Ellington, not Lawson, the show-stopper
Mar 21, 2009
So the media horde descended on Ty Lawson, again, and his return from The Toe will be what many remember about North Carolina’s victory Saturday over LSU.
Not me.
The decisive play in this contest had nothing to do with Lawson, and everything to do with a Carolina player – Wayne Ellington – not usually associated with a lunch-pail style play.
You know Ellington – sleek jumper, likes to hang around the three-point arch, doesn’t want to mix it up with the bruisers in low.
But this game was different. Deep in the second half, Carolina led 67-63 in a real struggle with the Tigers.
UNC’s Danny Green missed a three-point shot, and a scramble ensued for the ball. Ellington lunged into the maw and batted the ball right to Green.
Green steadied his feet, shot, swished a three-pointer and the Heels were up, 70-63.
“That effort to knock the ball back to Danny was as good a play as we had in the whole game,” UNC coach Roy Williams said.
That wasn’t the only time Ellington’s play made a difference. Ellington didn’t just play well, he played with will. On a day when Lawson was iffy in the first half and Hansbrough wasn’t dominant, Ellington was the one pushing Carolina to another rung in the tournament.
He shot with confidence, once hitting a straight-up jumper with a defenders’ fingers right at his nose. It looks so smooth and graceful on TV, but so downright difficult when you see it up close.
There was a time this season when those jumpers weren’t falling and Ellington wasn’t as much a part of the machine.
“Early in the year he wasn’t shooting the ball well,” Williams said. “I told him to take the ball to the basket, rebound, defend people. …
“So I think he gained some confidence in knowing that he’s a very good player and the shot doesn’t have to go in. That makes it a lot more pleasant when it does.
“Then he started making a bunch of shots. …”
He did that again Saturday, but he did more. There were still times he played soft defense, but for most of this game, he was scrapping for balls, fighting for rebounds, fully engaged. He has now scored 16, 16, 24, 25 and 23 points in Carolina’s last five games.
And he shot well, too, seeing, as he said, “an ocean” when the ball left his hand.
"It’s perfect timing,” Ellington said. “My confidence is sky high.”
That was evident throughout the win on Saturday.
This game will be remembered for Lawson’s return.
But Carolina was fueled by Ellington’s growth as a player, and the grit he showed when the Heels needed it most.
