If this is the pattern that UNC is going to keep with, giving huge leads and then take them back to win the game, two things might happen: the Heels will get burnt sooner or later and I might just have a heart attack in following them during March Madness. For the second time in two games head coach Roy Williams’ squad decided to give the other side a lot of hope and a double digit lead while looking really sluggish. Well, everyone looking sluggish except for Harrison Barnes, who seems to have embraced that pre-season All-American status. And when the dust settled, and overtime was required to do that, it would be #1 North Carolina (26-6) defeating #4 Clemson (21-11) by the final of 92 to 87.
Out of those points the frosh sensation scored 40 of them, becoming the first ever freshman to score that many points in an ACC Tournament game and equaling former UNC great Tyler Hansbrough for the conference’s freshman scoring record. Just like the game a day prior to this one it was Barnes that kept his team within striking distance with many great shots and a lot of hustle, going 12 for 17, 6 for 8 from three and 10 for 11 from the charity stripe. Most impressive is that the young man, who more and more you have to believe is also a one and done player, talked about his game in a way that a great player would…
“I tried to fill in for what the team needs,” Barnes said. “Today we had a lack of production on the offensive end and I tried to make up for that.”
And he did just that, because without him the Tar Heels would be back in Chapel Hill by now. But as this next line says, that is something that the young man was not thinking about…
“My goal was to be in the final,” Barnes said. “This is not how I imagined us doing it, but we find a way.”
The game, in the first half, if you change the uniforms, seemed to be just a replay of what we saw against Miami. Whatever coach Williams tried his players just seemed to find a way not to be able to perform it on the court. Bad ball handling, sloppy play when on offense, not as tight play on D and when given a chance to do something it usually didn’t work out for Carolina. Yet, with all of this, when the first half was over the Tar Heels were only down by ten, and that had to scare Clemson, who is now 1 and 15 against UNC in this tournament.
The biggest question in all of this is pretty easy to sum up: how long can this young team give up double digit leads to teams and then come back from them to win the game in a way that leaves people wondering if they are just teasing who they are playing. I think that coach Williams will have to sort to something else, since Sunday’s opponent is going to be their arc rival Duke, and I doubt UNC wants to give them anything extra, especially with what is on the line in this game. It’s the tie-breaker between the two squads, but it is probably the method that the selection committee will determine which of these two squads will be on the top line come six o’clock.
Besides Barnes it was the big men for Carolina producing some offense, with Tyler Zeller registering a double double with 18 and 11 while John Henson scored 14 points to go with 6 boards. Kendall Marshall did have nine assistst and eight points, but he needs to cut down on the five TOs if he wants to have another great game against the Blue Devils. In all the Heels have committed 35 turnovers in this tournament, and that pattern just isn’t going to make it when they face another Top 25 team. On the other hand, the pleasent surprise of the last two games is that this team can bury the three ball when needed, today going 12 for 24 from beyond the arc and 33 for 66 overall.
More to come on this game later on tonight or tomorrow, when I get a chance to re-watch it and see more about it. Until then just think about this folks, we are one win away from taking down our arc rivals, being both the ACC Regular Season and Post Season Champions and possibly being a number one seed at the Big Dance. Tell me you thought that would be possible after a 4 and 3 start? I know I could have never phantomed this!
