No. 4 UNC wins eighth straight. Three takeaways from Tar Heels’ win at Boston College
The environment might have been hostile — the Eagles fans made sure to use RJ Davis’ relationship as trash talk fodder — but the Tar Heels found a way to quiet the crowd in Boston.
No. 4 UNC (15-3, 7-0 ACC) defeated Boston College (11-7, 2-5 ACC) 76-66 Saturday afternoon. The victory gives the Heels their eighth straight victory, the longest since the 2018-19 season. This was their sixth straight ACC game with a double-digit margin of victory, a first since 1992-93.
Davis led the team with 16 points, and Harrison Ingram added 11 points and 12 rebounds.
UNC leads the all-time series 23-6 and has held every ACC opponent this season under 70 points.
Here are three takeaways from the win.
Eagles neutralize Bacot in battle of the posts
Boston College’s defense completely stopped graduate student Armando Bacot and any offense the Heels tried to run through him.
Bacot averaged nearly 15 points prior to the contest and finished with just 10 points. The Eagles held Bacot scoreless in the first half and didn’t allow him to take a shot. Bacot found the basket after the break, though Boston College limited his efficiency.
He picked up two early fouls as well, affecting the Heels’ ability to run their offense the way they wanted.
“I think that’s why we struggled so much in the first half, just me picking up those fouls,” Bacot said. “We really couldn’t get into the sets and do the things we really wanted to do in the first half, but I knew in the second half, we would respond.”
Despite the limited numbers from Bacot, the UNC defense did fairly well slowing down Boston College’s Quinten Post. As his name suggests, Post can make shots inside, but his ability to hit long-range buckets stretches the floor. Post scored 12 points on 3-of-9 shooting in the first half, with five coming at the free-throw line.
He added seven points in the second half, while Carolina drew four fouls off of Post and limited his minutes.
BC finds early success inside
Boston College took an early lead against the Tar Heels, leading until 5:27 in the first half. The biggest factor was from where the Eagles scored: the post.
At the under-12 timeout, BC scored 10 of 16 points from the paint. It added three points from the free-throw line, which the team earned from driving inside and drawing the foul.
Meanwhile, the Eagles’ defense forced the Tar Heels outside, where they started 0-3. It took nearly three minutes for the Heels to find a bucket in the paint.
UNC ended the first half with 10 in the lane and 24 overall. Carolina started hitting shots from the perimeter, but its success driving to the basket played a direct role in its ability to take and maintain a lead.
“I think we were continuing to be aggressive,” graduate student Cormac Ryan said of the improved offense in the second half. “Going inside a little bit more, getting fouled, putting the pressure on the defense I think helped us. Then we continued to move the ball and [trust] each other.”
Too many Tar Heel turnovers
You can point to one statistic when referencing UNC’s first-half offensive struggles: turnovers.
The Tar Heels committed 11 total turnovers, with nine before the break. Their defense limited Boston College’s ability to capitalize, scoring just seven points off turnovers.
Carolina ended the first half with just six assists, far below its 1.4 assist/turnover ratio.
UNC cleaned things up in the second half, committing just two and moving the ball more effectively. It logged 15 assists in the win. The team, however, could have made things less stressful had it reduced the number of free possessions.
This story was originally published January 20, 2024 at 6:07 PM.
