UNC Basketball Moments After – UNC vs. Georgetown 81-61 Win
UNC Tar Heels Basketball Team Out-Physicals the Georgetown Hoyas and Cruises to Victory
by Derrick Clyburn
The North Carolina basketball team faced off against the Georgetown Hoyas at home on Sunday evening. It was another tough early challenge against a physical Hoya team looking to make their mark with a win against their third ACC opponent this season, but the Tar Heels were having none of that. Early in the first-half Georgetown was successful attacking the basket and getting fast-breaks with steals and deflections. The Hoyas were able to get 10 fast-break points and 22 points in the paint.
UNC’s frontcourt duo of Henri Veesaar and Caleb Wilson battled in the paint to counter the Hoya’s attack with 12 and 10 points respectively. The Tar Heels received some help from the perimeter from Kyan Evans, Derek Dixon, and Luka Bogavac hitting 3-pointers. The Hoyas kept the game close with their physical, scrappy play on both ends of the floor, but the Heels were able to finish the first half with a 44-39 lead.
In the second half, the Tar Heels would ramp up their defensive intensity and continue to put pressure on the Hoya’s defense by attacking the basket. They also got warmed up from the 3-point line and went 5-8 in the first 10 minutes to get some breathing room. Five different Tar Heels hit a 3-pointer during that stretch.
Tar Heels freshman point guard Derek Dixon continued his great play by adding a career-high 14 points going 3-5 from the 3 point-line, and being a solid floor general. The Heels out-physicaled the Georgetown Hoyas in the second stanza defensively and on the boards. They held Georgetown to 33% from the floor and 17% from the 3-point line. Caleb Wilson would lead all scorers with 20 points and 14 rebounds, and Henri Veesaar would add 18 points and 15 rebounds. Both had double-doubles to lead the Heels to an 81-61 victory.
UNC Stats
| 1 | 2 | T | |
| Georgetown 6-3 | 39 | 22 | 61 |
| 16 North Carolina 8-1 | 44 | 37 | 81 |
| Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| C. Wilson | 20 | 14 | 1 | 7/12 | 0/1 | 6/6 | 2 | 34 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| H. Veesaar | 18 | 15 | 3 | 6/11 | 2/3 | 4/7 | 4 | 36 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| L. Bogavac | 14 | 4 | 1 | 5/10 | 1/5 | 3/4 | 1 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| K. Evans | 7 | 0 | 4 | 3/6 | 1/3 | 0/0 | 4 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| J. Stevenson | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1/6 | 1/5 | 0/0 | 2 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bench | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| D. Dixon | 14 | 3 | 3 | 5/7 | 3/5 | 1/2 | 0 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| J. Powell | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2/7 | 1/5 | 0/2 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Young | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Z. High | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0/1 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| I. Denis | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| I. Matlekovic | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| J. Brown | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| E. Davis | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| J. Holbrook | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| E. Smith | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 81 | 42 | 15 | 29/60 | 9/28 | 14/21 | 15 | – | 2 | 4 | 9 |
| Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| K. Lewis | 17 | 7 | 1 | 7/15 | 1/5 | 2/2 | 1 | 29 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| J. Halaifonua | 14 | 4 | 1 | 5/9 | 1/3 | 3/4 | 4 | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| M. Mack | 9 | 1 | 4 | 3/17 | 1/7 | 2/2 | 2 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| I. Abraham | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1/4 | 0/2 | 0/0 | 2 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| C. Williams | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1/4 | 0/1 | 0/1 | 4 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bench | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| L. Love | 10 | 4 | 0 | 4/5 | 1/2 | 1/1 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Williams | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2/7 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 2 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Fort | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1/7 | 0/1 | 1/2 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| S. Diouf | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| K. Mulready | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0/3 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| A. Montgomery | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| H. Asadallah | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| M. Van Raaphorst | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| M. Moses | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 61 | 33 | 9 | 24/72 | 4/23 | 9/12 | 18 | – | 6 | 2 | 4 |
UNC Bright Spots
Caleb Wilson had 20 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block.
Henri Veesaar had 18 points and 15 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks.
Luka Bogavac had 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal.
Derek Dixon had a career-high 14 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Needs Work
The Tar Heels must be better at moving the ball on offense, with their shot selection, and limiting their turnovers. They need to take their time with the ball and make better decisions. It will help the flow of the offense if they are playing inside out more, getting more paint touches, getting the ball inside to the bigs, and using dribble penetration to create advantages offensively. It’s too easy to defend if you are just passing it around the perimeter and settling for jump shots. When you get downhill, attack the basket, and get two feet in the paint, it allows you to find better shots offensively. It starts with the guard play, who have to be aggressive offensively, be better at initiating the offense and getting the best possible shots on each possession.
The Tar Heels also need to do a better job at the free throw line. They shot 66% for the game. They have to stay focused and see the shot through the basket.
Final Observations
North Carolina improves to 8-1 on the season. They went 3-1 against tough competition that will be in the NCAA Tournament at the end of the season. The Heels have so much more room to grow as a team. They still haven’t shot the 3-pointer at a consistent high percentage yet, and they are winning without their senior leader Seth Trimble who will return in a couple of weeks. Derek Dixon is emerging as a reliable steady point guard and the bench is contributing more.
Coach Davis still needs to find more bench minutes for Veesaar and Wilson to give them a longer breather. They played over 35 minutes each which is not sustainable for the long run. Zayden High and James Brown have to step up more to earn the coaches trust as well. North Carolina will have an opportunity to play their reserves more the next few games to build bench depth. Next up is USC Upstate on Saturday at 2 pm on The CW.
When any team can display two players with double figures in points and rebounds, you have something special.