UNC Basketball Aftermath: #8 UNC Outlasts #16 Clemson on the Road

 


(Photo Courtesy Jim Hawkins/Inside Carolina)

Starters 

Elliot Cadeau - 19 MIN, 4 PTS, 1 REB, 1 AST, 1-4 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT
R.J Davis - 35 MIN, 14 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST, 5-13 FG, 2-5 3PT, 2-2 FT
Cormac Ryan - 29 MIN, 10 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 4-8 FG, 2-6 3PT, 0-0 FT
Harrison Ingram - 31 MIN, 9 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST, 3-10 FG, 2-5 3PT, 1-4 FT
Armando Bacot - 34 MIN, 14 PTS, 16 REB, 3 AST, 6-11 FG, 0-0 3PT, 2-4 FT

Bench 

Seth Trimble -  23 MIN, 3 PTS, 4 REB, 0 AST, 1-3 FG, 1-1 3PT, 0-0 FT
Paxson Wojcik -  10 MIN, 3 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 1-2 FG, 1-1 3PT, 0-0 FT
Jae'Lyn Withers - 11 MIN, 2 PTS, 6 REB, 0 AST, 1-4 FG, 0-1 3PT, 0-0 FT
Jalen Washington - 7 MIN, 4 PTS, 2 REB, 0 AST, 2-3 FG, 0-1 3PT, 0-0 FT
Zayden High -  3 MIN, 2 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 1-2 FG, 0-1 3PT, 0-0 FT

Chapel Hill - #8 North Carolina takes care of the #16 Clemson Tigers on the road, winning by a score of 65-55. 

Elite Team-Defense 

To hold a Top 25 opponent that averaged at least 80 points through their first 13 games to only 55 is a pretty good sign that something was clicking on the defensive end for the Tar Heels.
 
During this process, UNC held their ground against Clemson's top scorer, PJ Hall, to only 10 points on four of 13 shots and went zero out of five from three. The main contributor to his struggles was the hounding defense by Armando Bacot on the interior, beating Hall to his spots before he could even establish his footing. Arguably the best defensive performance of Bacot's five-year career in Chapel Hill.
 
Coach Davis's squad collected 44 rebounds, 14 of which were offensive, a testament to the aggression being put on display.
 
Despite the lower numbers produced on the offensive side of the basketball, it has been made up with terrific defense in the past two games.

Armando Bacot, a Force to Be Reckoned With

There is no denying that the big man from Richmond, Virginia, is playing a little below what we are all used to seeing. However, yesterday afternoon, Bacot played up to his standards and looked more like himself as he was attacking the paint with brute force, establishing his presence down low against PJ Hall, who ultimately ended up exiting the game due to fouling out. Bacot also tacked on 16 rebounds through the two halves.
 
Now that it's ACC conference time, Bacot's interior play will be a crucial factor in this team's success, and inevitably during tournament time.
 
"This is the last time y'all are gonna see me." as Bacot said last October during the 2023 ACC Tipoff.

Back to the Triangle

The third and final journey of UNC's long road skid lands them in a PNC Arena filled with Wolfpack fans.
 
#8 North Carolina squares off with NC State (11-3, 3-0 conference) this coming Wednesday, January 10th, at 8:00 p.m.

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