1. Big win for Carolina to take two straight non-conference games and go into Christmas feeling good. The Tar Heels beat Michigan, 80-76.
2. Armando Pacote He was again great for the tar heels, and this time he did it against some formidable competition in Hunter Dickinson. Backout was the primary difference maker for the Carolina offense. Backout made Dickinson look very average. Michigan’s best boost came when Bacot had to leave the game on four errors, as the Wolverines closed to within three before going with 3:30 before re-entering the game. Backout finished with 26 points on 11-for-15 shooting.
3. Is Carolina’s 3-point shot coming? Tar heels were solid from Charlotte’s bow. Carolina was 7-for-20, only 35 percent, but they made some big comps, including four of RJ Davis.
4. This three-point shot eliminated some uncharacteristic struggles at the free-throw line. It was Carolina’s best offense consistently this year, but the Tar Heels only managed 14 of 27 in the charity strip. But–Caleb Love Making a big four in a row with less than a minute to go.
5. ALSO COME ABOUT: The Carolina Transition. The Tar Heels have 16 quick break points and are working the floor more effectively than they did two weeks ago, when they seemed to sometimes think more than play. RJ Davis He did a good job with the majority of the percussion, however Caleb Love The gaming industry has also improved. Loew has 17 assists in the last three matches.
6. leaky black Quietly was a very effective kicker at picking up Carolina—he finished with 10 on his team—and had a standout ball game in the second half that felt important to the flow of the game. With Carolina up by six points, Michigan got a winning streak led by Doug McDaniel. But Black blocked the shot, then had the ball saved from McDaniel out of bounds. when Nance’s house A three-point play on the next drive turned into a five-point swing. Black had another huge game with under three minutes remaining, flashing past Dickinson to pull off a key steal in a three-point game. Playing close to home, the Concord native was the unsung hero of the game.
7. In a Dean Smith-type wrinkle, Hubert Davis He started to show a few different defensive looks over the course of the match. The Tar Heels showed multiple types of man-to-man pressure in the first half, preventing Michigan from truly settling on offense.
8. Seth Trimble He didn’t shoot in the first half, but he changed the game. Freshman defense on Jett Howard was instrumental in changing the momentum of the game and driving Carolina on a run that gave the Heels a seven-point halftime lead. Howard’s stopping would have been problematic without Trimble; Soon that changed.
9. The referees allowed the game to get very physical in the early part of the first half and then had to pass the ball back to Hunter Dickinson and Caleb Love I got in the dust under the heel tar basket. Four quick technical fouls in sequence basically ended the gradually increasing physical situation. The game was called even tighter after that.
10. HARD TO KNOW THE FUTURE OF THIS SERIES. The Tar Heels and Wolverines have been frequent rivals lately, with Wednesday marking the fifth meeting in six seasons. Three of those meetings came in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, which now gives way to the ACC-SEC Challenge next season. The teams have split the previous four meetings.
11. Second in a row coloring game on the Tar Heels color. This was a throwback to the 1993 national championship game, which always brings up positive memories. Another big crowd at the neutral site, where the Charlotte Tar Heel squad was a match for the Madison Square Garden crew on Saturday. Carolina 15-2 at Spectrum Center.
12. With Wednesday night being the last game before the Christmas break, most Tar Heels come home straight from Charlotte. Some will leave with their parents after the game, and some will leave Charlotte tomorrow. The team will reconvene at Chapel Hill for practice on the evening of December 26th. Don’t underestimate how many players are looking forward to this break. It had been a long time since they slept in their own beds; They are, after all, still college students and most of their classmates had gone home a week early. This is a cherished break in the schedule.
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