WRAL Sports Fan

North Carolina

Tar Heels find renewed passion, intensity

By Sam Rosenthal

Jan 22, 2009

Less than two weeks ago, North Carolina left Winston-Salem with an 0-2 ACC record and a share of last place in the ACC. That night – two Sundays ago – the Tar Heels lost to Wake Forest, 92-89, two games after losing their first game of the season at home against Boston College.

In the backstage tunnel at Wake’s Joel Coliseum, two pathways lead out to the court. And before that game, the two teams brought their hands together and performed their pregame rituals, about 20 feet from one another. But only Wake Forest looked energized – UNC’s players exhibited worse body language than stick figures, and they never looked like the hungrier team the entire night.

Wednesday night, however, a different Tar Heel team congregated in the Smith Center tunnel. No, this time, with No. 10 Clemson trying once more to end UNC’s now 54-win streak against the Tigers in Chapel Hill, the Heels jumped around like a middle school team. They rough-housed with each other. They hooted, hollered, smiled, and even looked like they were having fun.

Then they took the floor and dominated the Tigers, 94-70.

The Tar Heels (17-2, 3-2 ACC) fell behind early but never seemed worried _ and worried was an expression that never left their faces against the Demon Deacons. The lead ebbed and flowed like the tide in the first half, but Wayne Ellington’s three-pointer at the halftime buzzer gave UNC a five-point margin, 45-40.

“In the first half, it seemed like they weren’t missing anything, and it seemed like it was going to be a long night,” UNC senior Danny Green said. “But we knew at some point, some team was going to give in … and we didn’t want it to be us.”

In the second half, Clemson gave in – or at least its shooting touch did. The Tigers (16-2, 2-2) made six of 11 three-pointers in the first half and 42 percent overall, but they shot under 30 percent from the field and from deep in the second half, in which UNC outscored them 49-30. And Clemson’s lone scorer in double figures – guard Terrence Oglesby, who finished with 22 points – only managed five points after the break.

UNC, on the other hand, played what Green called its best basketball since a 98-63 victory at Michigan State on Dec. 3 of last year. In the second half especially, UNC interfered with Clemson’s passes and blocked the Tigers’ shots, and the Tar Heels rebounded, passed well, and ran their transition offense to perfection. They used a 24-4 run (starting in the first half and carrying into the second) to build an 18-point advantage, and Clemson never recovered.

“Against a team like this, I didn’t expect us to go up that big against Clemson. They’re a very good team,” Green said.

But UNC approached this game better, Green said. Against Wake Forest, it seemed like UNC shot 0-for-a-whole-lot, and the team’s defense struggled, to say the least.

“After that game, I think it kind of woke us up a little bit, set a fire under us that if we don’t come out ready to play every game, it’s going to be a long night,” Green said.

Against Clemson, UNC showed up on offense and defense – especially Ellington, who kept his hand hot from Carolina’s most recent win over Miami. Ellington – UNC’s “Tiger tamer” because he always scores in droves against Clemson – scored 25 points on nine-of-15 shooting, grabbed six rebounds and dished out seven assists.

He played aggressively but under control, and he fed off Ty Lawson, who dictated the game’s pace. Lawson scored 16 and added seven assists with only two turnovers, along with three steals.

And Tyler Hansbrough, who left the game briefly with what coach Roy Williams called a “loosened” tooth, returned for the second half and finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Deon Thompson also posted a solid game for UNC, with 15 points and five rebounds.

Judging by the Tar Heel players’ actions and words, something changed in them after the Wake Forest game. Green talked about that flame igniting under them. Or, as Ellington put it, they realized that “it’s that time, where we’ve got to come out and wear our emotions on our sleeve and play as hard as we can, night in and night out.”

So what’s different since Wake Forest?

“I think our attitude, our toughness, and I think we’ve been playing with a lot more emotion,” Ellington said.

“We’re just trying to have fun, and play with a swag,” Thompson said. “Because we are a good team. And maybe we forget that at times, how talented and how deep we really are.

“So we’ve got to start playing like that and actually know that and back it up.”
Wednesday, for the 54th straight time at home against Clemson, UNC backed it up – big time.