Return to the Final Four, and Return of the Carolina Way

The great run of this year's Tar Heel squad has been exhilarating for a number of reasons.  One, it's the Tar Heels!  Two, after too long of a stretch without an ACC championship or a Final Four (since 2008 and 2009, respectively) the Heels have reasserted their place at the top of our nation's basketball pantheon.  And three, and most importantly, this team has marked the return of the Carolina Way.

The academic scandal, which has tarnished both the basketball program and more importantly THE University of the People, has practically erased that Dean Smith-built standard.  But this year's team has resurrected the Carolina Way, in many different ways.

As I've joked with friends throughout the year, you know this squad - and every squad since the scandal broke - is not taking paper classes with majors clustered in the old and notorious  African-American and African Studies department.* This is a likable team of student athletes, personified by first-team Academic All American Marcus Paige. Roy seems to really love coaching them, and the warmth between the players and coach is evident: on senior night; in the locker room celebrations; on the dais of the post-game press conferences; everywhere.

It's also an old school, Dean-like team of upper classmen.  Eleven of the players are juniors or seniors, and the roster is made up of the kind of guys Dean used to guide from perplexed freshmen into all-Americans in four years, guys like Brice Johnson** or Isaiah Hicks.

Finally, seniors rule in the Carolina Way and that is certainly true of this year's team.  Brice Johnson has been our best player all season, but Marcus Paige has been our most important one down the stretch. I can not gush enough about Paige.  As I posted in my last blog, academically alone he's been huge post scandal.

However, consider the senior leadership Paige has shown in this exhilarating run.  At Cameron, his steal, defense and lay up singlehanded stopped Duke's run in the second half, and his free throws clinched that win. In the ACC tournament championship game he did it again; his defense helped keep Malcolm Brogdon in check, he led a run that gave Carolina the lead for good in the second half, and down the stretch had another key steal against the Hoos to stymie their come back.

And of course, after Notre Dame ran off twelve straight points to take a one-point lead who answered for Carolina?  With Brice on the bench with 3 fouls and UNC down one, Paige drove left and made a tough baseline jumper to give Carolina the lead, one they would never relinquish. That basket started an overpowering Carolina scoring run, aided by a key steal by Theo Pinson but punctuated by another great play by our Academic All American. That play started with Paige out jumping and out fighting Zach August for a rebound, then saving that rebound as he was falling out of bounds. Paige got the ball to Kennedy Meeks, who Wes Unselled a pass to Pinson who promptly threw an alley-oop to Hicks for a slam dunk.

A text book Carolina Way  fast break, started by a guy who epitomizes and is resurrecting the Carolina Way.

GO HEELS!

* That department has been reorganized and is now under the College of Arts and Sciences as the Department of African, African American and Diaspora Studies.
** That is literally true of Johnson, who has been named a first team All American by the AP and the Basketball Writers of America.

In Praise of Marcus Paige

I love Marcus Paige: as a student; an athlete; and above all as a Tar Heel. In many respects his senior season has been a disappointment.  Actually, let me correct myself - his shooting in his senior season has been a disappointment.  But as a Tar Heel?  Nope, he's excelled.

For the third year in a row Paige was named an academic All-American. After two years of being second team Paige was named a first-team academic All-American his senior season.  Being named an academic All-American is always a big deal (just ask Tyler Zeller) but obviously Paige's status as a three-time honoree is magnified in the wake of the academic scandal at the "University of the People."  He is an old school, Carolina Way, Dean-worthy Tar Heel: a smart, conscientious, articulate student who also happens to hold the Carolina record for most three-pointers made. 

He also happened to win the Duke game for the Heels, a game that smited the right-wing devils, avenged the heartbreaker in Chapel Hill - and a win that gave Carolina the regular season title* and the top seed in the ACC tournament. 

Now, most Tar Heel fans may think I'm referring to Paige's clinching free throws in the final 30 seconds. But just like in a baseball game, where the biggest outs are often made in the 7th or 8th inning yet the closer who pitches the 9th gets the save, Paige saved Carolina around the 11:30 mark of the second half.

To reset the scene, one I've watched three or four times since the game ended on Saturday night: Duke had tied the game at 49 behind the three-point shooting of Luke Kennard and Gray'son of Nixon/Reddick/Battier' Allen.  The crowd was going nuts, so much so that even ol' Roy called a time out.  

One can assume the Heels were still a little rattled since we immediately turned it over with who else, Allen, stealing a terrible pass from Pinson.** It looked like a sure fast break basket for the devils and a 51-49 first-of-the-game lead for Duke.

