Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

North Carolina

Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

By Sam Rosenthal

Feb 4, 2009

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Outside the Smith Center, a flurry of snowflakes tinted the ground white. Inside, a blizzard of three-pointers frosted the baskets blue … and No. 3 North Carolina shot Maryland out of the gym and all the way back to College Park, 108-91.

On a frigid February night, the Tar Heels (20-2, 6-2 ACC) started the game hotter than a summer day in the Sahara. Maryland (14-8, 3-5) scored 44 points in the first half yet still entered the break trailing UNC by 16.

That’s because UNC poured in 60 first half points – 33 of them from behind the arc. In the game’s first 20 minutes, the Heels knocked down 11 of 15 three-balls (73 percent), Wayne Ellington scored 21 points, and three other Tar Heels scored in double figures.

It was an incredible shooting display – a veritable downpour of threes. A snowstorm. A whiteout. And it rendered the second half a mere formality, as UNC cruised to a 17-point win.

As UNC coach Roy Williams put it, his team “shot the dickens out of it tonight.” Williams disliked his team’s defensive performance but liked that it secured an ACC victory. “You’d better be dadgum happy about that,” Williams said. “It was impressive, us shooting the basketball like that, and it wasn’t very impressive on the defensive end of the floor.”

As for Maryland coach Gary Williams, he thought his team came out flat. “Against a team like Carolina, if you gave them any inkling that you’re not ready to play … They seize the opportunity and just really go after you,” he said. “We played a bad first half defensively, and it really cost us. We scored, but we couldn’t stop them, obviously.”

Maryland scored enough points to win some NBA games, and five Terrapins – Dave Neal, Sean Mosley, Greivis Vasquez, Eric Hayes and Cliff Tucker – registered double-digit point totals.

But UNC’s shooting maelstrom whitewashed all that offensive output. For the game, UNC made 16 of 25 three-pointers (64 percent) and shot 51 percent overall. Four Tar Heels scored in double figures, and three – Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington – exceeded 20 points – the first time any three Tar Heels accomplished that since 2004.

Ellington led the way with 34 points on 12-of-15 shooting (and seven-of-nine from deep), along with seven offensive rebounds.

Ellington got going early, hitting his first two threes, and he never slowed up. Gary Williams called him the most improved player on this year’s Carolina squad.

And Roy Williams talked about Ellington’s play as well. “Wayne Ellington … I told him in the locker room, ‘34 points is fantastic, nine rebounds is fantastic,” he said. “Zero assists, four turnovers is not fantastic.”

The whole game went like that for Carolina. “When the score is 108-91, you do a lot of good things and a lot of frustrating things,” Roy Williams said. “That’s basketball.”

And the postgame talk had the same tone – upbeat because of the win and shooting barrage, but sullen because of the official announcements that Marcus Ginyard and Will Graves’ seasons are officially over (Ginyard because of a lingering injury, and Graves because of a team suspension).

Regarding Maryland, Ellington and Hansbrough said that the Terps’ recent successes against the Tar Heels remained fresh in the Tar Heels’ minds heading into this game. Maryland beat UNC in Chapel Hill last year, 82-80 and in College Park the year before that, 89-87 – two losses by a total of four points.

“I was fired up before the game,” Ellington said. “I’ve never beaten Maryland – our junior class has never beaten Maryland. We knew that we were 0-2 against them, and we wanted to come out with some intensity and get them back.”

The Tar Heels certainly came out with intensity, and Maryland – for all its offensive production and Carolina’s defensive softness – looked like a skier trapped under an avalanche of three-pointers.

After the game, Gary Williams seemed calm, but grave. His team has struggled so far this season. Williams said he couldn’t recall any team shooting against his the way Carolina did in the first half. Radio broadcaster Woody Durham offered the Terrapin coach his condolences.

“Tough to see the landslide come down on you,” Durham told Williams.

“I’ve had a lot of landslides lately,” Williams replied.

When it snows, it pours.

Most Recent Comments

RE: Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

You all can say what you want, but we will see on February 11th! GO HEELS!

RE: Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

keep denying, i never said it had to be a UNC fan i'm just saying it's more like one than anyone else. billygoat, with talk like that i'm surprised it wasn't you did it, the woman just died and you're insulting her for your own team's "pride". hey turtle finally glad to see ya on here, i guess now that UNC is winning again you can show up. oh and jud, Duke's defense is by far better than those previous teams you mentioned but i'll guess you'll get to see for yourself real soon..GTH Carolina, GTH.
- Posted by tlg0022

Jeez! You can't see the forest for the trees. Wake up and smell the common sense, dude. I assure you, none of us Carolina fans were just itching to get in one more jab at the late Kay Yow and State. We couldn't give a rat's behind about our own women's team. And they're actually good!

A much more likely suspect would be another bitter State fan who wanted to fabricate an example of UNC fans not being as classy as they think they are. God knows, they are all itching to do just that. Light blue paint? Duh. You couldn't solve a mystery so simple if you had Scooby and Shaggy in tow.

FYI

I've always been here, tl. Nice to know you missed me though. My grandmother's death was slightly more important to me than you are, however.

RE: Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

keep denying, i never said it had to be a UNC fan i'm just saying it's more like one than anyone else. billygoat, with talk like that i'm surprised it wasn't you did it, the woman just died and you're insulting her for your own team's "pride". hey turtle finally glad to see ya on here, i guess now that UNC is winning again you can show up. oh and jud, Duke's defense is by far better than those previous teams you mentioned but i'll guess you'll get to see for yourself real soon..GTH Carolina, GTH.

RE: Hot shooting makes up for UNC's defensive woes in 108-91 win over Terps

yeah but why would anyone other than a Carolina fan buy that color paint the EXACT same night, stupid...
- Posted by tlg0022

Are you really so stupid that you cannot figure that out yourself?

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North Carolina