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UNC was just utterly trashed by Maryland Wednesday night. It was the
kind of whipping the ACC's big boys usually reserve for whoever is at the bottom
of the heap, but currently, that pretty much has to be UNC, as strange as that
sounds to most everyone. And the thing is, UNC was lucky it wasn't worse.
The one bright spot for UNC was Jason Capel, who had a really solid game,
shooting better than he has most of the season. Brian Bersticker, who
started, had some very good moments as well. And Adam Boone had some good,
solid moments as well.
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When you look at the remaining games for UNC (see below), it seems
pretty much a done deal that some of the streaks are done, starting with the
NCAA streak, but also the 20 win streak (they have a maximum of 24 games left,
if they managed to win the ACC and the national championship), but only 16
guaranteed) and the top 3 finishes in the ACC streak. The home-win streak
with Clemson might survive, but not if Clemson plays like they did against UVa.
There are now two key factors for UNC, both relating to confidence: their own
and their opponents. If these kind of defeats continue, how will they
handle it? And just as importantly, how will Florida State, Clemson, and Georgia
Tech react when they play UNC? We mention them because after seeing the Wake and
Maryland games, those two schools and Duke, State, and UVa are likely to feel
pretty confident. Of course, Duke felt confident against FSU - it cuts
both ways.
Still, after the game, Steve Blake told the Baltimore Sun "who are those
guys? They're just another team. Carolina's no special thing." The
fear is gone, and getting it back will be tough.
And when you look down that list of opponents, it's hard to spot any definite
victories at this point. UVa is coming soon, and the Wahoos are not going to
take the game lightly, having blown two in a row.
Interesting stat nuggets: UNC only took 7 foul shots, and Capel and
Lang took nearly half the team's shots. The Heels had 25 turnovers. Will
Johnson, who has truly been brave for UNC, playing far above his ability, was
almost shut out.
Remaining Games
- UVa
- at FSU
- at UConn
- NC State
- at Clemson
- Duke
- at Tech
- at Wake
- Maryland
- at UVa
- FSU
- Ohio
- at NC State
- Clemson
- at Duke