Florida State vs North Carolina: 2019-20 key storylines for ACC matchup
Offensive Identity
UNC started the BC game off well. They attacked through the post and got both Brooks and Bacot some easy, early baskets to establish themselves. And why shouldn’t they? This is North Carolina’s biggest strength, this year in particular, and the two big line up, though MIA in much of NCAA basketball nowadays, is a Roy Williams staple.
It’s hard to argue with the results as he has brought talent and titles to Chapel Hill since his arrival seventeen years ago. But Roy is walking a fine line this year. He doesn’t have the talent to not hand over the team to Cole Anthony even though Anthony is more of a scoring guard.
Also, It worked with a freshman guard last year in Coby White although he was surrounded by talent and veteran talent at that. There were shooters all around him which kept defenses spread out, opened lanes and let him attack one on one matchups.
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Anthony is just as adept at scoring; he just has to work harder to do it. While he is a willing passer, he had no post feeds that I recall during the game. He will usually drive and dump, but this doesn’t allow his big men to establish post position and work their offense. Instead, they have to react to what Anthony is doing and this makes them more tentative.
Garrison Brooks was on an absolute tear during ACC play and is up for all-conference honors. He has achieved this by being a reliable offensive option in addition to his offensive rebounding and hustle plays. He was also very efficient, shooting over 55% from the floor.
UNC has to figure out a way to get their two best players on the same page and fast. Their next two games are against top-ten opponents with good man to man defenses. These defenses will sag off the Heels’ perimeter players and pack inside the arc. UNC only shot 36.1% overall and 21.1% from three with nine assists against BC. Those numbers are not going to get it done and it’s up to Anthony and Brooks to find a way to coexist and produce together.