The Gators flirted with disaster after dominating the first half of the Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte but ultimately was able to out-execute their opponent in the final minute of the game coming away with a 90-84 win over North Carolina. For the first twenty minutes of the game it was looking like the Gators were set to have yet another dominant double digit win, building up a lead that was as big as 17 points at one time. Coming out of the intermission the Tar Heels punched back and got back into the game, actually taking a two possession lead with just a few minutes remaining. Florida was then able to claw their way back and win the final few possessions and ultimately the game coming away with a victory that was a bit too close for comfort. The Gators remain unscathed as they improved to 11-0 on the season.
Winning Margin
Ultimately the biggest difference in this game was the size discrepancy between the Gators and Tar Heels. North Carolina is extremely undersized playing down the stretch with a skinny 6’0”, 6’1”, 6’3”, 6’4”, and 6’8” lineup due a lack of production in the frontcourt. On two of the key possessions when the game was within reach the Tar Heels forced misses from the Gators–only for Florida to come up with a key offensive rebound. Finishing with 16 offensive rebounds, many of which came from guards, the Gators simply had more bites at the apple especially in crunch time and it was the difference over the smaller Tar Heels. Florida won’t have that same kind of advantage over every team they play this season, but it was nice to see them licking their chops at the opportunity to bully a smaller team and it’s a good thing they did or the outcome could have been very different.
Backcourt Battle
While North Carolina’s frontcourt is loaded with issues that lead them to play extremely small, their backcourt is loaded with scorers and you knew it would be a marquee matchup between their trio of RJ Davis, Elliot Cadeau, and Seth Trimble going up against Florida’s Walter Clayton, Alijah Martin, and Will Richard, and they didn’t disappoint. North Carolina’s guards combined for 51 points and 8 assists, and their ability to score in isolation was the engine behind the Tar Heels getting back into the game. Florida’s guards countered with 53 points and 7 assists, making this a true battle between some of the best backcourt units in the country. You could certainly make arguments for both sides regarding who had a better game, but ultimately it was a tight matchup between two great groups and it allowed Florida to win the game with advantages at other positions.
Learning Experience
Florida is yet to play a particularly strong opponent this season and at 28th in KenPom entering Tuesday’s game North Carolina was their biggest challenge so far–and you could tell the Gators weren’t used to this quality of an opponent. Florida was sloppy with the ball, turning it over 17 times with many of them coming due to lazy passes they could get away with against earlier competition this season but not against a team of any substance. They also were lazy defensively at times and gave up easy backdoor layups or open threes–the kind of defensive lapses they haven’t been penalized for yet. They also struggled to make adjustments once North Carolina went on their run, as making adjustments isn’t something they’ve yet had to do. This will hopefully be a wake up call for the Gators who can learn from a win which is always a lot more fun to do than learning from a loss.
Final Thoughts
This game could be defined a lot by the context. Florida is a team that went in having not played any quality opponents yet, but also had all kinds of confidence from being undefeated. North Carolina came in having played a very difficult schedule and taking a lot of losses, making this a desperation game in front of what was functionally a home crowd in Charlotte, North Carolina. Knowing this–the game went about as expected. North Carolina was more prepared for a street fight between quality competitors, and they had the crowd to will them back into the game when they went on a run. Florida played like the team that had a lot go right for them, and even though they stumbled they had the confidence that comes with being undefeated to keep their heads high down the stretch. It was far from a perfect performance for the Gators but they still came out with a win, setting themselves up for what looks to be an undefeated non-conference slate.