Caleb Love says North Carolina's losing streak is 'not the end of the world'

It’d be very easy to see why some in Chapel Hill would believe the sky is falling. North Carolina, after opening as college basketball’s preseason No. 1 team, is now on a three-game losing streak that has their record now sitting at 5-3 overall. Still, Tar Heel point guard Caleb Love says there’s no reason to panic yet when it comes to UNC.

Love shared his optimism following North Carolina’s 77-65 loss in Assembly Hall to Indiana in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. With their year only a quarter of the way through, Love says he and his teammates have a lot of time left to right the ship. They have a lot to fix but, thankfully, he says the Tar Heels still have a chance to set things right.

“(We’re) eight games in. We got a full season ahead. It’s not the end of the world,” Love said. “We haven’t even started ACC play yet. We just gotta keep our heads high. Change our approach, get back to the drawing board, and fix whatever we need to fix.”

The main problem is, even with all of UNC’s talent and experience, they haven’t looked truly cohesive yet. That’s led to performances, even during wins, that won’t hold water. Of their victories, they’ve only come by an average of 11.8 points per game against lesser competition. North Carolina had to dodge bullets in three of those wins with Charleston, Gardner-Webb, and Portland all pushing them.

The Tar Heels have now lost three straight to their first three Power-Five opponents. Combine that with their lackluster performances in their wins and their remaining schedule and it’s hard to have a positive outlook on where UNC goes from here. Regardless, as a leader and their point guard, Love still has faith in his team. They just need to make the necessary corrections, and make them quickly, as their next two games will open conference play.