By Pat Welter

I know it’s almost Christmas, but Saturday felt like March. North Carolina..UCLA…Madison Square Garden. I’m being hyperbolic, but it was a blue bloods battle with the season and maybe even Hubert Davis’s job at stake.

Carolina won 76-74. RJ Davis’ free throws gave them the lead with :13 left and Elliot Cadeau’s defense on Sebastian Mack allowed them to hang on. It was another top 25 non conference matchup and another game where they got down big, 16 points to be exact.

They came back versus Kansas and Auburn….and Dayton…and Michigan State….and Florida….but this time they actually finished the job. For the first time they executed in the final minutes. They have an undersized roster and their margin for error is razor thin. Imagine if Seth Trimble isn’t able to deflect the ball off UCLA in the final minute.
I’m not suggesting if they lost Hubert gets fired…but lose that game you’re 6-6 with only a handful of quad 1 opportunities left. Carolina misses the tournament twice in 4 years we are having that conversation…many UNC fans already are.

I’ve said I really like the individual players on this year’s team, but not the sum of the parts. Their four best players are guards and aren’t particularly big which makes their front court issues even more glaring. It’s roster mismanagement and that’s Hubert’s fault. I know he doesn’t like to recruit players in the portal that begin the conversation with their hand out, but you’re North Carolina, NIL money can’t be the excuse. He can preach energy, effort, defense and rebounding all he wants, but the size of the dog does in fact matter in the fight.

He was able to get two McDonald’s All-Americans this year in Ian Jackson and Drake Powell. Both could potentially be one and done, you can’t let that kind of talent go to waste. It feels like Jackson could save their season.  Powell is a defensive savant, but due to the team’s lack of size he’s being forced to play out of his natural position.

Hubert Davis isn’t Roy Williams. He isn’t Dean Smith, but he isn’t Matt Doherty either. He made the national title game his first season…then completely imploded the next. He’s hit in the portal (Brady Manek, Cormac Ryan, Harrison Ingram) and he’s completely whiffed (Pete Nance, Dawson Garcia). In his defense, there’s a reason the great coaches are retiring left and right. This isn’t the sport it used to be.

Carolina has lost to 4 top ten teams. Their non conference schedule has been objectively brutal. RJ Davis said it’s felt like March Madness. I’ll save my final Hubert Davis judgment for when they get there.

Source: wralsportsfan.com