North Carolina didn’t just survive in Rupp Arena. The No. 16 Tar Heels imposed their will on the glass and inside, turning a hostile road environment into a showcase of toughness in Tuesday night’s 67–64 win over No. 18 Kentucky.
Carolina outrebounded the Wildcats 41–30, pulling down 52.6% of its misses with a season-high 20 offensive rebounds that translated to a season-high 22 second-chance points. To do this against a Kentucky team that entered the game second in the country in rebounding (46.3 per game) and rebounding margin (+14.4) was impressive.
The pestering from Coach Hubert Davis and the coaching staff about hitting the boards led to a dramatic turnaround from earlier games, when rebounding dominance didn’t translate into points.
Henri Veesaar, who delivered 17 points and 10 rebounds, said the team came in with a chip on its shoulder after being outmuscled by Michigan State.
“I feel like we got kind of punked against Michigan State,” Veesaar said. “They were a better rebounding team. They were more physical and everything. So, we came into this game knowing that we’ve got to hit first, and just the whole team crashed. Everybody was tipping balls, getting it back, getting second-, third-chance shots. Big time for us.”
The Tar Heels didn’t just grab boards in quite a shift; they scored off of them. UNC combined for 26 second-chance points in its previous three games, including only six in the 74–58 loss Thursday in Fort Myers, Fla., to No. 6 Michigan —they converted them.
Veesaar explained how that shift happened.
“I feel like part of it was that we’re just getting good offensive rebounds,” he said. “We’re just able to lay it up. The other part was that, I feel like we had the first couple of games where they got offensive rebounds, and then we kind of had the mentality of, ‘Oh, I’ll get a rebound, so I can shoot whatever.’ So, I feel like that game, we really addressed that issue. We watched a bunch of film, and it looked bad on film too.”
Caleb Wilson, who posted his fifth double-double with 15 points, 12 rebounds and a team-high six assists, said the emphasis was clear.
“That’s the details, honestly,” Wilson said. “That’s what we focus on in practice, and that’s what I had to improve on. So, I was just focused.”
Wilson’s game-high six offensive rebounds were part of a relentless effort that wore Kentucky down.
“Whenever we’re able to get the ball out and get it moving again, then we don’t make the defense play 10 seconds of defense where we get a quick shot,” Veesaar said. “We might play the whole time and get a long, long rebound. We got another 30-second play, a minute of defense that makes them tired.”
Kentucky scored 28 of its 31 first-half points in the lane, but UNC cut that in half to limit the Wildcats to 14 after halftime.
Veesaar said the adjustment was about physicality.
“They did a really good job of navigating it, driving to the paint, bumping us,” Veesaar said. “Just being higher up on the level helped us on the screen to do things more physical.
“They weren’t calling many fouls,” he said. “So, you have to be strong with the ball, just kind of get your body moving towards the rim to finish through the contact.”
Jarin Stevenson credited preparation in practice and poise for the turnaround.
“Even the people that didn’t get in on the blue squad, they prepared us crashing hard for us to box out, ran us in transition,” Stevenson said. “Everybody played a big part. We knew what Kentucky’s scheme is — get on the offensive boards. So, I feel like that preparation helped us get this one.”
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Late in the game, composure mattered as much as muscle and Stevenson said that the Tar Heels met the moment.
“Everybody [was] calming each other down,” Stevenson said of the huddles during timeouts down the stretch.
For Carolina, the rebounding dominance was a statement.
“The end of the game is never going to be perfect,” Veesaar said. “It’s just whoever plays harder and whoever plays with confidence wins.”
| Team | League | Overall | NET* | WAB* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1 Duke | 17–1 | 29–2 | 1 | 2 |
| No. 10 Virginia | 15–3 | 27–4 | 13 | 11 |
| Miami | 13–5 | 24–7 | 32 | 28 |
| No. 19 North Carolina | 12–6 | 24–7 | 23 | 19 |
| Clemson | 12–6 | 22–9 | 36 | 33 |
| No. 24 Louisville | 11–7 | 22–9 | 14 | 25 |
| N.C. State | 10–8 | 19–12 | 35 | 45 |
| Florida State | 10–8 | 17–14 | 69 | 74 |
| California | 9–9 | 21–10 | 65 | 49 |
| Stanford | 9–9 | 20–11 | 59 | 51 |
| SMU | 8–10 | 19–12 | 39 | 50 |
| Virginia Tech | 8–10 | 19–12 | 53 | 52 |
| Wake Forest | 7–11 | 16–15 | 64 | 81 |
| Syracuse | 6–12 | 15–16 | 83 | 92 |
| Pittsburgh | 5–13 | 12–19 | 109 | 146 |
| Notre Dame | 4–14 | 13–18 | 93 | 121 |
| Boston College | 4–14 | 11–20 | 159 | 217 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–16 | 11–20 | 167 | 210 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 1 Duke 76, No. 19 North Carolina 61
Boston College 77, Notre Dame 69
Clemson 79, Georgia Tech 76
No. 24 Louisville 92, Miami 89
Florida State 92, SMU 78
Stanford 85, N.C. State 84
Wake Forest 80, California 73
Pittsburgh 71, Syracuse 69, OT
END OF REGULAR SEASON
ACC tournament
Spectrum Center | Charlotte
Tuesday through Saturday
| 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 courtesy of UNC Athletics
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