UNC 77, Kentucky 58
It's easy to focus on the good in this game; there was a lot of it. UNC came out with a blazing start, leading 25 to 6 after less than ten minute of play. They completely flummoxed the Wildcats, who couldn't find either a rhythm or their big man Patrick Patterson for most of the game. Deon Thompson had a true coming out party, with 20 points and 9 rebounds before fouling out with under three minutes remaining. The turnover generation was phenomenal, with the Heels forcing 28, including sixteen steals, often through an eerie second sense of where the ball was headed. To have that sort of familiarity with the court and each other this early in the season is probably the most heartening thing I've seen to date. And the freshmen continued to play well, even if the game may have cost the team Tyler Zeller, who damaged his wrist in a late-game collision with Ramon Harris and the rim on a garbage-time layup.
So you know what, for the second game of the season we will focus on the good. The fact that the half-court offense still struggles can be put aside, as can the offensive rebounds they allowed Kentucky to keep getting. (To be fair with that last bit, with the wild shots the Wildcats threw up were bouncing off the rim with such unpredictability, it would be hard not to get at least some of them, no matter the positioning.) UNC thoroughly beat a marquee team in the second game of the season. They can head out west with a feeling of confidence they've earned, rather than just a head full of preseason rankings. It looks to be a very good year.
(Catch the game review from the other side here.)
Comments
To my eye, they weren't really busting it in the 2nd half
and to be missing your best player, best defender, and taking a rest in the 2nd half an still spank the Wildcats is pretty impressive. That being said, it probably says as much about the state of Kentucky’s team right now than it does ours.
I really hope Zeller is alright, but I have a feeling that wrist is broken.
by BraveBronco0121 on
Nov 19, 2008 11:31 AM EST
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If this is the preview...
for the rest of the year, I think that whomever has UNC on its schedule is going to find themselves one heck of a team. Insert the reigning NPOY and the best defender to what you saw last night and you have to say it’s pretty impressive.
AEM
"If you make every game a life and death proposition, you're going to have problems. For one thing, you'll be dead a lot." - Dean Smith
by AEM on
Nov 19, 2008 5:06 PM EST
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Here’s hoping; I’ve seen good teams melts down with chemistry problems and Kentucky could always end up much worse than advertised, but I think Roy Williams can avoid the former and Gillespie the latter. The question now is, how good are the other major contenders?
by T.H. on
Nov 19, 2008 6:47 PM EST
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