Hubert Davis makes questionable roster decisions in second half of Sweet 16 loss
I know I’ve been a huge proponent of UNC basketball head coach Hubert Davis playing his bench in games, which has certainly paid off.
A team’s biggest moments – say, the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 round – are when you want to play starters.
North Carolina experienced a disappointing end to yet another season on Thursday, March 28, as the West Region’s top seed lost 89-87 to Alabama. Yes, Jae’Lyn Withers made a questionable decision to take a 3-pointer late, but he was not why the Tar Heels lost.
UNC (29-8, 17-3 ACC) fell prone to several Crimson Tide runs, including one that saw UNC’s 8-point halftime lead dissipate quickly. North Carolina endured a second-half stretch in which it only scored three points in just under seven minutes, which allowed Alabama to come back.
It makes you wonder if the Tar Heels played Seth Trimble more – would the Tide have won? Trimble, UNC’s best defender by a mile, only played 11 minutes the whole game. That was Trimble’s lowest minutes total since Feb. 13, when North Carolina lost to Syracuse in the midst of another rough stretch.
It’s tough for Hubert to keep track of every single minutes log, but how did he not realize – in the biggest moment on the biggest state of college basketball – the impact that Trimble could’ve had on the outcome?
Paxson Wojcik played solid in 15 minutes off the bench, but he’s the same guy who gave up a couple easy layups last night. Wojcik hadn’t played 10 minutes in a game since Feb. 10 against Miami – why the sudden switch?
I really do think Hubert is the guy to lead UNC, but he’s proven time and time again to make questionable decisions in big moments.
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