I think I was right

After the Heels' win over Miami on the road I wondered if Carolina, the real Carolina, was back.  

Well, after yesterday's win, an almost 2009-style blowout over N.C. State, I think we are.  Granted, State is still one year away from being above average (or a year away from where Herb Sendak had them) but I loved the way the Heels played against the Wolfpack.

There were at least four things that had to make any Heels fan grin a Mama Dips-size smile.  

One, the Heels came out on fire and aggressive.  For whatever reason the Heels had come out flat in five straight games.  Though they were Trident-gum successful - winning four out of those five games - it was great to see the Heels impose their will on an opponent from the opening tip.  We're well known for great comebacks, but it's not a great habit to get into.  Good to see us throw the first punch.

Two, it was a punch mainly thrown by Harrison Barnes, who finally played a full game rather than putting together a few huge spurts and flourishes. Barnes looked electric against State, hitting shots from all over the floor, driving a few times, pulling down 6 boards, and hustling on defense. His confidence is starting to build, and Barnes is morphing into the player we expected - our best player, the new Hansbrough, the one who leads us deep into the NCAA tournament.

That brings me to point 3; to become our best player he will have to out play John Henson, who right now is the best Carolina player on the floor.  Henson had 16 points, an equal number of boards to go along with seven blocks. Like Barnes he is getting his points in a variety of ways, on dunks, hooks, short jumpers, put backs, even a few free throws!  It took him a while to figure out college basketball but he has, and Henson is thriving.  I love his skill, but am equally impressed by his patience, confidence and intelligence/decision making.  Otherwise known as being a Tar Heel.   

Finally, there is nothing that says Carolina basketball as much as "feeding the post," and against State we did that.  All three of our bigs, Henson, Zeller and Knox, finished in double figures as Marshall, Drew, Strickland, Barnes, Wanda, everyone, fed the post consistently on Saturday.

There were some lapses in the Heels' offense against State, and we probably let Brown get to the rack to easily in the second half.  But at the core of yesterday's win - Barnes' overall play, Henson's skill and savvy, feeding the post - was more proof that Carolina is back.

GO HEELS!

Few Random Notes:

• Heels are back, but some things have changed in North Carolina as the Old North State was America's winter sports capital this weekend.  How odd to think that Raleigh hosted the NHL All-star game the same weekend that Greensboro hosted the U.S. figure skating championships? When I was growing up there you couldn't buy a mixed drink let alone find ice.
• I wanted to root for Duke - and the ACC - against the Big East and St. John's today . . . but couldn't. I can't stand the Big East, but they are better than us this season.  Duke, on the other hand, looked bad, especially down low.  Hope we can exploit that and keep feeding the post against them in Cameron next week.  It appears to me that without Kyrie Irving at the point Duke is having trouble getting Singler enough shots, but I've only seen them play a few times.  Either way, without Irving they are not that scary.  

The Return of Carolina

Last night's scintillating win over Miami - in Coral Gables - could finally be the start of something big for the 2011 Tar Heels.

Not only did the Heels make some big, huge plays down late, Carolina-style plays like Henson's hook,  Barnes' two clutch shots, Marshall's pass, and Zeller's defense and key rebounds. 

But I'm talking about that confident, 'we're going to win this game' sensation that Heels from Dean to Barnes have felt, as have most Carolina fans. 

I felt that last night, even when the Heels fell behind 28 to 14 and even when our power went out with 8 minutes left.  [I followed the rest of the game via Twitter and ESPN game cast on my phone, but mainly via Joey 'Texting Like Woody' Pillow, who provided excellent play by play via text down the stretch. I finally watched the rest of the game this morning via ESPN3.]

That feeling is one of the things that define Carolina basketball.  And to say the least we didn't have it last year, and it's been fleeting this campaign.  For instance, I felt it at half time of the Georgia Tech game, and we know how THAT turned out.

But last night may be different. The Tar Heels had to make play after play to win, and they did. You need skill to make those plays, but you also need that Carolina confidence, that 'we're going to win' mentality.   And it may finally be here to stay.

