In lieu of writing long game previews, a series of questions and answers about UNC’s forthcoming weekend of basketball.
Previewing UNC’s Weekend: A Q&A
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Tag Archives: Kendall Marshall
Yo! Larry Drew Raps (And News & Notes)
Apparently not content to merely burn bridges, Larry Drew II has decided to concomitantly make an ass out of himself by spitting a UNC freestyle diss at his 21st birthday party. Video here. Transcript here.
Whatever. This post is really an excuse to post about the Twitter meme that blew up this morning in response to Drew’s better-or-worse-than-Shaq? rhymes: #LarryDrewLyrics. They appear to have begun with Friend of Heels Geek @Joey_Powell and spread from there. Continue reading
UNC Makes History With All-ACC Selections
Unfortunately, it’s the dubious type of history: Four Tar Heels made All-ACC, but none made the first team. Tyler Zeller, John Henson and Harrison Barnes were the leading vote-getters, while Kendall Marshall made the third team. It’s the first time that an outright ACC regular-season champion has failed to place a player on the first team.
ACC media: not winning.
But oh, it gets worse.
The 2nd Annual Heels Geek All-ACC Teams
No, I don’t have a “real” pick. But what the hell, right?
For reference: last year’s teams. (Still like the picks, except I probably should’ve found a third-team spot for Ish Smith, horrible inefficiency or no.)
First Team
Malcolm Delaney (Virginia Tech)
Reggie Jackson (Boston College)
Nolan Smith (Duke)
Jordan Williams (Maryland)
Tyler Zeller (UNC)
Second Team
John Henson (UNC)
Reggie Johnson (Miami)
Iman Shumpert (Georgia Tech)
Kyle Singler (Duke)
Chris Singleton (Florida State)
Third Team
Jeff Allen (Virginia Tech)
Harrison Barnes (UNC)
Jerai Grant (Clemson)
Kendall Marshall (UNC)
Demontez Stitt (Clemson)
Freshman team: Barnes, Marshall, C.J. Leslie (North Carolina State), Travis McKie (Wake Forest), Terrell Stoglin (Maryland)
Player of the Year: Nolan Smith
Defensive POY: John Henson
Coach of the Year: Roy Williams
Rookie of the Year: Harrison Barnes
Thoughts after the jump.
North Carolina 81, Duke 67: Winning
Dexter Strickland enjoys barbecue, Brunswick stew, and YAMS.
Well then. That happened. And it happened in nearly the most humiliating way possible for Duke, which was, with apologies to Tina Fey, fetch. To recap: Ryan Kelly is being asked to take himself off this mortal coil, Kyle Singler continues to have his draft stock eviscerated by Harrison Barnes, Coach K continues to ruin Andre Dawkins‘ confidence, and the Plumlees commit so many dumb fouls that they could make “If I Only Had a Brain” the family theme song (though, in his defense, Miles was decent).
Sure, Nolan Smith got his, and I can tell I’m gonna be real tired of Seth Curry by the time he graduates … so props to those two. But other than that pair of minor inconveniences, everything came up Dadgum last night, and UNC got to cut down the flippin’ nets — two months after Ken Pomeroy said they had just a 3% chance to win the ACC.
Quick Preview: North Carolina at Florida State
You all know what’s at stake: the ACC title, a better NCAA seed, another dose of revenge at the home of All-Time Villain Ryan Reid.
FSU is obviously playing without Chris Singleton, but that doesn’t seem to have made the Tar Heels into serious favorites. Carolina opened as a one-point favorite and, barring any last-minute shifts, will head into tonight’s game favored by 2.5 points.
For what it’s worth, the last time Vegas expected Carolina to have a close game on the road — when they were one-point underdogs heading into Clemson — the Heels won 64-62. Yeah, Kendall Marshall shredded the FSU defense the first time these two teams played … but do you really expect that to happen again? Much more likely is that this game lives up to its billing as a matchup between Pomeroy’s No. 2 (UNC) and No. 4 (FSU) teams in adjusted defensive efficiency. In other words, U-G-L-Y like a Duke cheerleader (and the Vegas over-under, a whopping 138 points, would seem to confirm this).
