UNC vs. Kansas; Live in-game reactions and analysis

Lawrence, Kansas – Friday night at the Phog, and we are glued to the television. No. 9 ranked UNC walks into Phog Allen Fieldhouse to take on No. 1 ranked Kansas in an early season top-10 college basketball matchup.

While they will not be matched up individually, an interesting pairing in this game will be for some early-season Naismith Trophy implications. Returning seniors RJ Davis (UNC) and Hunter Dickinson (Kansas) will be on the court together. Dickinson started the season ranked No. 3 on On3’s College Basketball Preseason Player list, and Davis started at No. 4.

Starters

UNC: So. G Eliot Cadeau, Sr. G RJ Davis, Jr. G Seth Trimble, Jr F Jalen Washington, Sr. F Jae’lyn Withers

Kansas: Sr. G Dajuan Harris, Jr. G Rylan Griffen, Sr. G David Coit, Sr. F KJ Adams, Sr. C Hunter Dickinson

UNC vs. Kansas; Live Blog

18:40 1H – UNC guard RJ Davis comes out of the gates very aggressive. He drills a three on the Tar Heels’ second possession and then finds a burst of speed as he pushes the break to draw the foul at the basket. Davis knocks down both free throws as UNC is out to an early lead. – UNC 5, Kansas 2

13:53 1H – Kansas goes on a run, spearheaded by Hunter Dickinson. He ties the game at 10 then gets ahead of the break to set up on the block and delivers an excellent pass for the KJ Adams dunk. Two plays later, Dickinson finishes on the block over his right shoulder. He runs back giving the too little sign to the UNC big. Dickinson on a very high-level streak here. – Kansas 19, UNC 17

12:11 1H – UNC freshmen Drake Powell and Ian Jackson both made big plays for UNC. Jackson drills a wing three and makes a block at the basket and Powell with a self-creating finish at the basket. Both came off the bench and they are finishing among a flurry of Kansas buckets. – Kansas 25, UNC 20

11:00 1H – Media Timeout – UNC struggling to get stops. Kansas is getting to the rim in transition and finding open looks in the half-court. KJ Adams’ activity has been tough for the Tar Heels to contain, especially when coupled with the size and skill set of Hunter Dickinson. We’ll see what adjustments UNC makes. – Kansas 27, UNC 20

6:32 1H – One thing about Ian Jackson is the man has never lacked confidence. The 6-foot-5 freshman steps into a wing three to stop the leaking faucet. UNC is going to have to get some stops, Kansas seems to be scoring on every possession at this point. – Kansas 39, UNC 27

1:44 1H – Flory Bidunga knocks down the free throw to extend the lead to 20 points. The Jayhawks are currently 21-34 from the field. Kansas 49, UNC 29

Halftime; Kansas 53, UNC 38

This first half went about as bad as it could for UNC. Kansas got everything they wanted on the offensive end while winning the turnover battle (7-2) and the battle of the boards (21-18)

UNC is shooting 35.5% (11-31) from the field and 27.3 (3-11) from three. They are shooting 13-14 from the FT line. Only four assists in 11 made field goals.

Kansas is led by senior forward KJ Adams with 14 points and senior guard Zeke Mayo 10 points. The Jayhawks are shooting 59.5% (22-37) from the field. They have assisted 13 of their 22 field goals made.

UNC vs. Kansas; Second half

19:23 2H – RJ Davis starts off the second half with a wing jumper, creates space with a side-step, and gets on the board early for this tenth point of the game. – Kansas 50, UNC 44

12:40 2H – Seth Trimble has become such a weapon for this UNC. It still seems like all of the one-on-one weapons the Tar Heels have in their backcourt are still trying to find continuity, but each of them has shown some high-quality flashes. Trimble is playing as confidently as he has since being in college. As I type this entry, Flory Bidunga and Ven-Allen Lubin have traded rather explosive dunks on back-to-back possessions. There is a growing vibe around this game. – Kansas 72, UNC 63

