Hubert Davis reveals where UNC needs to be better against UCLA

Two of the blue bloods in college basketball are facing off in an intense NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen matchup with the North Carolina Tar Heels and UCLA Bruins. Head coach Hubert Davis is making a March Madness run during his first season in charge, doing so as an eight-seed.

During the under eight timeout, CBS sideline reports Jamie Erdahl asked Davis about struggling defensively when UCLA goes up against them one on one. The North Carola head coach said they have to be better working as a team and ending Bruins’ possessions after just one shot.

“Well, we’re just not tied in defensively,” Davis said. “When I talked to them before the game — it’s not a one on one game, it’s a one on five game. So the guy that’s guarding the ball one on one player — there needs to be four defenders behind him in position to be able to help. Got to do a better job of contesting shots and rebounding so we can limit them to one shot for every possession.

As Davis said, the Bruins have a ton of players who can beat you by themselves and can do so at any time. Heading into the halftime break, UCLA has a three-point lead with four different players scoring all of the points. Jules Bernard, Tyger Campbell, Jaime Jaquez, and Johnny Juzang Jr. have been having their way with the Tar Heels, dominating on the offensive end of the ball.

In order to make the Elite Eight, North Carolina is going to have to find a way to slow at least one of them down. Even then, it will be tough to corral all four. Big second half is upcoming for Hubert Davis and his squad.

Hubert Davis having to deal with star player injury during Sweet Sixteen

North Carolina center Armando Bacot is dealing with a back injury in Friday’s Sweet Sixteen matchup against UCLA. After the big man was seen being worked on near the Tar Heels bench, CBS Sports sideline reporter Jamie Erdahl provided an update.

“Bacot was getting treatment on his low back over on the bench over here,” Erdahl said on the broadcast. “He looked stiff as he walked around. He did a couple different massage treatments and sat on a pad on the seat. Obviously something’s uncomfortable with him, just something to keep an eye on.”

The injury did not keep Bacot sidelined for any significant period of time, as he re-entered the game around the four-minute mark. So far he has made a big impact on the game, scoring six points to go along with seven rebounds.