But that's when a Tar Heel stepped up. Not giving up on the play Paige hustled back and poked the ball away from Allen. Pinson picked it up, got it ahead to Jackson who missed the layup but a hustling Theo tipped it in for a 51-49 CAROLINA lead.

On the next possession Duke went to Allen but Paige fought over the high screen, disrupted the shot and son of Nixon missed. In fact, son of Reddick missed so bad he flopped and tried to sell a foul on Paige. Of course, that (along with tripping others) is wicked-bad karma AND means that you are on the floor whining instead of getting back on D. That allowed Marcus to streak down court unmolested to receive a great outlet pass from Jackson for a lay up.  

His steal and his defense caused a 6-point swing. Instead of the devils taking a momentum-shifting two-point lead, thanks to Paige the Heels were up by four. Duke never tied or led the rest of the way.  

Fittingly, the player who saved the Duke game for us and restored our faith in the Carolina Way hit the free throws that iced a very satisfying win. In a season where many UNC fans and alums longed for a poised Tar Heel like George Lynch or David Noel to appear, one did in Cameron. One who has also made us proud in the class room.  

One more reason to love Marcus Paige. Tar Heel.

* Of course, any ACC old head knows that there technically isn't a regular season title.  The champion is crowned at the ACC tournament.
** Paige and especially Brice Johnson and Joel Berry had great games versus Duke, but our unsung hero was Pinson. He made numerous plays and filled out the stat sheet with 6 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 2 huge free throws with 30 seconds left. 

Why We Watch

This is why we watch, right?  A week after a home loss to Duke that demoralized me, a generally half-full kind of viewer of all things Carolina, the Heels are back and playing like, well Tar Heels!

The turnaround is another reminder that we are watching embryonic young hoopsters when we are watching college basketball. The cynicism, money and corporate control - NY Life ACC Tournament, with a logo underfoot athletes who will not get a dime - makes that easy to forget.

Carolina's play this week reminds us that kids aren't perfect and make mistakes - but kids can also improve and do so quickly. In the course of three games the Heels seem to have solved the three problems that have marred their entire season until now.

One, Marcus Paige has gotten some help. Granted, he made the biggest shot of the game versus Virginia on Friday night, but freshman Justin Jackson was our leading scorer. On Thursday, Brice Johnson was fantastic and it was Kennedy Meeks making big plays down the stretch on offense and defense. 

Two, the poise was there. Carolina was down 5 to Louisville at half but was steady and methodical in the second half to win going away. Better still was the poise displayed when Virginia made the inevitable run to cut the lead to one. On back-to-back possessions Carolina made great plays. Paige went to Meeks at the free thrown line, who in turn made the extra pass to Jackson for a lay up as the 35 second clock expired. On the next possession, after a time out with 6 seconds left on the shot clock, Paige dribbled into the lane, pumped fake right then pivoted left to hit the game-sealing floater. Classic Carolina.

Finally three, the Heels are spreading the wealth Dean style. Paige has continued his resurgence of late, Johnson has been excellent on both ends and on the boards, Meeks has made some big time plays and though plagued by turnovers J.P. Tokoto  has done the same and Joel Berry kept us afloat versus Louisville with a huge stretch in the first half.  

By far the biggest development has been the play of Jackson. He quietly has gotten more consistent as the season has progressed but he exploded versus Virginia. Much has been written about his 4 three-pointers but he hit shots from all over the floor. I loved that he was aggressive to the hoop a number of times and did not 'settle' for being a one-dimensional shooter.  

All this could add up to Carolina's first ACC Championship since 2008. Growing up, an ACC Tournament title was almost a birthright for born, bred and dead Tar Heels like myself.  What a great capstone to an up and down season, one dominated by tragedies like the Wainstein report and the death of Coach Smith, an ACC title would make.  

On top of that, a win over Notre Dame would be another reminder that this is a game played by college kids, kids who can look nothing like Tar Heels one weekend and very Carolina the next.

GO HEELS! 

A Game That Defines the Season

Last night's loss to Duke was more than a disappointing loss to our smug and lesser arch-rivals. The loss epitomizes why so many Tar Heel born, bred and dead fans feel uneasy about this team and it's lack of progress.

To me, there have been 3 themes - or problems - with this team, and all were on display last night in Chapel Hill.

