As I was watching the first half of last night’s Carolina-Winthrop game, I thought there would be no way the Heels would come back and win the game. When a guy from a mid-major (Torrell Martin) hits 6 three’s in a half on his way to 20 points you generally don’t overcome that. When you throw the ball away 14 times in a half giving the opposition multiple fast break opportunities, you usually lose the game. Add to these things to the fact that Winthrop is well-coached and is used to winning and you have a have an upset in the making.

But the Heels were able to steady themselves and crawl back in front midway through the second half. Most of the credit goes to UNC’s more intense defensive effort, led by Marcus Ginyard’s ability to put the shackles on Martin (only 5 second half points). A good part of the credit also goes to Carolina’s increased ball security in the second half (only 3 turnovers after the break).

After the game, Roy Williams told the press that this game would help the Tar Heels down the road. He also mentioned that this game had the feel of an NCAA tournament game. No doubt about it, UNC-Winthrop looked, felt and played out like a 2nd Rd. game with a berth in to the Sweet 16 at stake. The good part, of course, is that this experience ended up as a W. Other teams, like BC the other night, and Kansas last night, have not been so fortunate.

The first two games for the Heels have exposed two major weaknesses. First, UNC has real problems figuring out how to guard the three point line. Since so few teams in the country have decent post players, almost every team Carolina will play is going to look for the 3 as a major option in their offense (if not the only option). Sacred Heart and Winthrop were able to get loose for 26 made three’s. Giving up 13 made three-pointers a game to an Ohio St., Kentucky, Duke, etc. is not only going to get you beat, is going to get you beat badly. Second, the inability for UNC to control the glass is a cause for concern. With Hansbrough, Wright, Stepheson, Thompson, Terry, Green and Ginyard the Heels should never allow a team to stay close on the boards. For the second night in a row, the Tar Heels managed a meager 3 rebound advantage over the opponent. As the Heels move on to NY next week they’ll have to improve greatly in these two areas.

The whole world is not falling apart though. Tyler Hansbrough once again looked the every bit the part of the best player in the nation. If he ever figures out how to face up and knock down the 5-8 ft. shot he’ll be unstoppable. Right now, I’d just settle for him reversing the ball every now and then. Once he gets the ball reversal down, he’ll make the Heels unstoppable. If I’m an opposing coach (ie: Mark Few), I double Tyler from the opposite side. I’m not sure Hansbrough has ever reversed the ball for an open three. Consequently, the only time UNC gets a clean look at a three is in transition. In order for the Heels to go deep in to March they’ll need to be able to create open perimeter shots in the half court. The simpliest way to do that is to throw it in to Tyler and have him kick to the other side.

Wayne Ellington and Brandan Wright are huge bright spots so far. As Clark Kellogg would say, Ellington is as cool as the other side of the pillow. Wright has been nothing short of sensastional. Sadly, the better he plays the shorter his stay will be in Chapel Hill. But that’s a topic for another day. For now, Wright looks like he could be the early leader (with Kevin Durant of Texas) for national freshman of the year. It was also good to see Marcus Ginyard find some minutes. Williams has said that Ginyard could be the best defender in Carolina history. Better than Jones, Bradley, Jordan, Lynch and Manuel?? That is huge praise. Marcus looks to be Roy’s go-to stopper, which seems to be just fine with Ginyard.

Gonzaga will face the Heels in the Garden on Wednesday night. This is going to be one great game. The Zags have no Adam, but they do have a Derek, a Sean, and a Josh. Derek Raivio should be a solid PG in his senior season. Sean Mallon is a nice player up front, and has good size at 6′9. Josh Heytvelt could be a real problem for the Heels. He’s big (6′11) with great skill. He can shoot the 3 and play with his back to the basket. I would think Few will organize his offensive game plan around Heytvelt. If Hansbrough is on him, expect to see lots of high screen-roll with Heytvelt popping out to shoot the three. If Wright is on him, I would think Heytvelt will be down in the post a bunch (a place that caused Wright problems defensively). Gonzaga likes to run, Carolina likes to run. This could be a fun, fun game.