North Carolina 93, Virginia 81
A career-high 27 points from Joe Harris didn't matter. An 81-point effort from the team overall didn't matter. Twelve 3-pointers didn't matter.
Why not?
P.J. Hairston recorded a career-high 29 points, topping the 28 he put in against Duke on Wednesday. UNC recorded 93 points overall, 53 of which came in the second half. In 11 games this season, Virginia has held its opponents under 53 points. And the Tar Heels put up one more 3-pointer, 13, than the Cavs, six of which came from Hairston.
It all equaled the first loss for the Cavaliers under coach Tony Bennett in which the 'Hoos have scored at least 80 points.
Yes, we can point a finger at the reffing. It seemed one-sided at times. North Carolina had 11 fouls whistled on it compared to 21 on Virginia. The Tar Heels shot 30 free throws compared to Virginia's 11. And yep, calling lots of fouls on a team hurts their ability to play defense for two reasons -- foul trouble sends players to the bench and players that are on the court are more tentative when it comes to playing defense.
But, I know Bennett isn't in to excuses and so this loss falls on the defense. UVa got caught up in the up-tempo style of North Carolina and paid for it. Early on, with UNC missing shots, it worked. The Cavs took an early, 19-9 lead with about 13 minutes left in the first half. But then the Heels started making shots, and the result was a game-ending 84-62 run for UNC.
"[The pack-line defense] should be pretty solid against [3-pointers], but you can't take away everything and we weren't taking away anything," Bennett said to the media after the loss. "I thought they got to the lane. I thought they got to the glass. I thought they got rhythm 3s. They had us, pretty much, guessing and a step behind, and it's a bad feeling when you're sitting on the bench saying, 'We can't get a stop.' You just can't. We just exchanged buckets. Maybe that's made for TV and everybody enjoys that, but it's not fun when you're sitting there trying to get stops."
I can imagine Bennett's face getting a little red here.
Jontel Evans had this to say: "We got seduced into their style of play. They're a team that loves to rip and run, and we love to play in the halfcourt, and it just hurt us tonight."
I love the word "seduced" here for some reason. It just shows how fans and media people love the run-and-gun style and how opposed Virginia is to it, shunning offense for defense in an against-the-grain approach. The siren was too much for the Cavs to handle this time though, and they succumbed.
There were cracks in the defense showing against Maryland last Sunday when the team allowed 69 points. Now, hopefully the team can have a come-to-Jesus moment a little bit and look into shoring up the defense. I think playing small is one of the reasons the defense has taken a step back. The offense has been helped but the defense has gotten worse. Obviously, this is not an acceptable trade-off for Bennett.
The good news is that Virginia could be getting back some length and defensive prowess in coming games. Darion Atkins played eight minutes and had four points and three rebounds against the Heels, his first points since Jan. 12's loss at Clemson. Atkins is a pretty good low-post defender and is good at blocking shots. If he can get back to playing 15 to 20 minutes per game, that could be a big help. Also, freshman Mike Tobey, who has been out since the second Clemson game with mono, could be close to returning, according to The Daily Progress' Whitey Reid. Bennett: "[Tobey] took a blood test and it improved, but it wasn't where it needs to be ... it's based on the level getting to the right number before they'll let him be able to exert himself."
It has only been a couple weeks since Tobey came down with mono so if the 'Hoos can get him back within a week or so, that would be a huge help. He is a freshman and is still learning the pack-line defense Bennett uses, but you can't discount the fact that a nearly 7-foot guy helps the defense simply by being 7-foot. He also helps with rebounding, one of the problems Virginia encountered against North Carolina. The Tar Heels outrebounded the Cavaliers 32-21.
The home stretch is coming for Virginia. Six games remain in the regular season and I think Virginia must go 4-2 to make the NCAA tournament (independent of what the team does in the ACC tournament, though even at 12-6, a win in the ACC tourney might be necessary). Next up is a big another big road test at Miami on Tuesday. The Hurricanes are No. 2 in the country and 12-0 in the ACC but due a loss. Hopefully the Cavaliers can get their defense back on track and give the 'Canes a competitive game.
A career-high 27 points from Joe Harris didn't matter. An 81-point effort from the team overall didn't matter. Twelve 3-pointers didn't matter.
Why not?
