On a truly odd Monday night in Chapel Hill, R.J. Davis may have just clinched ACC Player of the Year honors. Davis set a new career high with 42 points against the Hurricanes, guiding the Tar Heels to a 75-71 victory amid a nervy finish.
𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐍.#CarolinaFamily | @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/meRfrMt780
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 27, 2024
Davis scored 21 points in the first half, then went quiet until making a flurry of threes late in the second half. He finished 14-22 from the field (more made field goals than the rest of the team combined) and made seven threes in total. No other Tar Heel scored more than eight points.
“He put the team on his back,” said head coach Hubert Davis. “It wasn’t just his points. I thought he was great defensively. He took care of the basketball, distributed, rebounded, boxed out. We needed every bit of his 42 tonight. He was fantastic.”
R.J. Davis’ seventh and final three (his fourth in five possessions) put his total at 39, extended Carolina’s lead to 70-57 with 4:17 remaining. After nailing the nasty stepback jumper, Davis celebrated in front of an incredulous Elliot Cadeau, who had his hands on his head at the scorer’s table.
HANG IT IN THE LOUVRE!!!@ariidavis_ | #WhyNot4 pic.twitter.com/lON2rfq1hO
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) February 27, 2024
“I was looking at the crowd at first, and then I saw Elliot,” Davis said. “Stuff like that… that excitement, that love, that chemistry of this team… we’re rooting for each other.”
Two free throws later, Davis was at 41 points and UNC led 72-59 with 3:45 to go. In nearly everyone’s mind, the game was done and dusted. The problem is, the Hurricanes didn’t get the memo. Miami proceeded to rally in astonishing fashion, forcing three Tar Heel turnovers in a span of less than two minutes with a full-court press. Norchad Omier, Bensley Joseph and Kyshawn George each hit threes (the Hurricanes made 14 in total) in that span to bring Miami within 72-70.
“It’s all stuff we had practiced,” said Harrison Ingram, who finished with eight points and three turnovers. “It wasn’t really anything execution-wise. We were doing exactly what Coach said, but we were just making careless mistakes… we’ll be fine.”
“We just let up,” said Seth Trimble. “Stuff that we don’t usually do. R.J. getting his career high, that may have had something to do with it. We’ve just gotta clean it up for next time.”
The Hurricanes had a chance to tie the game on their next possession after a missed three from Harrison Ingram, but a miss from Omier at close range meant the ball fell back into the hands of Davis. Stepping to the free throw line for two shots to potentially push the lead to four points, the normally-reliable Davis made his first but missed his second. Ingram tapped out the offensive rebound, but the free throw woes weren’t done. Bacot proceeded to miss two straight, prompting the Tar Heels to foul Joseph to protect against a potential game-tying three.
After Joseph split his foul shots, Seth Trimble reeled in the rebound and was fouled. He stepped to the line and promptly missed both of his tries. Fortunately, Jae’Lyn Withers – just in for Bacot, who had fouled out – was on the spot, rebounding the miss and drawing Omier’s fifth foul with two seconds remaining. Withers sank both of his free throws – breaking a streak of five consecutive misses from the stripe – to finally see the Hurricanes off.
“It’s not like it’s a contested three… it was two free ones,” Withers said. “A free throw’s a free throw in my eyes.”
“Those are the little things that we talk about on a daily basis that make big things happen,” said Hubert Davis. “R.J. should be celebrated for his 42, but just as important were those plays that J-Wit and Harrison made down the stretch.”
Carolina finished a paltry 12-21 (57.1 percent) at the free throw line, including a 10-19 mark in the second half.
But back to R.J. His 42 points are the 10th-most ever by a Tar Heel in a single game, the most by a Tar Heel since 2011 (Harrison Barnes in overtime against Clemson in the ACC Tournament semifinals) and the most ever by a Tar Heel in the Smith Center (the previous record was 40 by Tyler Hansbrough in 2006). The most recent Tar Heel to hit 42? One has to go back all the way to Shammond Williams in 1998 against Georgia Tech, but that was in double overtime. Davis’ seven made threes are the most by a Tar Heel since Cole Anthony made seven against Syracuse in 2020.
Davis scored 56 percent of Carolina’s points, the highest percentage for any player since George Glamack accounted for 59 percent in 1941. The gap between Davis’ team high and the second-leading scorer (Ingram with eight) is the largest in school history.
“It’s special every time I watch him,” Trimble said. “Every time he put up a shot, I had no doubt in my mind it was going in. What he does is special, and it’s fun to watch.”
“I’m kind of speechless,” Davis said. “I don’t think it’s hit me yet, what I’ve done tonight.”
Carolina, 22-6 overall and 14-3 in conference play, is now in for another long rest, as the team won’t be back in action until it hosts NC State at the Smith Center on Saturday at 4 p.m. Carolina won the first meeting in Raleigh, 67-54, on January 10.
Until then, Hubert Davis is eager to clean up his team’s mistakes.
“The best scenario for a coach is this one,” he said. “Fortunate enough to get a win, but also have a lot to talk about. I’m looking forward to watching this entire game on Wednesday with the team.”
Featured image via Todd Melet
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
Comments on Chapelboro are moderated according to our Community Guidelines