The Carolina offense was as cold as the weather outside on Wednesday night against No. 10 Alabama, as the Crimson Tide rolled over the Tar Heels 94-79 at the Smith Center. It’s Carolina’s third straight loss overall and third straight against Alabama.

“We didn’t do the things consistently to put yourself in a position to win a game like this,” said head coach Hubert Davis.

R.J. Davis struggled mightily on his way to 18 points, shooting just 7-23 from the field. Freshman Ian Jackson added a career-high 23 points off the bench, but no other Tar Heel scored more than 12. As a team, Carolina shot just 32-78 (41 percent) from the floor. Alabama finished 35-71 (49.3 percent). The Crimson Tide poured in 12 three-pointers on the night, compared to just five for UNC. Carolina shot 5-28 on its three-point attempts, at one point missing 16 straight across the first and second halves. In the second half, during which Alabama stretched its advantage to as large as 18 points, the Crimson Tide shot 18-34 (52.9 percent).

“I just feel like we’re not tough enough yet,” said Jackson. “There was plenty of times in the game where we could’ve come back and fought, and we didn’t. That’s something that, internally, we’ve gotta fix — and we’re gonna fix.”

“Tougher, effort, enthusiasm, energy, all of the above,” Davis said when asked about what needs to change. “All those little details that come with basketball. You can’t play basketall without any energy or joy.”

UNC only led for the first 2:01 of the game after a pair of free throws from Seth Trimble. After that, Alabama quickly went in front and expanded its lead to 31-18 at the 8:20 mark of the first half. It’s the fourth straight game and fifth overall this season in which the Tar Heels have faced a deficit of at least 10 points in the first half. Carolina got as close as 33-28 late in the half but trailed 43-34 at halftime. In the second, UNC scored the first four points to close to 43-38 and never got any closer than nine points for the rest of the evening.

Carolina is 4-4 on the season. The Tar Heels will be back in action when it hosts Georgia Tech in the ACC opener on Saturday at 2 p.m.

“I told the guys, get your Timberland boots on,” Hubert Davis said. “Your overalls, your shoulder pads and your helmet. Tomorrow, you’re gonna get dirty. We’re gonna go back to work Thursday and Friday in preparation to play against a very good Georgia Tech team.”

 

Featured image via Associated Press/Chris Seward

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