North Carolina Basketball: 3 keys for Sweet 16 matchup against UCLA

FORT WORTH, TEXAS - MARCH 19: North Carolina Tar Heels players react after defeating the Baylor Bears 93-86 in overtime during the second round of the 2022 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Dickies Arena on March 19, 2022 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /

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Brady Manek North Carolina Basketball (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

1. Stay out of foul trouble

With Dawson Garcia and Anthony Harris both being unavailable since the middle of January, Hubert Davis has been forced to shrink the rotation. The starting five of Caleb Love, R.J. Davis, Leaky Black, Brady Manek, and Armando Bacot consistently play a heavy majority of the team’s total minutes.

Puff Johnson has provided some bench relief over the last month with Justin McKoy, Dontrez Styles, and Kerwin Walton playing spot minutes, but a five to six-man rotation is the ideal for Hubert Davis and UNC.

The near-collapse against Baylor last Saturday was a perfect example. North Carolina was winning by 25 points when Brady Manek was ejected with 10:08 left in the second half. Baylor proceeded to go on a 38-13 run to send the game to overtime. Caleb Love also fouled out in that stretch, leaving the Heels down two of its five starters which led to serious issues on both ends of the court.

North Carolina has proven it can play with any team in the country but only when Hubert Davis can count on all five starters being on the floor for the majority of the game. Foul trouble was an obstacle that almost cost them against Baylor — something the Heels desperately want to avoid against UCLA in the Sweet 16.

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