So get your squeeze toy, or your gin and tonic, or whatever it is that you keep by during close games. Odds are pretty good that you’ll need it.
EDIT: Almost forgot.
UNC 89, FSU 69: The Hour I First Believed
A basketball season like last year’s is a test of faith.
I don’t mean here to demean or otherwise undermine real tests of faith. A game is a game; it is not tragedy. But within the context of the game, within the context of our fandom, the 2009-10 Carolina basketball season was a test. How long would it take for us to believe again?
What I’m talking about isn’t an intellectual exercise. Of course Carolina was going to get better. As defensive as it sounds when he says it, of course Roy Williams didn’t forget how to coach or how to recruit. Of course the freshman class was going to give us a boost, and of course Muppet/Strick/Leslie were going to get better. Et cetera.
You know that, though, and you still don’t believe. In your head, maybe, but not in your heart, and not in your gut.
This team has had flashes, lots of ‘em. Hofstra. Kentucky. Texas. Clemson. I started to hope. But I didn’t believe.
Then Carolina blew out State and BC. Damn exciting. But excitement isn’t belief.
Then Sunday happened.
Of course it was Sunday. It had to be Sunday. And now I believe.
That doesn’t mean Carolina will win in Cameron this week. It doesn’t mean the Tar Heels will get out of the first weekend of the NCAA tournament. It’s just a feeling. But hell if I didn’t miss it.
Five Notes
1. You already know about the superlatives related to Kendall Marshall‘s performance: Most assists ever by a Tar Heel in ACC play, most ever by a freshman, fourth-best assists talley in UNC history, etc.
But on a per-minute basis, FSU wasn’t even Kendall’s best dime-dropping effort this season. Or his second-best.
Marshall had one assist for every 2.25 minutes of playing time against FSU … but one for every 2 against St. Francis (16 mins, 8 A) and one for every 1.78 minutes against Hofstra (16 mins, 9 A).
2. Carolina shot 63.4% on their two-point attempts … against a team that, going into the game, held opponents to 39.2% (best in the country).
3. Barnes has four turnovers in his last four games.
4. Though Barnes is poised to catch Tyler Zeller for the team lead in points per game, he has a long way to go to catch Z’s offensive rating: 101.5 to 118.5. Quietly, Zeller is 17-23 from the field in Carolina’s last three games. Whatever your qualms about Big Z, the kid is an absurdly efficient scorer and has been since he set foot on campus.
5. Reggie Bullock was the ACC Rookie of the Week two weeks ago. Then Barnes last week. Now Barnes and Marshall this week. I don’t know the last time three different rookies won the award three weeks in a row … but if anyone finds out, a blog shoutout can come their way.
Preview: Florida State at North Carolina
Game time: 2 p.m.
TV: Fox Sports South
Vegas line: UNC-7
Pomeroy line: UNC -9
UNC’s first game since The Betrayal sees Carolina (16-5, 6-1) trying to keep pace at the top of the ACC standings — not just with Duke, mind you, but also with today’s opponent (16-6, 6-2), currently one game behind the Heels in the loss column.
Not much time for a full preview on this Super Bowl Sunday, so I’ll just leave us all with this one thought. You’d think that Kendall Marshall‘s ascendancy to 30-minute-a-game point guard has been dissected in every way imaginable, and you’d be mostly right, but there’s one thing that I haven’t seen anyone mention: On a per-possesssion basis, K-Butter actually turns the ball over more than He Who Shall Not Be Named.
The difference isn’t huge by any means, 33% of possessions for KM versus 29% for LD2. And Kendall’s dime-dropping proclivities mean that he still has a better A/TO ratio on the season (2.4 to 2.2). But against an FSU defense ranked second in the country, Kendall — and Dexter Strickland — are going to have to do a good job taking care of the ball today.
It’s also worth noting that FSU, as good as it is at forcing turnovers, is also stellar at giving the ball up on its own end — though the Heels, whose solid defense centers on inside strength and not fouling, may not be in position to exacerbate FSU’s woes. Expect ugly, with the hope that it turns into a beautiful, beautiful victory.
