More evidence

You could easily call today's home-opener win over Mississippi Valley State University "UNC-A Part II."  The main story line from the 101-76 victory was the continued evolution of John Henson.

I liked Harrison Barnes' assertiveness on his way to 18 points, seeing Tyler Zeller grab oodles of rebounds and put backs and run the floor as he always does, and Kendall Marshall had a tidy game punctuated by at least 2 spectacular fast-break passes.  We even saw Dexter Strickland hit a few jumpers as part of overall great floor game (13 points, 6 boards, 6 assists, only 2 turnovers). 

One could quibble with the missed frees and threes, but that will come, especially the free throws.

However, THE story continues to be Henson.  Like Zeller running the floor, we expect Henson to blocks lots of shots and get his share of points in transition and down low.   But so far in three games Henson has shown an incredibly new set of skills.  As he did against Michigan State and UNC-A, Henson showed off a sick turnaround jumper, baseline moves and confidence in hitting shots from 15 to 17 feet versus Jerry Rice's alma mater.

Folks might remember that Henson was projected to be a three in the NBA, and came to Carolina in part to develop that skill set. As a freshman he suffered at the 3, and late in the season was moved down low and finished strong.

Last year, Henson was exclusively a 4 and had a terrific season.  This year it may be 'back to future' for Henson as he builds confidence in shooting and playing a bit on the wing.   

All Tar Heels fans were excited about the prospect of this season, having all five starters back with a great recruiting class (McAdoo was great today on his way to 10 points, and Hairston had 8).  

Perhaps even more exciting is watching Henson develop into a 75 (3/4, get it?) and into an even more elite player than we expected.  GO HEELS!

Extra Points

Like Henson's turnaround jumper, it seems clear that Carolina football is one year away.  Thursday's loss to Virginia Tech, in honestly a game Carolina should have won, was both tough to take and cause for optimism. 

Tough to take in that other than our inability to consistently stop Hokies quarterback Logan Thomas, Carolina outplayed Tech. If we had been able to suit up a Barth - any Barth - to kick field goals (or not fumble on our 5 yard line) we probably pull out an impressive road win.  

It was great to see Carolina fight back on the road against a top ten team.

But the significant optimism centers around our backs, quarter and half.  Bryn Renner is going to be a monster next year.  He's developing more and more poise each game to go along with an impressive arm and plus legs.   

And speaking of legs, though he only played a half Gio Bernard is as impressive as Renner.  Those two could lead us to the promised land: beating NC State and perhaps making it to the ACC championship game. Our offensive and defensive lines will need to be rebuilt - lots of seniors on both - but with Renner and Bernard (and a Barth?) the future looks bright for the football Heels.

Finally, speaking of the future I'd bring back Everett Withers as coach next season. The stability would be nice, but more importantly he's handled a very difficult situation with aplomb and the Heels are playing hard and smart.  New athletic director Bubba Cunningham will likely want to bring in his own guy as head coach, but I think Withers deserves to have 'interim' taken out of his title