The North Carolina Tarheels willed their way to a win over the Ohio University Bobcats last night 73-65 in Overtime to move on to the Elite Eight. They had to do so without the services of Point Guard Kendall Marshall and his absence was greatly felt. Freshman Point Guard Stillman White got his first career start and he did not play badly- 2 points, 6 assists, and 0 turnovers.
The Tarheel offense did lack the continuity that it has under Marshall. What Marshall has not been getting a lot of credit for is that he has stepped up his offensive game over the course of the past 5 or 6 games before he got hurt. His three point shooting, his ability to drive to the basket, and of course, his ability to distribute have all been amped up during that time.
Tyler Zeller (20 points and a career high 22 rebounds) and Reggie Bullock (17 points, 5 of 10 from the three point line) were Carolina's saving grace last night. That game epitomized winning ugly but the key is that they are moving on to the next game.
The 'Heels face Kansas next and I would rather the 'Heels play Kansas. Playing North Carolina State a fourth time this season would have been tough. I believe the Wolfpack was playing the most solid basketball of any team in the tournament. They shot less than 30 percent against the Jayhawks and that was their undoing.
I have to admit that I got a certain amount of satisfaction out of the fact that Clark Kellogg's son played for Ohio University and the North Carolina Tarheels are the team that put them out of the NCAA tournament.
The young Kellogg played a solid game and I am glad that CBS did not allow Clark Kellogg to announce the game.
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