Despite turning the ball over a season-high 18 times, Carolina found a way past Georgia Tech at the Smith Center on Saturday, defeating the Yellow Jackets 68-65 in the ACC opener.

“I think it’s very difficult and hard to win a conference game,” said head coach Hubert Davis. “I was really proud of them that, through the hardness of this game… but there were some good things that we did tonight. And I wanted them to have a smile on their face.”

Elliot Cadeau accounted for a career-high seven of Carolina’s turnovers, though the sophomore guard knocked down a critical three-pointer in the final minutes to give Carolina a five-point lead at 62-57. Seth Trimble finished as UNC’s leading scorer with 19 points, eight of which came on free throws. R.J. Davis added 16, though the former All-American’s shooting struggles continued: Davis finished 5-15 from the floor and 2-8 on three-pointers. Davis is shooting 17-70 (24.2 percent) on threes this season.

“I know it’s gonna fall. I know it’s gonna happen,” Davis said. “I’ve just gotta stay with it, stay confident… that’s really my main message.”

After struggling on offense in Wednesday’s loss to Alabama, the Tar Heels continued to flounder against the Yellow Jackets. UNC missed eight of its first nine shots to begin the second half and its first six of the second half. Carolina finished 23-59 (39 percent) overall. Fortunately for the Tar Heels, Georgia Tech was even colder, finishing 20-64 (31.3 percent) from the floor.

“I thought we did a really good job defensively,” Hubert Davis said. “I thought we did a good job of protecting the paint… they were bigger than us, and we outrebounded them [48-37]. So that was really good.”

And yet, Carolina trailed for the game’s first 12 minutes and for short stretches in the second. The Yellow Jackets held a 54-53 lead with 6:21 remaining before UNC nosed in front for good. The Tar Heels never led by more than seven points.

“We’ve gotta get back our flow offensively,” Davis said. “Having 18 turnovers and shooting 5-24 [on threes]… that’s just not sustainable. So we’ve gotta get better in those areas.”

Carolina is 5-4 overall and 1-0 in ACC play. The Tar Heels will be back in action when they host La Salle at the Smith Center on Saturday, December 14 at 4 p.m.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet

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