A great win over a team that shot lights out at home, a win that gives us the same number of ACC road wins - two - as we had all of last year, and one that makes us 4-1 in the conference.  As perplexing as this team has been Carolina is on track to win 10 or 11 ACC games, and team that is getting that Carolina confidence back.

GO HEELS!

Some More Caro-Lines

• Harrison Barnes has certainly had his ups and downs but he saves his ups for key moments, that's for sure. Roy keeps urging him to lose himself in the game, and the shots he made last night are evidence when Barnes does that he excels.  The big shots last night were reactive, basketball plays that good hoopsters make. His biggest problem has been thinking too much, but when he doesn't do that Barnes looks like the big-time talent we expected.  The three was big, but that step-back two was breathtaking, and I jumped out of my seat when I finally watched it this morning.
• Roy also said that more amazing than Barnes' shot was Marshall's pass, and it's hard to argue.  It was another instinctive play, the kind made by talented and confident players.
• After a lackluster first half Zeller really impressed me late with his rebounding, his shot to tie it up late, and his great defense down low.  He's as guilty as Drew and others for some of the recent slow starts this team has had of late, but I'm glad he showed up.
• I can't believe I didn't mention Reggie Bullock until the fourth bullet! It was fantastic to see his confident play carry over from the Clemson game.  He didn't go off for 16 first half points like he did versus the Tigers but he made play after play last night, especially late in the first half when his scoring and rebounding helped the Heels make up a 14-point deficit to tie the score at half.
• Dexter Strickland was the other key player in Carolina's first half run. He was aggressive and smart with the ball on his way to 12 first-half points.  It was his first good ACC game of the season.  While he didn't score in the second half Strickland played some nice D.
• John Henson wasn't as active as in previous games, but he did have a few blocks and helped fuel the first half surge.  And like Barnes, his hook shot late was clutch and confident.   
• How great is it to get contributions from so many players, and I haven't even mentioned quality play from McDonald - who came back after missing a game to make 2 three pointers - Knox who also had some nice moments, and Larry Drew who looks great coming off the bench, finally going to the hoop and initiating the offense instead of dribbling dribbling dribbling . . .
• One negative note to last night's game: how in the wide, wide world of sports can the Hurricanes fail to have a sell out with Carolina in town? Some local celebs - Tim Hardaway, Desmond Howard, the Saints Jimmy Graham - realized that when Carolina comes to town you go to the game.  But the Canes couldn't even sell 8,000 tickets to their on-campus facility for one of the most - or THE most - storied college basketball program of all time?  
• Actually, forget it was Carolina - every ACC team should sell out their conference games.  Miami sports fans are lame: the Hurricanes football team rarely sell out their games unless FSU or Florida are in town; no one goes to Marlins games; the Heat draw now but even when Shaq was in town didn't sell out night after night; even the Dolphins play in front of a few empty seats every Sunday.  But how can you NOT sell a measly 8,000 tickets with Carolina in town?
• The lousy hoops attendance in Miami and Boston College is more proof that ACC expansion was a mistake.  The exception is Virginia Tech, a natural rival for Virginia that is geographically an ACC team AND boasts great (at least passionate) fans.  But the conference has not benefited from having BC and the U as members.

Dude Looks Like A Lady

Good news, bad news week on TV.

Good news is, I should have more free time this spring since I doubt I will spend much time watching American Idol this season.   As some of you know, the kids and I have watched the last three seasons.  But without Simon Cowell the show is not worth watching.

The bad news is as luminous as Jennifer Lopez looks, Steven Tyler is terrible to watch and even worse to listen to.  All he does is cackle and try to make double and triple entendres.  As Andy Richter said on Conan this week, "Was that Steven Tyler?  I thought that was a creepy old lady."

Lopez looks fantastic but has nothing to say; Randy Jackson looks weird and has even less to say.  Jackson was always the third-most interesting person on the panel, no matter the season.  

This year the entire panel mimics Jackson: third-rate judges on an equally tired show.

On the other hand, I am enjoying the new Conan show.  Some of the writing is not that great some nights, but no matter how weak the jokes are the bottom line is: Conan is just funny.  And he's funny no matter what.  

