After struggling to hang with Villanova in yesterday’s Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal matchup, UNC needed to prove it could play with a good Arkansas team on Friday afternoon.
That was going to be significantly tougher to do, with starter Cormac Ryan being ruled out from Thursday’s ankle injury. Carolina trailed by three at halftime – a deficit easy to climb, but nonetheless concerning it was trailing.
Star guard R.J. Davis wasn’t about to let his Tar Heels lose a second straight game.
A day after shooting just 8-of-22 from the field, Davis led UNC to an 87-72, second-half comeback victory over Arkansas. He shot exactly 50 percent (9-of-18) from the field and earned a perfect, 10-of-10 mark from the free throw line.
The Tar Heels outscored the Razorbacks by a whopping, 52-34 margin in the second half, after being outscored 38-35 in the opening half.
Carolina’s defense had to endure yet another prolific scorer on Friday, this time in the form of Tramon Mark. The Houston transfer exploded for 34 points on 13-of-17 shooting, before being carted off on a stretcher late in the second half.
On Thanksgiving day, Villanova’s Eric Dixon enjoyed a 34-point outing on 11-of-19 shooting.
UNC big man Armando Bacot struggled shooting the ball again, scoring just nine points for his second-consecutive game in single digits, but his teammates picked him up today. Every Tar Heel scored at least five points – Stanford transfer Harrison Ingram (13 points) and sophomore guard Seth Trimble (12) both reached double-digits.
Player of the Game
I know we highlighted how productive he was above, but I have to give this honor to senior guard R.J. Davis.
He scored 22 points yesterday in the loss against Villanova, but he only shot 8-of-22 from the field. Davis rebounded today against Arkansas, tallying a season-high 30 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the field, plus a perfect 10-of-10 mark on free throws.
With no Cormac Ryan available, Davis was needed extra in the win. He delivered.
What’s next?
Carolina doesn’t have another game during Thanksgiving weekend, but it’ll turn around and host an SEC Power in Tennessee on Wednesday, Nov. 29 at 7:15 p.m. This’ll be part of the ACC-SEC Challenge.
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