1. Frustrating night in Charlottesville, as Carolina had some intangibles go against it but also failed to make some key plays in a 65-58 loss to Virginia. As usual, the Cavaliers’ defense is stout–Carolina scored 58 points in this game after scoring 59 in a half earlier this season.
2. Pete Nance missed his second straight full game after missing most of the previous contest before that with a back issue. Nance did do more on Tuesday night than he did on Saturday at the Smith Center, as he dressed, stretched, and went through part of warmups. Playing Tuesday means the Tar Heels have a little longer rest period before the next game, as they travel to Louisville on Saturday.
3. Nance’s absence, already important, became even more crucial when Armando Bacot went down with an ankle injury just 1:18 into the game. That left Carolina once again shuffling personnel for the rest of the game. They got a huge boost from Jalen Washington, who had scored 13 points in the entire season, and proceeded to score 12 in 11 minutes of first half playing time and finished with 13 for the game. Washington may have tired and tried to do too much during a couple of second half possessions, but overall it was a standout performance and indicative of a player who will be more important for Carolina going forward. With Bacot out, Carolina was actively running plays for the freshman in a four-point game with ten minutes left. The Tar Heels now have two road ACC losses in which the potential ACC Player of the Year didn’t play–but also were close enough to win either game without him.
4. How important was Washington? Virginia’s big push early in the second half came with him off the floor, as Carolina went without a true post presence for three minutes. The Cavs took advantage of that lineup for a 9-0 run that pushed them into the lead by four points. That sequence woke up what had been a sleepy John Paul Jones Arena crowd and eventually turned into a 17-2 spurt that gave the home squad a seven-point lead.
5. With Carolina facing some first half adversity–injuries plus foul trouble that saddled four different Tar Heels with two fouls, and eventually RJ Davis with three after a dubious “charging” call by Lee Cassell along the sideline with under 30 seconds to play–Hubert Davis was extremely positive with his team as they clawed back from an…
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