The show's secret weapon is Richter.  He never seems to miss - though he and Conan failed to follow up his 'creepy old lady' crack about Tyler by cackling 'dude look like a lady!"

Take 2 Clemsons and Call Me in the Morning

When it comes to Carolina basketball, there is nothing like Clemson.  Once upon a time, Carolina was a school of unbelievable streaks: 20-win seasons, top-3 finishes in the ACC regular season, sweet 16 trips. Our friend Matt Doherty ended most of our most vaunted streaks (with some help from Boston College's Bill Curley).

The one that endures is our winning streak against the ACC's original football school, the Clemson Tigers. Last night's win leaves Clemson 0-forever versus Carolina.  Perhaps the most inexplicable record in sports is Carolina's 54-0 lifetime record at home versus Clem(p)son. 

Almost as inexplicable was the way the Heels stunk up the joint versus Georgia Tech on Sunday night.  After displays of toughness and determination in their previous 2 conference games the Heels displayed neither in Atlanta. They also could not do little things like catch a pass, let alone make a shot. Inexplicable that any Division I athlete, let alone a Carolina recruit, could not catch a pass but that's what happened on Sunday night.

The good news is last night the Heels righted many off those wrongs.  Perhaps best of all Carolina did not trail by double figures in this game for the first time in four games.  The Heels came out much more focused, with much more energy.

That may have something to do with Kendall Marshall replacing Larry Drew II in the starting line up. That was certainly part of it; Marshall was no Ty Lawson but the Heels did score 46 points in the first half - and did not fall behind.

Marshall did his part, but the Heels were led in the first half by Jon Henson and Reggie Bullock.  Bullock got major minutes due to a pneumothorax issue with Leslie McDonald. Not only did Bullock score 16 points in the first half, he got them as a result of playing a complete floor game. Bullock did hit 3 three-pointers but he also played the passing lanes and created - scored off of - Clemson turnovers.

Playing the passing lanes was emblematic of a more aggressive defensive effort by the Heels. Particularly late, the Heels really ratcheted up their defense and as a result Clemson only scored 2 points in the final seven minutes.

Also on display late was the toughness the Heels demonstrated in their wins over Virginia and Virginia Tech.  For most of the game the Heels had a working lead of 4 to 8 points but the Tigers fought back time after time, tying the game at 63 with seven minutes left.   That's when the Heels started making plays. 

Down the stretch Barnes made another big three and had a important defensive board, Marshall made free throws, there was a key tip-in by Henson,  and Zeller had two monster offensive rebounds.  

So overall a pretty satisfying game, one that makes us 3-1 in the conference.  We didn't get behind early, Bullock and Henson made shots, and the Heels got tough late to win.  Thanks Clemson!

And GO HEELS!

Few more Heels notes:

• This is Henson's team now.   Used to be Zeller's.  Psycho Z is still playing well, but Henson is consistently making plays on offense and defense (everywhere but the free throw line).  We get much worse when he is not on the floor.
• Zeller needs to get more touches.  In the last two games he's only taken 11 shots.  Maybe teams are keying on him more, and Henson is benefiting as a result.  But I wish we could be more patient on offense and get Zeller more touches and shots.
• I was impressed by Larry Drew II.  Coming off the bench he was more Bobby Fraser 2006 than his usual Adam Boone.  He attacked the basket and played some good d, too.  And he didn't sulk.  Props to LDII.
• Bullock finally snapped out of his parliament-sized funk last night.  Like Barnes, he's had trouble losing himself in the game but last night he finally did - and scored 16 points in the first half.
• Barnes keeps tantalizing. He is clearly skilled but still seems to be thinking too much out there.  I like that he has been taking the ball to the rack more, and seems to have improved as a defender.
•  After 3 games in 6 days the Heels are now off until their January 26 visit to the U. 

Ugly Ugly Ugly

Let's see - Carolina's last 3 games have been: ugly win (at Virginia); ugly win (at home vs. Virginia Tech);  the most horrendous of them all, tonight's ugly loss to a uninspiring Georgia Tech team in Atlanta.

