To quote football coach Vince Lombardi "What the hell is going on out here?" After one of their best performances of the year against Georgia Tech, the UNC Tarheel basketball team followed that up with a lackluster performance against NC State that resulted in a 58-46 loss. That was their second games of the season in which they have only scored 40 something points in Chapel Hill.
The Tarheels have lacked the ability to bring intensity to every game this season and they still have not found an emotional leader on the team. They need to find someone that can fire them up when they need it, hit the big shot, make the great pass, and make the big defensive play that swings the momentum in their favor. This player also has to have the ability to calm the ream down when their in-game emotions start getting the best of them and they start losing control.
Marcus Paige provided that leadership last season but he has stepped back into the shadows this season. The Tarheels really have no Senior leadership to speak of outside of Jackson Simmons and he does not get more than a couple of minutes of playing time a game. Brice Johnson is an emotional player but he is up and down, Kennedy Meeks' demeanor reminds me of Sam Perkins, and J.P. Tokoto has all of the physical talent in the world but his basketball skills have yet to reach that point.
The Tarheels have played some great basketball this season and they have played some bad basketball but they need to find that consistency that can take them a long way in the ACC Tournament and the NCAA's.
No comments:
Post a Comment