How the ‘unbelievable’ defense of UNC’s Leaky Black stomped out UNLV’s spark
No. 14 North Carolina will face many more teams that use four-guard lineups as UNLV did Monday night. Thanks to Leaky Black, it might be much less of a problem for the Tar Heels to defend.
Carolina (2-0) had no problem dismantling the Runnin’ Rebels 78-51 despite allowing them to get off to a fast start offensively. With UNC starting a traditional lineup with a pair of 6-10 forwards in Garrison Brooks and Armando Bacot in the post, UNLV (0-2) tried to take advantage of its perimeter mismatch at the four.
All-Mountain West guard Bryce Hamilton led the Rebels’ attack early and looked poised to have another game like the 27 points he scored in their opener against Montana State. Hamilton scored 11 of UNLV’s first 22 points, most of which came while he was being defended by Brooks.
“We also didn’t do a very good job of guarding and Bryce got off to a much better start than we wanted him to,” UNC coach Roy Williams said in his postgame video conference.
The 6-4 guard used his quickness to keep Brooks off balance, either driving past him when he pressed too hard, or taking jumpers when he sagged off too much. Hamilton also got a highlight reel moment at Black’s expense. When freshman Caleb Love gambled on stealing a pass he was not close enough to reach, Black tried to rotate over and stop Hamilton drive and ended up getting dunked on.
‘Leaky was unbelievable’
Things changed quickly once Williams made the defensive switch to put the 6-8 Black on Hamilton and move Brooks on guard Caleb Grill. In two games, Grill has only stepped inside of the 3-point line for one shot attempt. Otherwise, he’s a spot up 3-point shooter who was much easier for Brooks to defend because he wasn’t a threat to drive.
Hamilton was a threat, but Black helped stopped him.
“I was just trying to take away his sweet spots,” Black said in a message in response to questions sent by The News & Observer. “He just loved the mid-range jumper so I just tried to take that away.”
Black locked Hamilton up to where he didn’t score the last six minutes of the first half or for nearly the first eight minutes of the second. Between Hamilton field goals the score changed from UNLV holding a 22-19 advantage to the Heels running out to a 55-36 lead.
“Leaky was unbelievable on Bryce just not letting him get to his spots, denying him the ball, and when he would get the ball, making him take tough, fall-away jump shots and stuff he wasn’t comfortable with,” UNC guard Andrew Platek said in the postgame video conference. “Leaky is that kind of player on the defensive end. He can do that to anybody in the country just because he’s so big and can use his length so well.”
Black demonstrated that early when he raced from the middle of the lane out to contest a 3-point attempt by David Jenkins Jr., and blocked the shot.
Can Leaky Black become an elite defender for the UNC Tar Heels?
UNLV coach T.J. Otzelberger lamented his team not creating enough movement to get Hamilton in better scoring positions. But he credited Black for being partly responsible for Hamilton’s struggles.
“He’s got great length and lateral quickness,” Otzelberger said. “He’s able to move his feet. He speeds you up just because he’s so lateral and anticipates and he put Bryce in some tough spots.”
Hamilton finished with just 15 points on 7 of 19 shooting. It’s a good sign for the Tar Heels as they are sure to face the dilemma of how they will matchup with other opponents who go small.
Williams has said Black could become an elite defender for the Tar Heels and often brings up Dudley Bradley, who was a defensive standout for UNC, as a comparison. Although Black only scored five points on 1-for-9 shooting from the field, his team-high 10 rebounds and defensive effort led him to be singled out by Williams in the locker room.
“It means a lot just to see my work being appreciated,” Black said. “I can’t make every shot, but I can give my all on defense, so I take pride in that.”
UNC vs. Stanford
When: 4 p.m., Tuesday
Where: Harrah’s Cherokee Center, Asheville
Watch: ESPN
This story was originally published December 1, 2020 at 3:30 PM.