A game so terrible as tonight's 20-point loss takes all - at least almost all - the shine off those two ugly wins.  The Heels never looked like the Heels tonight.  They were incredibly passive to start the game, for the second game in a row.  We did not feed the post; Henson and Zeller had 6 shots combined in the first half. Our perimeter defense was terrible, and we let a relatively short Tech team out muscle us down low.

Even our new savant, Kendell Marshall, had a bad game with 5 turnovers (a couple of really bad ones, too).

It was a total breakdown. Carolina shot 27 percent for the game, 20 percent for the second half.  Georgia Tech punched us in the face, and we had absolutely no response, from anyone.  No one had even a semi-decent game for the Heels. 

Is this a pattern?  Against the teams from the Old Dominion the come-from-behind victories looked good, and were symptoms of toughness and tenacity.  But when you follow those two performances with tonight's stinker, you start to worry about the 2010 Heels. 

The troubling thing is that in 3 ACC games the Heels have failed to play with much urgency or smarts, at least for 40 minutes.  Against Virginia we did for the first 5 minutes, and the last 6. Against Virginia Tech is was for the last 4 minutes of the first half, and the last 8 of the second. Tonight against the Yellow Jackets, in front of a 50/50 crowd by the way, we had one decent stretch when the subs came in after 3 minutes, for about 5 minutes.

So my very rough calculations have us playing 28 decent minutes, in 3 games, out of a possible 120.

Maybe I'm over reacting; it's only one game, ugly wins are still wins, and we're 2-1 in the conference with a road victory. And perhaps I should not devalue those two wins. Virginia won half a game AT Duke over the weekend so they aren't THAT bad.  And the Hokies are semi-legit, a top-50 team according to the RPI.

Perhaps best of all, Clemson comes to the Dean Dome on Tuesday, a team the Heels have never lost to in Chapel Hill.

That game will be huge, however.  A good night of shooting, rebounding and running, a playing smart will go a long way to cure all the ills from tonight's loss.  This team needs to get it's confidence back, and hopefully that will happen against the Tigers.

That WILL happen if Carolina acts like Carolina. We need to feed the post, for two reasons. One, that's Carolina basketball, go low first, then pass it out if nothing's there.  And two, for the 2010 Heels that's where are scorers are.  

This team has talent, especially in Henson, Zeller, and Barnes. Those guys, especially Henson and Z, need lots of touches. Tonight that didn't happen, and there were similar stretches against the Cavaliers and Hokies.  Fix that and everything will get better, and we won't have nights where the Heels shoot 27 percent.

Of course, that issue begs THE BIG QUESTION: Marshall or Drew II?  I would keep doing what Roy has been doing, at least for one more game. It will be hard to keep starting Drew, however, if he continues to fail to get the Heels into their offense, and fails to feed Z, Henson, and others.  He's been in Chapel Hill for 2 and a half seasons.  He should be better, and that needs to happen soon.

Evil is so banal

The French philosopher Simone Weil coined that phrase at the beginning of World War II.  It's most often explained as 'evil is very common.'

Obviously, that's what we saw in Tucson yesterday in the shooting rampage that killed 5, including a nine-year old girl, a Federal district judge, and two Congressional staff people.  And as you know, the target looked to be three-term Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

I'll leave politics aside for a moment, and not dwell on vitriol displayed by Giffords opponents or Sarah Palin's website.

Can we really be considered a civilized society when a mentally unstable individual can purchase a hand gun and an incredible amount of ammunition?  In short, it's frighteningly easy for crazy people to purchase weapons in the United States.

Carrying a gun is a not a right.  If folks want to hunt, fine.  But if you want a hunting license one should have to take a drivers education style gun safety course, one renewed every 2 or 3 years. 

And no one should have handguns except the police and the military. Actually, I don't think active duty personnel are allowed to carry side arms or weapons in the United States.  Paranoid citizens who think they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves have more to fear from their fellow right-wing gun nuts than from their elected government or invasion from Canada, Mexico or Cuba.

The solution is not more security, the answer is outlawing guns.  Only then will our society have real security from shooting rampages like the one we witnesses in Tucson. 

