Hubert Davis raves about Cormac Ryan's improved shooting creating space on offense

On Sunday, the North Carolina Tar Heels defended their homecourt, picking up a dominant 96-81 victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies. In that matchup, the usual suspects led the way for the Tar Heels as they picked up the win: guard RJ Davis, forward Harrison Ingram, and star big man Armando Bacot. But it was arguably the solid shooting night from Cormac Ryan that helped North Carolina pick up the victory.

Ryan has been shooting much better as of late, especially from beyond the ark. In North Carolina’s previous three games, he is shot nearly 50 percent from beyond the arc, connecting on 10-21 three-point attempts. And that has not gone unnoticed by head coach Hubert Davis, who praised his senior guard following Saturday’s victory.

“The connection with Harrison and RJ, now you’ve got three guys that are shooting the ball at a high level,” said Davis. “And what that does is it gives us even more space; it gives space to Armando (and) our guards.”

“Everyone, from an offensive standpoint, they talk about spacing. Yeah, you can do corner [to] corner and spread everybody out. But if people can’t shoot, people are still going to be in the lane. You have to have guys who can shoot. So Cormac being more in rhythm from three now adds another; in combination with his reputation and he’s an elite shooter, it opens up our offense even more.”

Ryan finished the game with a 16-point, two rebounds, and two assists performance. Although the senior guard from New York, NY, only shot 4-11 from the field, all four of his makes were from beyond the arc, connecting on 4-7 of his three-point attempts.

If Ryan can continue his solid shooting from beyond the arc, coupled with the play the Tar Heels consistently get out of Bacot, Ingram, and Davis, the Tar Heels just might be the team to beat in the ACC this season.