UNC 74, Gonzaga 82
This game showed all of our warts. We started off very strong on a 10-0 run, but after the first substitution it went down hill. Gonzaga got its first lead with 5 minutes left in the first half and they went into the half with a 3 point lead.
It is easy to point out our weaknesses after this game. Where do I start:
- UNC shot a dismal 36% from the floor, 22% from 3 point, and 60% from the free throw line. The only bright spots were Bobby Frasor going 3-6 from 3 and Tywon Lawson going 4-5 from the floor on some nice drives. By the end of the game I was screaming for Wes Miller to NOT take another shot. He went a whopping 0-6 from behind the 3 point line.
- Gonzaga employed a sagging zone and COMPLETELY took Hansbrough out of his game. This was only the second time in his career that Hansbrough didn't score in double-figures. He only took 5 shots from the floor and made 2. Hansbrough also didn't display his normal intensity, almost looking dazed and confused.
- Brandan Wright is a shot blocking force and did a great job on offense. He led the team in scoring with 21, but has some major problems from the free throw line. He shot only 7-14. Much like Hansbrough, Wright is going to go to the charity line a LOT and it is critical that he improve his percentage. If not, teams will be happy to foul him when it gets close because instead of a sure fire 2, we'll be lucky to get 1.
- I know, I know. Coach Williams said he feels comfortable playing 9, 10, 11, but it is hard to wonder what effect not having a consistent rotation is having on the team. He admitted after the game that it will take a little longer to get more consistent, but until then expect to see us look out of sync for long periods.
- Much has been made about UNC potentially breaking the scoring record this year. Don't count on it. This is the second game where we weren't even close to 100 points and all the opposing team had to do was use a sagging zone defense. UNC isn't as fast as everyone might have hoped. That's not to say we won't score a lot of points in short bursts, but don't expect 100 point games consistently.
- Reyshawn Terry played only 17 minutes and was ineffective. I'm not seeing much improvement over last year and we really need Reyshawn to be an outside go-to guy if we are going to be a top 5 team.
- We are not a top 5 team YET. This game showed it, but also the near loss against Winthrop. That's not to say we won't be a top 5 team by the end of year, but we are more likely a 20-25 team right now.
We have a few tough games coming up. We play 3 top 25 teams over the next week: Tennessee, Ohio State, and Kentucky. These will all be good tests and show what kind of hunger this team has. I want to make it clear I'm not counting out this team, not by a long shot. Everyone just needs to recognize where this team is at from a development perspective and start to tone down some of the expectations.