1. This team is too dependent on Marcus Paige. I love Marcus Paige; in our new post-Wainstein era he is exactly who we need leading this team and frankly being the student face of the entire university. But the operative word there is lead. A leader leads but does not make every play, but that's what this team expects and all the opposing teams know it. As Jawad Williams tweeted (@worldwad) last night, someone else needs to step up and help Paige and this team win some games. Paige was magnificent last night vs. the Devils but needed help down the stretch but did not get much if any assistance. Finally, in a cruel twist considering recent events, an over reliance on one player is anti-Dean. One 'criticism' of Dean is that he was too egalitarian and team-oriented (yes, some idiots actually said that). Well, sharing the wealth is how you win games and championships. Look at Worthy-Perkins-Jordan, or Montross-Williams-Lynch-Phelps, or Lawson-Hansbrough-Ellington-Green, or Bird-McHale-Johnson-Parrish, or LeBron-Wade-Bosh, or Duncan-Parker-Ginobili-Popovich, Magic-Kareem-Worthy, Jordan-Pippen-Jackson, etc.
2. Point two is related to point one: the uneven development of the players on this team. Paige and Brice Johnson were both named third-team ACC, which seems about right. Johnson is the only player to have gotten better this year, and was the only other reliable Tar Heel on the floor versus the Devils besides Paige. Offensively Johnson is confident and has some great moves, is as athletic as you would imagine a state high jump champion to be, and does the work on the glass. But this team has been undone by a lack of progress from Kennedy Meeks and T.P. Tokoto and spotty  play from everyone else in the rotation: Britt, Jackson, Berry, James, Pinson. None of those guys are reliable contributors game to game. At the end of a season you should see more development from all the players, but especially from Meeks and Tokoto. Both could and should have been All-ACC players but instead they have looked lost down the stretch.
3. Which of course is maybe our biggest problem. In addition to being un-Dean in terms of players, it also appears that this team is very un-Carolina at the end of games. Your typical Tar Heels squad - the pre-broken wrist 2012  Kendall Marshall squad is probably the most recent example - is a well-oiled, smart and poised machine at the end of the season. But not this one. The late-game melt downs at Duke, at Louisville, and at home versus Virginia, State and the Devils could not be more frustrating or vexing. Of course, this problem is the sum of the first two issues. Who are these guys making all these unforced errors? Their jerseys say Carolina so my eyes believe it but my gut, my heart and the Carolina-blue blood coursing through my veins does not.

So what's next? It's hard to be optimistic at this stage of the season. To win the ACC tournament the Heels would have to go through Louisville (doable; we've practically beaten them twice already), Virginia (also doable especially if Meeks and Tokoto show up), and Duke. One of Dean's sayings is it's hard to beat a team three times in one season so I would love our chances to prove Dean right (again) and get some revenge against the Devils.

Even if this happens it's hard to imagine us going more than 2 or 3 games deep in the NCAAs. Another example of how un-Dean and un-Carolina team this teams seems to be. As sad as those 3 issues just discussed THAT may be the saddest admission of them all. 

Despite all that - GO HEELS!

Heels Peaking

It's only Tuesday but what a week. First, Tsipras and Syriza sweep into power in Greece, and President Obama decides to protect 12 million acres in the Arctic Refuge including the coastal plain as wilderness, both on Sunday.

But of course I can't stop thinking about Monday night and Carolina's beat down of Syracuse. It was one of those games where the Heels looked terrible, at least for the first twenty minutes, with turnovers and unforced errors all over the Dean Dome.  Even 5 minutes into the second the Heels still trailed and the Orange controlled the game.

Then, all of a sudden you look up and the Heels are up 10, have scored more than 90 points against a historically tough defense, and shoot better than 60 percent in the second half and better than 55 percent for the game.

This team is starting to come together at the right time, and are looking both dangerous and intriguing at the same time.

Best of all, it's been vintage Carolina basketball.

One reason the Heels are shooting it so well is they are steadily and competently feeding the post, Dean style, for easy baskets.  Brice Johnson and Kennedy Meeks have been feasting inside, with Johnson making 57 percent of his shots while Meeks makes 58 percent.  

And of course it's not a coincidence that those two have benefited from the return of a more confident Marcus Paige. Paige has been good most of the season, as was Carolina.  But of late he has been great; ditto the Heels.

