Green, Stepheson Help Carry Ailing Tar Heels Against Wake

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Green, Stepheson Help Carry Ailing Tar Heels Against Wake

Feb 25, 2008

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — The injuries that have plagued North Carolina recently were still there. Ty Lawson missed his sixth straight game Sunday, and a hyper-extended knee limited Deon Thompson to 14 minutes.

UNC has become all too familiar with adjusting to injuries and finally seemed to find a real rhythm in its past two games, coming up with decisive victories.

But the Tar Heels struggled to get a solid lead early against a young Wake Forest team that was coming off a huge upset win over Duke.

Enter Danny Green and Alex Stepheson.

While UNC got big scoring games from Tyler Hansbrough (29) and Wayne Ellington (17), the Tar Heels’ production off the bench gave them the push to take control of the game and hand the Demon Deacons an 89-73 loss at the Smith Center.

“Tyler and Wayne give us two guys who can really score,” UNC coach Roy Williams said. “And when you get contributions like that from Danny and Alex coming off the bench, you have to feel good about that.”

After a disappointing 4-point performance at N.C. State on Tuesday, Green took his shots against Wake Forest and ended up with 15 points.

But Green didn’t appear satisfied to contribute only scoring. He raced to the boards and his effort paid off with a game-high nine rebounds, just shy of a double-double.

The Tar Heels out-rebounded the Demon Deacons 38-24.

Green started the season as one of UNC’s most pleasant surprises. As North Carolina’s sixth man, he provided a spark, and his energy translated into consistent contributions.

But the past month has been a different story for the junior reserve.

His 14 points and key baskets against Clemson came after a 3-point performance against Duke. Throw a case of the flu into the mix, and Green’s play has been anything but steady lately.

“It’s been up and down. It’s been like a roller coaster for me,” Green said. “I think it’s more of a mental thing to me than it is physical…But some days you’re going to have it and some games you’re not, and I think this helped me a little bit.”

It was certainly a step in the right direction.

And down low, it was Stepheson giving the Tar Heels some big minutes off the bench.

When North Carolina couldn’t seem to shake the Demon Deacons early, Stepheson swatted down Wake Forest shots on two consecutive possessions on his way to matching his career-high with three blocks.

But he wasn’t finished. As Ellington missed a shot on the ensuing possession, Stepheson slammed in the put-back to ignite the crowd and give the Tar Heels the lead.

While Thompson’s knee continues to limit his abilities and effectiveness, Stepheson’s playing time has increased and with it, his confidence.

“I’m just trying to be physical, play good defense,” he said. “Just be aggressive when I can be and help out whenever I can.”

Always a force on the boards, Stepheson has worked to improve his offensive game, and with nine points against the Demon Deacons, he showed what he is capable of.

The Tar Heels will get a chance to rest with a week off before their next contest at Boston College. Hansbrough said it should help the team get healthy, but no matter what the injury report says, UNC will come to play.

“Coach always stresses no matter who is not playing or who is playing, this is North Carolina, and we’re going to do the things that we do.”

Most Recent Comments

"Cause you know, Riding teh fence often leads to getting your Ba11z busted."

Yeah but you know those Dookies like riding the fence (post)!

"That's easy. As UNC fans said a couple weeks ago, it doesn't really matter what you are ranked in Feb. All that really matters is what you are ranked at the end of the NCAA tourney."

Matters in what... 2 weeks? Now a month ago... a lot can change... and has. But 2 weeks... well that's a little less of a chance.

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"Duke fans... the following is all that matters at this current moment in time. I'd like to see you come up with some reasonable comeback for this: 1. Tennessee 2. Memphis 3. North Carolina 4. UCLA 5. Texas 6. Kansas 7. Duke"

That's easy. As UNC fans said a couple weeks ago, it doesn't really matter what you are ranked in Feb. All that really matters is what you are ranked at the end of the NCAA tourney.
Voice of Reason 23

This from the vwery same person or one of them anyways who spouted repeatedly the exact opposite thing when duke was above UNC in the rankings... hrm.. now which is it? Which side of the fence are you going to stand on? Cause you know, Riding teh fence often leads to getting your Ba11z busted.

""Duke fans... the following is all that matters at this current moment in time. I'd like to see you come up with some reasonable comeback for this: 1. Tennessee 2. Memphis 3. North Carolina 4. UCLA 5. Texas 6. Kansas 7. Duke""

WAY too early to brag about that mess. Who cares right now?

"Duke fans... the following is all that matters at this current moment in time. I'd like to see you come up with some reasonable comeback for this: 1. Tennessee 2. Memphis 3. North Carolina 4. UCLA 5. Texas 6. Kansas 7. Duke"

That's easy. As UNC fans said a couple weeks ago, it doesn't really matter what you are ranked in Feb. All that really matters is what you are ranked at the end of the NCAA tourney.

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