A Work In Progress

This years Tarheels basketball team is going to be a work in progress and a learning process for the majority of the team. It is a rare occasion that you can say the Tarheels are in a rebuilding year but this may be one of those years. Rebuilding for the Tarheels and rebuilding for someone else are two different things. I believe they will still win 20 to 25 games and they will be much better at the end of the year than they are now. It will be exciting to see their development as the season progresses. They have lost to Butler in Maui and got crushed by #1 Indiana (maybe they should stay away from the state of Indiana for the rest of the year) and in the loss to Indiana only shot 10 for 36 in the second half. This is also one of those rare seasons in which the 'Heels are stronger from the outside than they are on the inside. Against UAB they were hot from the outside and it led to a 102-84 victory. Leslie McDonald had a coming out party of sorts with a career high 24 points (5 of 7 from the three point line), Reggie Bullock had 17 (3 of 5 from the three point line), and P. J. Hairston had 16, all in the second half. He hit two three pointers but drove hard to the basket and was able to put himself at the free throw line. Interior players James Michael McAdoo (15 points, 12 rebounds), Brice Johnson (11 points, 9 in the first half), and Joel James (2 points) only went to the line 3 times between the three. They should have wore out UAB on the inside. The 'Heels have some athletes this year. McAdoo is one of the most athletic inside players they have had in quite a while and you have to be excited about the potential of wing player J. P. Tokoto. His athleticism was on display before the game with a backwards shot from halfcourt and a alley oop from Leslie McDonald during the game.