10:21 2H – AJ Storr remains the microwave-type scorer he showed at St. John’s and then Wisconsin. When he is surrounded by other players on a team with some depth, it appears Kansas has been able to play him while hot and then sit him for stretches. This seems to be the best version of Storr we have seen in college. – Kansas 77, UNC 72

8:40 2H – UNC has stormed back in this one. Their backcourt has done a good job spreading the floor and taking one-on-one opportunities in preferable matchups. Oftentimes the help defender has fouled. UNC has now taken 13 free throws in the second half. They are also 11-20 from the field. The spacing has really helped them out here. Two-point game. – Kansas 77, UNC 75

4:50 2H – UNC has turned up the physicality a notch in the second. They are getting into Kansas at the point of attack and consistently knocking the Jayhawks off their spots. A lot of Kansas’ shots in the second have been fading away from the basket. They also continue to spread Kansas out and are attacking individual matchups. UNC getting a lot of clean looks heading toward the basket. – UNC 84, Kansas 81

Final; Kansas 92, UNC 89

What a second half that was. UNC found some success and they kept going at that. The physicality was impressive. At the end of the day, Kansas made just a couple more plays.

Zeke Mayo led all scorers for Kansas with 21 points. Hunter Dickinson added 20. KJ Adams finished with 14 points, AJ Storr 13, and Dajuan Harris with 10.

The Tar Heels put six players in double figures. Seth Trimble led the way for UNC with 19 points. RJ Davis had 16, Elliot Cadeay with 12, Jae’Lyn Withers with 11 and Ven-Allen Lubin and Ian Jackson added 10.

Top Performers

Sr. G Zeke Mayo (Kansas)

Consistently, throughout the course of the game, Zeke Mayo made plays. The transfer from South Dakota State, and reigning Summit League Player of the Year, looked like he was firmly in his comfort zone finishing with a game-high 21 points tonight.

Mayo played mostly off-ball in this one, he was asked more to finish plays than to create them. He shot the ball with confidence, going 3-9 from three. But he also attacked space on sloppy closeouts and was able to finish at multiple areas on the floor.

Mayo was solid, it is that simple. He added five rebounds and four assists to go with just one turnover. He was 7-14 from the field and 4-4 from the free-throw line. It was a meat and potatoes-type of performance for Mayo, whenever his team needed a play, the veteran had no problem stepping up to make it. Not much sizzle but a lot of substance.

Jr. G Seth Trimble (UNC)

What a difference a year makes for UNC junior Seth Trimble. The 6-foot-3 guard is playing confidently and aggressively with the ball in his hands, and he had the look of a go-to scorer for the Tar Heels in this one.

Kansas was keyed in on RJ Davis, naturally, he led the ACC in scoring last season. However, their focus on Davis allowed room for Trimble to get loose. While Trimble did knock down a three (he was 1-3 from beyond the arc on the night), all of his damage came from getting downhill and putting pressure on the front of the rim. Trimble shot ten free throws in this game, where he made all ten. He came alive in the Tar Heels second-half run, going for 14 points, knocking down three of his four field goals, and going 7-7 from the line.

Trimble is a strong and explosive guard. When the game gets sloppy, and he is able to read and react, he is at his best. Through North Carolina’s first two games of the season, Trimble looks like one of college basketball’s most improved players.

Sr. C Hunter Dickinson (Kansas)

Hunter Dickinson has always been a counting stat warrior. He has consistently put up double-doubles, throughout his collegiate career. Tonight was no different as the 7-footer finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. With that said, Dickinson also struggled on the defensive end.

Even with his ability to finish on the block and the ball movement he provided on the double-team, Dickinson still finished the game with a -3 (+/-). UNC was able to space the floor and attack Dickinson, whether it was in space or in the pick-and-roll, and when doing that the Tar Heels found a lot of success. Still, Dickinson is a matchup nightmare on the block. He sees the floor well and has a good feel passing away from the double-team. When the double team did not come, Dickinson was consistently getting over his right shoulder and showing his lefty touch.

