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North Carolina

Hubert Davis proud of improvement by Ian Jackson through non-conference schedule

FaceProfileby:Thomas Goldkamp•about 20 hours
Ian Jackson
Photo by John Jones / USA TODAY Sports

North Carolina secured a massive win on Saturday, rallying from 16 points down to top UCLA 76-74 in Madison Square Garden. Freshman Ian Jackson was electric in the win.

The freshman guard poured in a career-high 24 points on a career-high 33 minutes, earning the trust of his coach.

“Well he’s still a freshman, but just really proud of him,” coach Hubert Davis said. “Obviously just it has nothing to do about today. Every day after practice he always sends me a text and he says, ‘Coach Davis,’ that’s it. So I have to call him, ‘Player Jackson.’ And he goes, ‘How can I improve, what can I do better?’ Every day he does that.”

That’s certainly one way to win the favor of the head coach. And Ian Jackson appears to be taking the lessons to heart, too.

He’s getting better and better each week.

Ian Jackson has scored in double figures in seven games so far this season. He’s topped the 20-point mark twice. Best yet, he’s got one of the best players in the country next to him to learn from.

“And that’s the thing, when you’re around great kids like RJ (Davis) and Ian and you coach them and they want to be coached, that’s really enjoyable and fun for me,” Davis said. “So really happy for both of these two, especially being here in New York. Shocking that this is the first time Ian has ever played in the Garden.”

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Ian Jackson hails from the Bronx, so Saturday’s win was likely extra special for him. It was for the entire team.

Hubert Davis brought in a special speaker to underscore the importance of playing in the mecca of basketball.

“It was interesting at pregame meal today I had one of my former teammates come to the pregame meal, John Starks,” Davis said. “And talked to them about what it means to play in New York and play in the Garden. The way that they came back, the way that they fought, how resilient they were reminded me of what being a Knick is all about. Really proud of them.”

If Ian Jackson keeps improving, North Carolina will be a dangerous team. The Tar Heels have suffered some tough losses this season — falling to four different top-10 teams — but are starting to show signs that they can be lethal.

Ian Jackson will be a big part of that.