UNC Tar Heels Basketball Team Surges Against Kentucky
by Derrick Clyburn
The Tar Heels basketball team is still trying to figure out their identity for this season. Today against Kentucky they found freshman Kerwin Walton. He came off the bench and hit three 3-pointers to loosen up the Wildcats defense. If Walton can help out on the perimeter by knocking down shots that we help the inside game tremendously.
This was a big win for North Carolina. Both UNC and Kentucky have been struggling to find consistency. The Tar Heels again fell behind by 11 points in the first half, but they fought back with tough defense and attacking the basket with Walton and Platek hitting open 3-pointers. UNC had four players in double figures led by Armando Bacot with 14 points and 8 rebounds.
UNC Game Stats
1 2 T #22 North Carolina 34 41 75 Kentucky 38 25 63 North Carolina Pts FG 3FG FT REB PF A TO Min +/- 1 BLACK 6 1-7 0-3 4-6 6 3 0 0 32 12 2 LOVE 11 4-14 0-5 3-3 0 4 6 2 30 16 4 DAVIS 3 1-6 1-4 0-1 0 2 1 0 16 -9 5 BACOT 14 5-8 0-0 4-6 8 2 1 0 29 8 15 BROOKS 11 5-7 0-1 1-3 6 4 1 3 26 12 3 PLATEK 6 2-6 1-3 1-2 4 4 2 1 24 11 11 SHARPE 7 3-8 0-1 1-4 11 3 2 2 21 -1 13 KESSLER 2 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 0 0 2 1 14 JOHNSON 2 1-1 0-0 0-0 1 1 0 0 5 -4 24 WALTON 13 3-3 3-3 4-4 0 1 1 2 14 14 25 LEBO 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 SMITH 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 35 MCADOO 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 TOTALS 75 26-61 5-20 18-29 38 25 14 11 200 Shooting Period FG FG% 3FG 3FG% FT FT% 1st Half 15-30 50% 2-10 20% 2-5 40% 2nd Half 11-31 35% 3-10 30% 16-24 67% Game 26-61 42.6% 5-20 25.0% 18-29 62.1% Kentucky Pts FG 3FG FT REB PF A TO Min +/- 3 BOSTON JR. 15 5-14 0-3 5-8 7 3 2 2 35 -8 5 CLARKE 6 3-11 0-3 0-1 3 5 0 3 25 -12 10 MINTZ 17 6-11 3-6 2-5 8 3 2 2 36 -4 23 JACKSON 3 1-2 0-0 1-2 5 5 0 2 15 2 30 SARR 2 0-0 0-0 2-4 4 5 1 3 18 -5 0 TOPPIN 4 1-6 0-0 2-2 2 0 0 1 19 -14 2 ASKEW 12 3-6 0-1 6-8 4 2 3 2 26 -13 11 ALLEN 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0 1 -3 21 FLETCHER 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0 0 3 -1 55 WARE 4 2-3 0-0 0-0 7 5 0 1 21 -2 TOTALS 63 21-53 3-13 18-30 42 30 8 16 200 Shooting Period FG FG% 3FG 3FG% FT FT% 1st Half 14-32 44% 3-8 38% 7-10 70% 2nd Half 7-21 33% 0-5 00% 11-20 55% Game 21-53 39.6% 3-13 23.1% 18-30 60.0%
UNC Bright Spots
Armando Bacot had 14 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block.
Caleb Love had 11 points and 6 assists.
Kerwin Walton had 13 points and 1 assist.
Garrison Brooks had 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 assist.
Needs Work
The Tar Heels have to start the games better. This is the fifth time out of their seven games that they have trailed by more than double digits in the first half. UNC must start the games with more intensity and maintain it throughout the game.
They need to continue to cut down on their turnovers and be more aggressive in attacking the basket. Also, UNC needs to consistently hit perimeter shots.
Final Observations
I like that North Carolina has the fight in them. They have battled through first half deficits all year. I see improvement from the freshmen. They are adding more contributions to the team game by game. The biggest step forward is that the guards be more consistent hitting perimeter shots. When they accomplish that this team will be hard to stop.