But as bad as our gun culture is, the banality of evil in the U.S. is even worse.  What makes it worse is that we put up with, and in the case of Palin's website or Bachmann's and Angle's support for an armed populace, cultivate that kind of evil. 

We the people are supposed to strive for a more perfect union, but we will never approach perfection as long as we have elected officials, pundits, commentators, and journalists who demonize their opponents with the kind of vitriol displayed against Gabby Giffords and others.

Again, what may be even worse that the vitriolic speech - and the literal targeting of elected officials like Giffords on websites and grocery store sidewalks - is that that kind of speech can work. Politicians, usually Republicans, sometimes get elected demonizing their opponent.  Not criticizing their opponent but demonizing them, defining them not as a Democrat or Republican but as the 'other.'

Look no further than the treatment of President Obama by parts of the right-wing base, or the birthers who heckled from the House gallery this week. 

The challenge for our nation is that political leaders, especially Republicans, need to denounce that kind of speech, but I wonder if they can muster the courage to do so.  Elected officials, candidates and the news media need to denounce and challenge and ostracize any candidate or group that practices that kind of demonization - year round, day in and day out. 

Because it's not just during the election when this kind of intolerance for violent rhetoric is important.  It's almost more important after or between elections.  Remember, a majority of people in Arizona's 8th Congressional district voted for Giffords.  But the hate and targeting of the Congresswoman lingered after election.  

Politicians have to recognize that the stuff they say in an election lingers long after the polls close and the ballots are counted, especially the kind of vitriol spewed at Giffords.  Words and images matter, especially to crazy people with guns looking for an excuse to eliminate a perceived enemy, a threat that was defined as a threat to America prior to the election but one that is now actually in office. 

An insane or unstable individual can't stand by when someone they perceive as evil has been validated by the public.  Their twisted sense of justice compels them to 'fix' something the electorate got wrong.

In the 1990s, the same anti-government rhetoric and paranoia about a Democratic president sparked the bombing of the Murrow Federal Building in Oklahoma City, and killed almost 250 citizens. Yesterday, that same paranoia about a Democratic president and elected officials resulted in a rampage that cost 5 people their lives, including a nine-year old girl.  

When will candidates, especially Republicans, learn that their words have consequences - especially in a country awash in guns and unjustifiable but cultivated paranoia? How long are we going to cultivate evil for votes?

ACC season

As improbable as it may sound, there is a very good chance that Carolina could go 11 and 5, at the very least 10 and 6, in the ACC this year. And it's not inconceivable that the Heels could finish 12 and 4.

The Heels have looked better lately, which is heartening and the main reason to be optimistic.  Larry Drew is playing better,  Tyler Zeller and John Henson are dependable post players at both ends of the floor,  Dexter Strickland has figured out ways to score (though it would be great if our shooting guard could shoot) and has been playing lock down defense, and Leslie McDonald and Harrison Barnes and Reggie Bullock may give us some legit outside shooting. I also love the work the two Justins, messers Watts and Knox, are doing off the bench.

But the main reason to be optimistic about 10 wins in conference is the generally atrocious condition of the ACC. Duke is very good - they were likely great with Kyrie Irving - but that is practically it when it comes to the ACC. 

Finally, the schedule favors the Heels.  Our road games are at Duke, State, Boston College, FSU, Clemson, Virginia, Georgia Tech and Miami. Those last 4 are likely wins. The Heels could fall to Clemson - though I doubt it - or Miami in Coral Gables; the U is getting better. Or we could pull one out over BC in Chestnut Hill.  But with no visits to College Park or Blacksburg you only need to pencil in 4 road losses.

At home we get to feast on some pretty weak teams. The Hokies, Clemson, State, FSU, Wake, BC, Maryland and Duke come to Chapel Hill.  Ideally we run the table at the Smith Center, but even if we lose to Duke or suffer a hick up along the way against Virginia Tech or Maryland that is still only 2 home losses.

Pretty good news for a team that went 5 and 11 last year. I'm trying to stay realistic with this team but when you look at the schedule and the rest of the league 10 wins seems more than doable. And without Irving I feel good about taking down Duke at least once, so put me down for 11 wins for the 2011 Heels.

