Takeaways From BC’s Disastrous Loss to Tar Heels
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)Publisher
After starting 0-of-7 from the field, UNC went on a 49-16 run to end the first half. Boston College men’s basketball had no answer for the Tar Heels Sunday afternoon.
The Eagles looked like a team playing their first game since Dec. 13, that’s for sure. It was a sobering return to ACC play for BC, which has now dropped three straight games for the second time this season.
Here are some takeaways from the matinee defeat.
BC’s perimeter defense has declined significantly: Through nine games, the Eagles were holding opponents to just 32.4% from 3-point land. That was the second-lowest clip opponents had registered from beyond the arc against BC since 2014-15. The Eagles had conceded fewer than seven triples five times in that nine-game span. In the last three outings, BC has given up at least eight triples while allowing Saint Louis, Albany and UNC to all shoot north of 40% from deep.
The Tar Heels missed their first four attempts from downtown but ultimately finished 11-of-23 from outside. Granted, UNC is one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the nation—the seventh-best, according to KenPom—but BC looked sloppy guarding the perimeter Sunday. Late closeouts and delayed switches spelled doom for the Eagles, as did the high-octane play style that UNC dictated throughout the afternoon.
The Eagles can’t play from behind: We’ve known this for a while, but it was crystal clear this weekend. Without 3-point shooting, it’s hard enough. But BC really only has one player who can consistently score at all three levels, and that’s freshman point guard Jaeden Zackery. At times, Drexel transfer forward TJ Bickerstaff has proven capable, but he’s not nearly as athletic as Zackery.
The Langford brothers have the potential to, however, Makai Ashton-Langford’s outside shot is unreliable, and DeMarr Langford Jr. has attempted a mere three triples this season. Next year should be better with four stars DJ Hand and Prince Aligbe. For now, head coach Earl Grant has to figure out how to generate more scoring.
The jumbo lineup wasn’t effective offensively: Grant rolled with centers James Karnik and Quinten Post in the starting five because Bickerstaff had just one practice in the last two weeks due to COVID-19. It’s a lineup we’ve seen briefly this season. And while it appeared to be working defensively in the opening three minutes, it didn’t produce on the other end of the floor.
Spacing is always an issue when you have that much size on the floor. Even when Karnik got opportunities at the basket, he wasn’t cashing in. The center pairing, which was so dominant against Notre Dame, was lackluster Sunday. They were overshadowed by UNC’s Brady Manek and Armando Bacot and combined to shoot 3-of-17.
Galloway returned to action: Brevin Galloway, a grad transfer guard from College of Charleston, tore his ACL last season and worked his way back to the hardwood for BC’s season opener. But he didn’t look comfortable on the floor and appeared to tweak his knee. He played in four games, including the Eagles’ decisive win over the Fighting Irish, before opting for midseason surgery. He ended up missing only two contests because of BC’s lengthy COVID-19 pause.
Galloway returned Sunday and played 18 minutes. Per usual, he had the green light from long range. All 10 of his attempts were launched from beyond the arc. He made just two of them, though.
Gianni Thompson checked in early: The Newton native from Brimmer and May subbed in during the infancy of Sunday’s game and ended up playing 10 minutes against the Tar Heels. He converted a pair of 3-point attempts, accounting for 25% of the Eagles’ production from downtown. Thompson’s six points were a season high.
“He had heard the game plan,” Grant said. “He knew what we were trying to do. So I felt like it was smart just to play him because he had worked on the stuff the last couple days, and he had good practices. He really had a good attitude for maybe the last three weeks, and he hadn’t had an opportunity.”
BC should be fine with COVID-19 going forward: Emphasis on the word "should" because no one really knows everything about this virus or the Omicron variant. But Grant said postgame that every player and coach, except one, contracted the virus during BC's 19-day pause. In that window, the Eagles' games against Wake Forest and Florida State were put off. Grant didn't use the COVID-19 complications as an excuse for Sunday's beatdown. That said, he did say that he's never had to deal with something like that before.
“Hopefully we’ll have a couple consecutive months where we don’t have to have a pause.”
