By Adam Lucas
1. Carolina overpowered Radford on the way to a 89-74 victory and a 3-0 start to the season. Luka Bogavac had 19 points and Henri Veesaar added 18.
2. Carolina played without Seth Trimble, who is out an indefinite period of time after suffering a broken forearm in a team workout. The UNC rotation got even more jumbled when Jarin Stevenson (who had a quiet 15 points in 25 minutes) missed an extended stretch after a hard fall, forcing the Heels to use some fivesomes in the first half that haven’t been on the floor together very much.
3. Trimble’s absence moved Bogavac into the starting lineup in his third game as a Tar Heel. Bogavac didn’t shoot as well as he can from the perimeter, but even when he’s not making shots, he moves the ball and knows how to play. He’s steady even when the ball isn’t going in, so when the shot starts falling, it’s going to make him even more important. He finished 7-for-18 from the field and 3-11 from three-point range, but he’s starting to figure out how he can create space going towards the basket and take advantage of some defenders.
4. Bogavac added a team-high tying five assists on a night the Tar Heels passed the ball very well. They finished with 15 assists on 25 baskets but that figure could have been much higher. Several great passes led to wide open looks that were missed on a day that the Heels just didn’t shoot very well.
5. Those shooting figures: 38.5 percent from the field, but 25.8 percent from three and 63.3 percent from the free throw line. And there were plenty of chances to see them at the line, as they went 28-for-45 at the stripe. The quantity of fouls drew some grumbles from the home crowd as the game nearly stretched to the two and a half hour mark, but it did result in free cookies. Four Highlanders fouled out and the teams combined to attempt 80 free throws.
6. On his Tar Heel Sports Network halftime interview, Brad Frederick described Henri Veesaar in the first half as “steadying the ship.” That was a great way to put it, as it felt like Veesaar–who only came off the court for 42 seconds in the first half–was always around when the otherwise struggling Tar Heels needed something. He contributed 11 points and drew four fouls, making three of his six free throws, in that half. Those halftime interviews have become a nice way to get in-game insight from the UNC locker room.
7. In many ways, that first half was exactly what you might have expected. The Tar Heels were coming off a big win, just suffered an unfortunate injury to the senior leader, playing in front of an uninspired crowd against a team they felt they should beat–and the product wasn’t scintillating.
8. With all those issues, it was a little concerning when Caleb Wilson went to the bench with three fouls with 5:39 left in the half and Carolina holding just a one-point lead. But the Heels unexpectedly picked up their level of play and outscored Radford 21-9 over the remainder of the half.
9. Wilson, by the way, had his worst game as a Tar Heel, made just four of his 13 shots (after coming into the game 17-21 in the first two games), missed his only three…and still finished with a 13-point, 14-rebound performance, his first UNC double-double. If that’s his floor, Carolina is going to be pretty good.
10. We got our first challenge of the year in the first half. Radford challenged an out of bounds call but lost the challenge and therefore lost a timeout. The new rule in men’s basketball this year is that coaches can challenge out of bounds, goaltending/basketball interference, and a secondary defender in the restricted area. Officials can still initiate video reviews on goaltending and restricted area in the final two minutes. Radford burned through all their timeouts by the 16:08 mark, and somewhere Pete Gillen smiled.
11. Kyan Evans didn’t have a spectacular stat line (three points on 1-1 shooting and five assists that tied Bogavac for the team lead), but he’s settling into his role as the team’s engine. He’d like to have back one unforced turnover, but otherwise had just one miscue. He’s getting more comfortable pushing the pace after made and missed baskets and this team is better when they run.
12. In Carolina’s continuing quest for backup center minutes, James Brown had a nice performance in the second half but also had trouble avoiding the foul bugaboo. Brown did some good things, including an offensive rebound that led to a Bogavac basket, and made two of his four free throw attempts. The backup five is still an area where Carolina needs more productive contributions. Zayden High had five rebounds in eight minutes as the other option at that spot.
13. The Tar Heels, now ranked 18th nationally, are back at home in the fourth game of a five-game homestand on Friday at 9 p.m. against North Carolina Central.