Heels Notes

• One easy way to gauge how weak the ACC is are the polls.  Duke is the only ACC team in the top 25 this week, again.
• Interesting to note how Carolina has played 5 teams in the current top 25: Kentucky, Texas, Vanderbilt, Minnesota and Illinois.
• ESPN's Joe Lunardi has the Heels listed as a 9 seed in his first edition of Bracketology.  Though we are only 1-4 versus the teams in the current top 25 when you look at Lunardi's field you see that we have already defeated three teams predicted to make the NCAA tournament, Long Beach State and Lipscomb, in addition to Kentucky.

Good riddance to 2010

You know a year that saw the Tar Heels go 5 and 11 in the ACC and end up in the NIT, and saw John Boehner become Speaker of the House, really stunk.  Personally, it was a decent-to-good year for me, but outside of family stuff I thought the last year really, really stunk.

Way too much of my mood hinges on the Tar Heels. I don't want to rehash the problems of the 2010 season, but the worst thing was watching Carolina not look like Carolina.  Looking like Carolina - the Carolina way - matters.  And when the Carolina way is not done right, not only do fans like me suffer but so does the nation.  Or at least the karma suffers.

As I've said before, can it really be a coincidence that John Boehner passes Pelosi, and Krzyzewski passes Dean, in the same year? It's not: when Carolina does well, good triumphs over evil.  Simple as that.

Want more proof?  In 2010, Duke wins a national championship, and not a month later BP causes the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history.  

In 2009, Carolina wins a national championship and Congress passes a bill to protect more than 2 million acres of new public lands a wilderness and national parks in the same month. Again, not a coincidence.

The saddest part of Pelosi no longer being speaker, the worst thing to happen to the United States since Bush's reelection, is that when you look back at 2010 a lot actually got done.

• Passing financial reform legislation was huge.
• As was passing a health care bill that will start to reduce the cost of health care, allow children to stay on their parents health plans until 26 and prohibit turning down someone due to a preexisting condition.  It might not have been a national champion of bills, but it is final four worthy.  
• Covering the cost of health insurance for 9/11 first responders was almost as big.
• And repealing 'Don't Ask Don't Tell' was even more huge. 
• And in what other year would getting most U.S. troops, including all combat troops, out of Iraq become a small story, one barely mentioned?

Reciting this list of legislative accomplishments underscores two points.  One, it shows how all those accomplishments are window dressing in the face of high unemployment and general economic anxiety.  And two, how little people pay attention. I honestly think people don't know how much the last Congress did.  Then again, maybe they do but economic anxiety undercuts that knowledge.  Feel and emotion will always triumph over a laundry list.

Or people may simply be crazy and stupid, at least the ones who voted this year.

Anyway, good riddance to 2010, the year of Duke, oil spills, John Boehner, and a electorate driven to stupidity by a bad economy.

The good news is, the Heels will get better.  The bad news, don't expect another long list of accomplishments in the next year.  After all, Democrats still control the Senate and of course the Presidency, so don't expect legislative harmony or many big bills to pass this year.  And even if the House Republicans do scare enough Democrats in the Senate to overturn some of Obama's accomplishments you can guarantee the President will veto them.

A few more notes:

• I forgot the two words that best sum up 2010 for me: Rand Paul.  Duke and stupidity in one package!
• The bad karma extended to the Carolina football team, a team that was supposed to challenge for an ACC championship behind a stout and experienced defense.  Instead, we saw most of the stars from that unit get suspended for improper contact with agents.  Other players were involved in a still unresolved academic scandal.  More than a dozen players were suspended, yet the team still had a decent season thanks to stalwarts like T.J. Yates, Johnny White, Dante Paige-Moss and Quan Sturdivant. 
• Actually, the football Heels' problems had more to do with bad leadership and stewardship from Butch Davis, who embarrassed the university more than Matt Doherty ever did.  Time to get rid of him, time to Fire Butch Davis!
• It was a game against a 2-10 team, but I'm still heartened by the great shooting we saw from the Heels yesterday.  No matter the opponent, good shooting breeds confidence - and more good shooting.  Here's hoping the good shooting that has been on display the last month carries over into the ACC season.