P.J. Hairston recorded a career-high 29 points, topping the 28 he put in against Duke on Wednesday. UNC recorded 93 points overall, 53 of which came in the second half. In 11 games this season, Virginia has held its opponents under 53 points. And the Tar Heels put up one more 3-pointer, 13, than the Cavs, six of which came from Hairston.
It all equaled the first loss for the Cavaliers under coach Tony Bennett in which the 'Hoos have scored at least 80 points.
Yes, we can point a finger at the reffing. It seemed one-sided at times. North Carolina had 11 fouls whistled on it compared to 21 on Virginia. The Tar Heels shot 30 free throws compared to Virginia's 11. And yep, calling lots of fouls on a team hurts their ability to play defense for two reasons -- foul trouble sends players to the bench and players that are on the court are more tentative when it comes to playing defense.
But, I know Bennett isn't in to excuses and so this loss falls on the defense. UVa got caught up in the up-tempo style of North Carolina and paid for it. Early on, with UNC missing shots, it worked. The Cavs took an early, 19-9 lead with about 13 minutes left in the first half. But then the Heels started making shots, and the result was a game-ending 84-62 run for UNC.
"[The pack-line defense] should be pretty solid against [3-pointers], but you can't take away everything and we weren't taking away anything," Bennett said to the media after the loss. "I thought they got to the lane. I thought they got to the glass. I thought they got rhythm 3s. They had us, pretty much, guessing and a step behind, and it's a bad feeling when you're sitting on the bench saying, 'We can't get a stop.' You just can't. We just exchanged buckets. Maybe that's made for TV and everybody enjoys that, but it's not fun when you're sitting there trying to get stops."
I can imagine Bennett's face getting a little red here.
Jontel Evans had this to say: "We got seduced into their style of play. They're a team that loves to rip and run, and we love to play in the halfcourt, and it just hurt us tonight."
I love the word "seduced" here for some reason. It just shows how fans and media people love the run-and-gun style and how opposed Virginia is to it, shunning offense for defense in an against-the-grain approach. The siren was too much for the Cavs to handle this time though, and they succumbed.
There were cracks in the defense showing against Maryland last Sunday when the team allowed 69 points. Now, hopefully the team can have a come-to-Jesus moment a little bit and look into shoring up the defense. I think playing small is one of the reasons the defense has taken a step back. The offense has been helped but the defense has gotten worse. Obviously, this is not an acceptable trade-off for Bennett.
The good news is that Virginia could be getting back some length and defensive prowess in coming games. Darion Atkins played eight minutes and had four points and three rebounds against the Heels, his first points since Jan. 12's loss at Clemson. Atkins is a pretty good low-post defender and is good at blocking shots. If he can get back to playing 15 to 20 minutes per game, that could be a big help. Also, freshman Mike Tobey, who has been out since the second Clemson game with mono, could be close to returning, according to The Daily Progress' Whitey Reid. Bennett: "[Tobey] took a blood test and it improved, but it wasn't where it needs to be ... it's based on the level getting to the right number before they'll let him be able to exert himself."
It has only been a couple weeks since Tobey came down with mono so if the 'Hoos can get him back within a week or so, that would be a huge help. He is a freshman and is still learning the pack-line defense Bennett uses, but you can't discount the fact that a nearly 7-foot guy helps the defense simply by being 7-foot. He also helps with rebounding, one of the problems Virginia encountered against North Carolina. The Tar Heels outrebounded the Cavaliers 32-21.
The home stretch is coming for Virginia. Six games remain in the regular season and I think Virginia must go 4-2 to make the NCAA tournament (independent of what the team does in the ACC tournament, though even at 12-6, a win in the ACC tourney might be necessary). Next up is a big another big road test at Miami on Tuesday. The Hurricanes are No. 2 in the country and 12-0 in the ACC but due a loss. Hopefully the Cavaliers can get their defense back on track and give the 'Canes a competitive game.
Can't believe you mentioned the refs as a reason why UVa lost. Virginia lost because they were outplayed and outcoached.
ReplyDeleteMiami is due......for another win. Go Canes
ReplyDeleteIt was part of it, but mostly we were outplayed, Derek. I'll give you that. UNC had an amazing second half. Outcoached? No. I'll take Bennett over Roy any day. After the game, Roy said, "We made shots. That simple." Sounds like good coaching, huh? No, just got lucky they made a ton of shots.
ReplyDelete