So UNC gets back into action after a third straight loss against a KenPom Top 100 team with even more questions and the discernible feeling of panic wafting through the air. On paper, UNC should have little to no trouble with a McNeese State team that struggles on both ends of the floor. The Cowboys 206th in offensive efficiency and 268th in defensive efficiency. McNeese State also likes it slow with an adjusted tempo ranked in the mid-200s and are one of the worst three point shooting teams in the country hitting only 21.6% of their attempts against Division I teams(when counting McNeese State's three non-DI opponents the shooting goes up to 29% from three.) UNC has known to be a cure for bad three point shooting so this will be an interesting test of that theory.
For UNC this game is about finding ways to get better as a team and address the many, many issues. As CBS Sports' Matt Norlander points out, McAdoo simply has not be as good as everyone thought he would be with an offensive efficiency below 100.
His overall numbers of 15.3 points and 8.4 rebounds per game are nice, but they're really non-caloric. He's stuffed his stats against bad competition, and against the good teams he's not been a take-over player. On top of this, McAdoos's only a 65 percent free-throw shooter. I can offer more. Look at his 94.8 offensive rating on KenPom.com. That's brutally low, showing he is scoring much less than one point per possession. It's lower than every contributor on this year's team except freshman Marcus Paige, whom I'll get to a minute.
Stats or eyes only, it's clear to see McAdoo hasn't been the productive player his team needs him to be. Eleven games into its season, is UNC too deep to expect a change from him? Will McAdoo be a default "star" instead of a true, quintessential Carolina player of impact? I think that's probably bound to be the case.
The phrase "default star" is interesting and seemingly apt. McAdoo has racked some good stats and been an integral part of eight wins but against not-very-good teams. Also, it is not like McAdoo has show signs being a truly "wow" player. He has his moments of solid play but also struggles with turnovers and finishing around the basket. Will that change? Can it change? That, I suppose, is the question as is whether the flash of leadership shown by Reggie Bullock after the loss versus Texas on Wednesday matters. Not that this game will reveal much but the response to a loss can be instructive.
UNC 82 McNeese St. 57
