Off the cuff: That was a bit of bust for a senior night. Two of the seniors - Desmond Hubert and Sasha Seymore - were injured and the other two - Jackson Simmons and Luke Davis - played three minutes and did nothing. While that's not the most important thing, it was gloomy watching the post-game tribute as disappointed Tar Heel fans exited the arena. ESPN's Steve Levy, bucking the national trend of sports journalists dissing the Carolina fan base, said in the first half and for a good portion of the second half, it was as ear-splitting as any arena he's ever been to. Yet the Tar Heels couldn't get it done. UNC coach Roy Williams noted that after losing two of the last three senior nights, he needs to get back to doing whatever he was doing before. You see, he won 10 straight senior nights as an assistant coach and then 24 straight senior nights as a head coach. Considering that none of the seniors were impact players, again, it's not as big a deal that the Tar Heels lost as it is that the Tar Heels lost to Duke - again. Marcus Paige was ineffective in the first game against Duke while Kennedy Meeks was ineffective in this one - scoring just two points on a one-for-seven performance. If Carolina is to advance in the ACC tournament and the NCAA tournament, they are going to have to have more consistent performance from their key players. One such player is Joel Berry. Just a game ago, we were talking about how he had found his outside stroke and could help take some of the pressure of Paige from the perimeter. In this game against Duke, he was zero for three from the floor with four fouls and two turnovers in just seven minutes of play. It was also telling that one of those turnovers came in the last minute when he was hell bent on getting the ball to Paige. With time running out, he should be a secondary option to Paige and should have generated a shot for himself. It doesn't look as if anyone will - or at least should - turn pro. This should be a better team next year. A year from now if the Tar Heels lose on senior night it will be even more devastating as fans say goodbye to Paige, Brice Johnson, JP Tokoto and Joel James. But it's always tough to lose to Duke, especially at home. |
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