Dickinson has become one of the more offensively dominating presences in college basketball. Kansas has done a good job upgrading their center position athletically, bringing in freshman big Flory Bidunga and pairing him, at times, with KJ Adams. Dickinson has scored over 2,200 career points and grabbed over 1,100 career rebounds. He looks like he will continue to be one of college basketball’s better statistical producers.

UNC vs. Kansas; Other top performers

Sr. G RJ Davis (UNC) – Kansas keyed their defense in on stopping Davis, as the Jayhawks had second and third defenders with eyes on him. He was at his best, still scoring 16 points, when he was able to get into his shot within two dribbles. Oftentimes, he found himself probing the defense with the ball stalling in his hands. Davis was 3-15 from the field, a lot of contested looks for him, but he drew a lot of contact, attacking the basket and finishing 9-11 from the free-throww line.

Fr. G Ian Jackson (UNC) For better or worse, Jackson never lacks confidence. And in his minutes on the floor here, he was able to self-create opportunities in the half-court and burry some big shots. Jackson knocked down both of his three attempts and he finished 4-5 from the field overall. At 6-foot-5, he has a college-ready frameAs the game starts slowing down and his movements and actfootwork become tighter, there is a bright future for Jackson.

So. G Elliot Cadeau (UNC) – He has excellent court visition, and when the game gets going fast, he is able to manipulate the defense and create passing lanes to deliver darts to his teammates. With that said, in the half-court, Cadeau continues to struggle scoring the ball. Defense are able to sag off him and contest at the rim, closing off passing anles and driving lanes. The scoring aspect is something he is going to have to sort out. He finished with 12 points and 7 assists, going 3-11 from the field.

Sr. F Jae’Lyn Withers (UNC) UNC found a recipe for success, spreading the floor and going at Hunter Dickinson. Withers was UNC’s big on the court when this was happening. Certainly, he gave up some size to Dickinson on the defensive end, but Withers’ length and his quickness gave Dickinson som issues. He knocked down three thress on the nigh (3-5), and he was active on the glass and in the passing glanes. Overall, Withers quickness and ability to knock down shots gave Kansas issues and helped spur the big second-half comeback.

Sr. G Dajuan Harris (Kansas) – While Harris would go long stretches when you would not realize he was on the floor, when he did insert himself, it was in very noticeable situations. He played in 29 minutes, guarded at the point of attack, and he knocked down a couple of floaters. Harris did not shoot a three or attempted a free-throw. He also dished out three assists to two turnovers. But he does have a presence on the court, and it is obvious that Bill Self trusts him.

Fr. C Flory Bidunga (Kansas) – The change of pace that Bidunga brought to Kansas was useful. Even only playing in 11 minutes, he showcase a relentless motor, had a couple of game-changing dunks, and hihe switched ends of the court and ran directly to the front of the rim, and that put pressure on the UNC team. While he does lack traditional basketball skill, in his 11 minutes, he finished with 8 points and 8 rebounds with a block. His motor and athleticism brought a nice change up to Dickinson’s fastball.

Jr. SF AJ Storr (Kansas) – This is a good role for Storr, one where he is around other talented players an, can get some plays run for him, and can be hidden some on defense. Storr has always been a scorer, his role with Kansas is the same. This Jayhawk team has depth. So, with his lack of defense and rebounding, if Storr is not hitting his shots, he can come out. Tonight, Storr was hitting his shots. Storr finished with 13 points on 13 shots (6-13 FG) with 2 rebounds in his 28 minutes.

Sr. F KJ Adams (Kansas) – He simply brings an energy to the floor that is tough to consistently match up with. While he lacks basketball skill in the traditional essence, his skill of being around the ball and playing with a a motor works just as much. Adams finishes with game-changing above the rim dunks, he switches on defense, and his overall activity breathes life into his team. He had 14 points, going 7-13 from the field.