Heel Tough Blog: Michigan State Recap (Fort Myers Tip-Off)

@UNC_Basketball

Seeking their first 7-0 start since their last national championship, the Tar Heels instead were instead tripped up 74-58 by Michigan State, in a game that was closer than the final score, but not as close as it should’ve or could’ve been. Carolina took a 22-15 lead with less than 8 minutes left to play in the first half, which prompted a Tom Izzo timeout. After that timeout, Michigan State responded with a 13-0 run and never looked back, on their way to the win. The closest Carolina got it in the second half was 55-52 with less than 8 minutes to play, but was outscored 19-6 to end the game. Carolina shot just 38% from the field, and that’s including shooting 46% in the second half. What hurt Carolina was the lack of outside shooting, as Carolina was 4-23 from behind the arc, for 17%, meanwhile Michigan State was more efficient on fewer attempts, going 5-10. And that was a theme all game long; everything Michigan State did was simply done at a higher, more efficient level than Carolina. They shot 51% from the field, 50% from behind the arc, 78% from the foul line, and scored 46 of their 78 points in the paint, while averaging 1.19 points per possession. 

Carolina entered the game as a top-10 team in overall and defensive rebounding, but tonight they got bullied by Michigan State, which outrebounded them 37-30 overall and 25-18 on the defensive glass. The lack of rebounding set the tone in the first half, where Carolina was outrebounded 22-17, and gave up 9 offensive rebounds in the first 20 minutes. For as big and as long as Carolina is, tonight was about toughness, as it always is against a Tom Izzo coached team, and Carolina simply wasn’t tough enough to win this game, which is as equally disappointing as it is frustrating. 

The offense is still a work in progress without Seth Trimble, and it finally caught up to Carolina today. Caleb Wilson led UNC with 18 points on 6-13 shooting. Henri Veesaar added 13, on 6-19 shooting. The only other Tar Heel to reach double figures was Luka Bogavac, who scored 11 points, but on 4-12 shooting, including 1-6 from behind the arc. For as much as Kyan Evans has done a good job running the offense, he needs to score more than he has since Trimble went down. Entering today, Evans was averaging less than 9 points per game, and he scored just 4 points today. Jonathan Powell played a team-high 23 minutes off the bench, but only scored 3 points. Both guys need to play to the level that attracted UNC to them when they were in the transfer portal last off-season. 

The loss today means Carolina still hasn’t won a Thanksgiving event since the 2016 Maui Invitational. While it was unlikely that Carolina went unbeaten in non-conference play, the lack of execution is both concerning and frustrating, and it can’t linger too long with a road trip to Kentucky up next. Here’s what to take away from Carolina’s first loss of the season: 

1. Fears Dominated: Jeremy Fears Jr entered the game averaging a double-double, and while he didn’t post one today, he was the best player on the floor today. He scored a career-high 19 points, on 8-10 shooting, and handed out 7 assists, in 35 minutes. While they aren’t the same player, you’re starting to get the same feeling you got with Elliot Cadeau last, which UNC may be overmatched at the point guard position. While Fears was leading Michigan State to a win, Kyan Evans was 1-7 from the field, including 0-5 from behind the arc, in 33 minutes. Carolina needs more from Kyan Evans, both while not having Seth Trimble, and even once he returns. 

2. Poor Perimeter Shooting: Seven games might be enough of a sample size to conclude that this team can’t shoot. Carolina was just 4-23 from deep, which works out to 17%. Per Adam Lucas of GoHeels, when UNC led 22-15 at the under-8 timeout of the first half, Carolina had taken just 5 of their first 17 shots from the outside. Over the next stretch of play, which concluded at the under-8 timeout of the second half, 16 of their next 34 shots came from the outside. UNC starters combined to go 3-19 from deep in the loss. Jonathan Powell, who was brought in from West Virginia to shoot the ball, played 23 minutes, but scored just 3 points, and was 1-3 from deep. For as well as Carolina scores at the rim, it’s absolutely dumbfounding how poorly they shoot it from outside, given the looks they are generating. Until they start to shoot more consistently from the outside, the longer it will take this offense longer to reach its fullest potential. 

3. Didn’t Defend the Paint: Last year, Carolina allowed 50 points in the paint in the overtime loss in Maui. This year, they gave up 46 points in 40 minutes, including 28 minutes in the second half. Even though Michigan State was 9-20 on layups and 3-4 on dunks, they still got to the rim and converted far too often, and even when they didn’t make the initial shot, a lot of those offensive rebounds were converted at the rim. Hubert Davis never played zone to negate the dribble drive, and only full-court presses once while the game was in the balance, and it resulted in a layup at the other end. What makes Fears such a great guard is that he’s always on the attack, constantly probing in and out of the lane, always looking for an open man. Their inability to contain him opened up the defense in ways that we haven’t so far this season. They’ll need to tighten up before Tuesday, against a Kentucky team that loves to run and get to the rim. 

4. Lack of Bench Production: It’s clear that Hubert Davis is still searching for consistent play out of his reserves, and today did nothing to help those matters. Powell led UNC reserves with 23 minutes played, but scored just 3 points. No other Carolina reserve played more than 8 minutes, and Zayden High was the only other bench player to score, while playing just 4 minutes, and was the second big off the bench, behind James Brown, who played 7 minutes. The lack of bench scoring has been a problem since losing Trimble, and today it played a role in the loss, as Michigan State got 20 points from its bench, and never saw a dip in energy, effort, or execution. 

Up Next: Carolina is off until Tuesday of next week, when they’ll travel to Lexington, Kentucky, to take on the nationally ranked Wildcats in the ACC/SEC Challenge.