Where were the fans for Hubert Davis’ debut?

A disappointing crowd in a less than half-full Smith Center welcomed another era of UNC basketball, as a new head coach won his official first game leading the Tar Heels against Loyola of Maryland.

It didn’t seem to faze Hubert until the final comment of his postgame remarks, when he challenged fans to “pack” the place Friday night against Brown.

The 19th-ranked Tar Heels are clearly a work in progress, with three transfers trying to get comfortable in their new uniforms and some sophomores wanting to make that quantum leap from freshman years that, for the most part, did not live up to expectations.

Davis changed starters from the exhibition game win, opening with grad student forward Brady Manek alongside Armando Bacot and senior Leaky Black instead of Kerwin Walton at small forward.

Starting guards Caleb Love and RJ Davis remained, and the point guard Love had no turnovers for the second straight game since the 2021 NCAA tournament but also no assists until 5 minutes remained on his way to scoring a team-high 22 points. Davis didn’t score as much but had a better floor game, 5 assists and 5 rebounds with 6 points.

If the Carolina backcourt can play more consistently than it did last season, the newly-formed frontcourt will be able to take advantage of its size and improved outside shooting.

Manek, whose trimmed beard and hair made him look less like a lumberjack and a little more like Larry Bird, showed his rounded skills in outside shooting and inside strength, netting 20 points, 5 rebounds and a blocked shot. Dawson Garcia, who started the exhibition, came off the bench to add 12 points and a game-high 9 rebounds, combining with Bacot’s 8 points and Manek to score almost half of the team’s total 83.

At least for now, Hubert went more heavily with a seven-man rotation than the freewheeling substitutions used by his predecessor Roy Williams, who watched the game with his wife from their first-row seats just to the left of the home tunnel.

Granted that this first post-COVID season will be a period of personal preference for many people, Davis deserves a better reception than who showed up for his first victory as a college coach.

 

Photo via Todd Melet.

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