SAN DIEGO -- The plane stole away in the middle of the night Friday, out of California, back to North Carolina. After participating in one of the most unusual basketball games ever played, the Tar Heels had no time to rest. They arrived in Asheville early Saturday morning, less than 24 hours before taking on UNC-Asheville this afternoon in their second game of the season.
Now that all the excitement of the inaugural Carrier Classic has faded, the USS Carl Vinson in the rear-view mirror, the 67-55 win against Michigan State in the books, it's back to business for the Tar Heels, who in the midst of a solid win had a few flaws exposed by the Spartans - especially on the boards.
"I was not pleased at all with our work on the backboards," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said, "and yet our defense, we had some turnovers and they didn't shoot a good percentage. .... All in all, it's a win, which you love that, it's a win in this setting, which you love, and I saw some things we can definitely show them on tape and say 'We can't do that.' "
There's nothing unusual about the Spartans outplaying someone on the boards. Michigan State is annually one of the country's best rebounding teams. That's one of the principal tenets of Tom Izzo's philosophy and a big part of his continuing success there.
Draymond Green is as mobile a big man and as dogged a rebounder as anyone in the country. He had 18 rebounds Friday, seven of them offensive. He's not even the Spartans' biggest big man. They can also roll out Adreian Payne and Derrick Nix, as well as impressive freshman small forward Branden Dawson.
North Carolina isn't just anyone, though. The Tar Heels have two big bodies of their own, perhaps the biggest, most talented 1-2 combination of big men in the country. John Henson had nine blocks and 12 points Friday, and Tyler Zeller had nine points, but the Tar Heels were outrebounded 49-34, giving up 24 offensive rebounds.
Not many teams in the ACC can muster as much beef as Michigan State or North Carolina down low, with only Duke (Mason Plumlee, Ryan Kelly and Miles Plumlee) and Florida State (Bernard James, Okaro White and Xavier Gibson) even coming close.
Those two teams also happen to be North Carolina's main competition within the conference, and when the NCAA tournament comes around, there won't be many teams that get there without being able to rebound at a very high level.
North Carolina was one of them last season; the Tar Heels outrebounded opponents by more than six per game, and the three starting forwards - Zeller, Henson and Harrison Barnes - combined to average more than 23 per game.
There were a few other glitches on Friday - a certain lack of composure at times, including the final moments of the first half, and five turnovers for the normally precise Kendall Marshall - but even as the Tar Heels felt good about their overall performance, they know exactly where they need to improve.
"Especially against a great team like Michigan State - they came out and played hard," Marshall said. "They're a great rebounding team, which I think is what we needed, to realize that we need to get better on the boards."
The Carrier Classic was an amazing experience for everyone involved, and the memories won't fade anytime soon. Yet the season rolls on, and amid everything the Tar Heels did well, they have a few areas that require immediate attention. If not today, soon.
