Carolina has played NCAA-high six Quad 1 games, but Heels need ‘good wins’ to go with the ‘good losses’

The narrow loss at Pittsburgh made Carolina’s return to the AP Top 25 men’s poll brief. But the good news for the Tar Heels is that the 76–74 setback came in a Quad 1 game, and can be classified as a “good loss” for NCAA men’s tournament resume purposes. UNC (9–5, 1–2 ACC) is one of six teams in the country that has played an NCAA-high six Quad 1 games, but is tied for the second-worst record in those games at 1–5 with South Dakota State (194 in the NET rankings). No 5-ranked Arizona (5 in NET) is 5–1, No. 24 Ohio State (10 in NET) is 3–3, No. 9 Gonzaga (13 in NET) is 3–3 and Florida (61 in NET) is 0–6.

Tar Heels in NBA: Barnes hits 16, gets 4,000th rebound; Johnson still working toward return; knee soreness slows White

Harrison Barnes scored 16 points and tied his season-high with four 3-pointers in his best game since mid-December, but it wasn’t enough in a tough road test for his Sacramento Kings. The Memphis Grizzlies pulled away after a close first half to lead by as many as 14 points before taking a 118–108 victory Sunday.

Failing to feed Bacot costs UNC down stretch at Pitt

For some Saturday stretches, Carolina seemed to forget that they have Preseason All-American post player, which cost the Tar Heels. There were far too many second-half possessions when an outside shot went up without the ball going inside to Armando Bacot, who got two shots in the last 10 minutes of Pittsburgh’s 76–74 home victory over UNC at the Peterson Events Center.

Davis’ nimble coaching, making changes on fly, comes from his approach as player

Hubert Davis has never hesitated to make changes on the fly when his initial game plan hasn’t worked or he has a gut feeling that a change would work better, and that’s made a difference during No. 25 North Carolina’s four-game win streak. That philosophy started when he was a player trying to figure out how to be successful on the floor, and that’s carried over since he became head coach and began making decisions instead of suggestions.

Caleb Love drives for a dunk in UNC's victory over Michigan.

Streaking Heels back in men’s Top 25, seek 2nd Quad 1 win Friday

Carolina is back to playing well, has continued to improve during a four-game win streak, and now the Tar Heels are back in the AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll after a three-week absence. UNC (9–4, 1–1 ACC) is No. 25 after following up its big 89–84 overtime victory Dec. 17 in New York over Ohio State with an 80–76 win Wednesday in Charlotte over Michigan. Losses by No. 21 Virginia Tech, No. 24 Marquette and No. 25 Arizona State dropped all three from the poll, aiding the Tar Heels’ return.

Tar Heels in NBA: Bullock’s best game of season comes in Mavs’ Christmas rout of Lakers; Green’s recovery progressing

Reggie Bullock played through a neck strain on Sunday, but that didn’t faze him before a national television audience in his best game of the season. Meanwhile, there was news about Danny Green’s recovery from offseason knee surgery. Starting his fifth consecutive game, Bullock scored a season-high 14 points, tying his season-high with four 3-pointers and dishing out a season-high four assists as the Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 124–115 Christmas Day home victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.