A Few More Thoughts

• I've always liked Nate Britt since he was born and raised inside the Beltway.  If he plays like he did last night...man oh man!
• He had a rough game last night, but Justin Jackson is also coming on.  After being reminded to be aggressive he had games of 17 and 16 versus Virginia Tech and FSU.
• This week may be the true test to see if this team is peaking and worthy of the loftiest of expectations.  The Heels travel to the YUM! Center to take on the Cardinals, then return to Chapel Hill on Monday, Feb. 2nd to take on undefeated Virginia.

GO HEELS!

Opening Round

In the words of Larry David, the first week of games in the NCAA tournament have been 'pretty, pretty good.'  I'd like to espouse on the entire week - NC State beating Xavier, the other 12 seeds ALL winning, etc. - but of course my twin poles* are Carolina's scintillating win and Duke's equally scintillating loss.

As a basketball game the UNC-Providence tilt was a great one. Both teams made shots and made plays all game. It's not unusual to see ugly games this time of year, with games that are filled with mistakes and missed shots; this was not one of those. Both teams played hard and played well.

For my money, despite my love for Marcus Paige and as great as he was late, this game was won by Brice Johnson.  He competed on both ends of the floor, and in this one his defense matched his always reliable offense. Brice did it all well.  He hit his array of half hooks and put backs, and made two big free throws down the stretch.

On D, he had two massive blocked shots after Bryce "Second coming of Harold The Show Arceneaux" Cotton had willed Providence to a 5 point lead.  And Johnson excelled throughout in executing one of THE cornerstones of Carolina basketball - the wall on defense.  Carolina started playing Cotton to drive, and on the times we did stop him it was often Johnson providing the back line defense.

As great as Cotton was Johnson turned out to be the best Bryce/Brice on the floor.

For a few minutes there thanks to Cotton and Mercer Carolina fans had to confront reliving two of the worst days in our hoops history - the loss to Arceneaux and Weber State in the first round in 1999, and 1979's Black Friday when the Tar Heels and the Devils both lost in the first round.** 

It was a head-scratching display by the Devils, as an ACC team coached by a Hall of Famer looked nervous and scared down the stretch. Conversely, Mercer looked confident and consistently made shots and plays. The body language from Rodney Hood after he was called for traveling said it all.  

This Devils team was weak at the point and down low all season, and both flaws were certainly exposed by the Bears. When Quinn Cook is the brains of the operation, you are in trouble. 

That is probably an overly harsh assessment of Cook.*** Hood and Jabari Parker both played nervously and badly, and when that happens this Devils team is going to lose, simple as that.

Still, kudos to Krzyzewski for his classy visit to the Mercer locker room to congratulate the Bears on their win. It takes a confident and centered man to do that, and I'm sure the players and staff from Mercer were touched by his words and visit.  A very Dean-like mover from a blue Devil.

Some more March Madness Musings
    
I still love Carolina's chances to win 5 more games. They had to play tough and smart to beat Providence, and did.  GO HEELS!

If the Heels don't win it all I hope that Virginia does. If the Hoos do not, I would happily root for Wichita State, where Eddie Fogler used to coach. Their coach, Greg Marshall, seems far too happy with himself (the greatest sin to the ancient Greeks) but it would be a great story.

Here are my round of 32 picks BTW: 
Florida - Pitt will give them a game though, thanks to their new-found offense
Stephen F Austin - riding a winning streak AND the mojo of that four-point play
Syracuse - Dayton will run out of gas
Kansas - Ho hum; Stanford can't hang with Jayhawks
Virginia - Scare from Coastal Carolina will make them better
Michigan State - Ho hum
Carolina - Marcus Paige is GOD
Villanova - No comment on this game
Arizona - See Villanova comment
ND State - These guys our pretty good, SD State untested
Creighton - A little bit better than Baylor
Wisconsin - Much better than Oregon
Wichita State - Chip on their shoulder leads them to win over Kentucky blue bloods
Louisville - They are much better than the team they are playing
Mercer - Call them butter because they are on a roll!
Michigan - This will be a great game that the Wolverines will win late          

*  I can not believe the CBS play-by-play guy used the word 'pollack' to describe Gonzaga's Polish-born center - and to do so while calling the game with Mike GMINSKI! Kudos to the G-man, who is one of the best color commentators in America, for immediately calling him out.

** Who knows, if this was 2019 maybe we would have lost. Or Carolina fans should play 19 in the lottery?

*** I think it's safe to say that Cook easily joins Laettner, Wojo, and Redick on the list of most loathesome Devils of all time.  That guys loves himself and his fellow right-wing boobs from Durham WAY too much, and thus he makes that dubious list.

GO HEELS!