Five takeaways from UNC's dominant, ACC Tournament-opening win over Notre Dame Wednesday

USA Today

13-03-2025

Five takeaways from UNC's dominant, ACC Tournament-opening win over Notre Dame Wednesday Here's five takeaways from UNC's blowout victory over Notre Dame in Wednesday ACC Tournament action.
Entering Wednesday's ACC Tournament Opener against Notre Dame, the North Carolina Tar Heels needed a victory to extend their season and have a shot at playing in the NCAA Tournament next week.
When the final seconds ticked off the clock in Charlotte, UNC left the Spectrum Center court with a dominant, 76-56 victory that showcased just how dangerous the team can be.
North Carolina (21-12, 13-7 ACC) left little doubt on Wednesday afternoon, building a 14-point halftime lead and keeping the pedal down during a strong second half. Jae'Lyn Withers enjoyed the game of his life, anchoring the Tar Heels' victory with 21 points (all on 3-pointers) and nine rebounds. Ven-Allen Lubin continued his strong play, recording his second double-double in three games, complete with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Though it's easy to point towards UNC's stellar offense as the major reason it advanced to Thursday's rematch with Wake Forest, North Carolina's defense played a big role. The Tar Heels limited an opponent to under 60 points – for the second time in three games. Only one Notre Dame (15-18, 8-12) starter, Markus Burton, scored in double-figures.
Speaking of defense, UNC will have a tall task Thursday afternoon when it faces in-state rival Wake Forest, (21-10, 13-7) at 2:30 p.m. The Demon Deacons, who earned the ACC Tournament's fourth seed, allow just 68 opponent points per game. North Carolina averages 81.7 points per game, second in the ACC to only Duke, so something will have to give.
The Tar Heels play their best basketball when post players are producing
UNC looks to its deep backcourt for most of its scoring production, but historically, UNC plays its best basketball when the power forward and center are leading the charge.
Withers and Lubin did exactly that on Wednesday afternoon, combining for half of North Carolina's 76 points. Withers scored all 21 of his points on 3-pointers and added nine rebounds, while Lubin recorded a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double.
The Tar Heels blocked just four shots on Wednesday afternoon – all coming from the Withers-Lubin duo. This production is needed for UNC to go anywhere in March.
North Carolina's defense is better than you think
The Tar Heels limited Notre Dame to just 56 points on Wednesday. This marks the second time – in three games – a UNC opponent failed to score 60 points.
North Carolina held the Fighting Irish to just a 32.3 percent mark from the field. Markus Burton scored 11 points, making him the only Notre Dame player to score in double-figures.
Elliot Cadeau taking care of the basketball is extremely undervalued
When you're an aggressive player like Elliot Cadeau, turnovers are bound to happen. On Wednesday afternoon against Notre Dame, Cadeau turned the ball over just two times.
More importantly, Cadeau dished out a Tar Heels-best 10 assists. This allowed for eight of Cadeau's teammates to score, keeping the Fighting Irish guessing all day.
UNC is a much different team than when it last faced Wake Forest
When North Carolina faced Wake Forest ( in January, we were talking about the Demon Deacons being a NCAA Tournament team. UNC entered Winston-Salem off a 1-point loss to Stanford, which created doubts about how good UNC really was.
Wake Forest, with its stellar defense, held the Tar Heels to 66 points in a 67-66 victory. The score isn't indicative of how poorly UNC played in the second half.
Now, North Carolina is on a mission to prove it belongs in the Big Dance. The Demon Deacons are on the bubble too, but fading fast.
Hubert Davis needs to stick with his same rotation on Thursday
Ian Jackson and Seth Trimble coming off the bench? Withers starting? Moving Jalen Washington to the bench for Lubin?
Since the Tar Heels' head coach made these moves, on-court results are noticeably different. UNC is rolling with a traditional, 1-5 lineup in which it can compete with taller teams. RJ is playing good basketball, Cadeau continues to play well in the starting lineup, Drake Powell can do just about anything, while Withers and Lubin are the players we've been hoping for all year.
I see teams try to get cute and switch up their rotations. North Carolina needs to stay with what works on Thursday, because Hubert's rotation could very well be the deciding factor in an NCAA Tournament berth.