Tag: Jae’Lyn Withers

Playing Jae’Lyn Withers more in Sweet 16 is the right call

Could a big game from Jae’Lyn Withers be the X-factor UNC needs to win Thursday’s Sweet 16 rematch with Alabama?

There are few starting fives that produce more offensively than that of the North Carolina Tar Heels’ men’s basketball team.

UNC carries a veteran-heavy roster, led by the likes of all-time program greats in Armando Bacot and RJ Davis. While Elliot Cadeau is more known for his driving and passing ability, the Tar Heels also sport experienced transfers Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan in the starting lineup.

North Carolina is 20th in the country at 81.8 points per game, which also leads the ACC.

UNC head coach Hubert Davis has played his bench a lot more this year, much to the delight of Tar Heel Nation. He saw that decision pay off big-time against Wagner in the Round of 61, as key reserve Jae’Lyn Withers recorded his second double-double of the year (16 points, 10 rebounds) in the Tar Heels’ win.

I’m not saying that Hubert should mess around with his starting lineup, but he might want to play Withers more.

Withers produces when he plays at least 10 minutes, with each of his four, double-digit point outings coming while doing so. Withers is primarily a post player, but can occasionally stretch the floor with perimeter shot attempts.

The best NCAA Tournament teams tend to have deeper benches. Withers has proven, time and time again, that he’s North Carolina’s best bench scorer.

Oh – did we mention that the more Withers plays, the more Hubert can rest up Bacot and Ingram for the big, late-game moments?

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Jae’Lyn Withers delivers in round one of March Madness in front of hometown crowd

Jae’Lyn Withers delivered in front of his hometown. Read what the hometown star had to say about his strong performance.

It was a big night for UNC transfer [autotag]Jae’Lyn Withers[/autotag], who delivered much-needed production from the bench.

Being from Charlotte, Withers gave his hometown a show, pouring in a season-high 16 points and tacking on ten rebounds in the Tar Heels’ dominating 90-62 win over Wagner. Withers 10 rebounds matched his season high and finished +15 in plus/minus, his fourth highest of the season.

The hometown kid did everything and more for UNC, and Hubert Davis comments in the presser echo that.

“His (Jae’Lyn Withers) energy and effort on both ends of the floor really ignited us and got us the lead going into halftime. He came off the bench, and his production was real.”

Withers, who joined Davis, Armando Bacot, and RJ Davis at the presser, spoke about his electric night.

“It’s extremely rewarding,” Withers said….”Having a double-double in front of a lot of my family members in the stands, and contributing to the win is great. It’s (my) first time in the tournament, so doing that in my first game is surreal.”

Next up for Withers and the Tar Heels is a Saturday matchup against Michigan State. It won’t be an easy task dealing with the Spartan’s physicality, but if Withers can repeat this performance, it could be easy sailing for the Tar Heels.

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UNC vs. Virginia Tech: Game preview, prediction and more

The UNC men’s basketball team is coming off a bad loss, while Virginia Tech enters Saturday off a good win. Who prevails this weekend?

For the third consecutive week, UNC’s men’s basketball team enters its weekend matchup off a Tuesday loss.

The most recent disappointment came at Syracuse in an 86-79 loss, when the Orange couldn’t miss a shot and the Tar Heels struggled to get comfortable against zone defense. North Carolina went up briefly late in the second half, only for the Orange to strike back immediately.

One noticeable thing that UNC head coach Hubert Davis failed to do was play his bench a lot, the same issue that got him into trouble last season. No reserve played more than Seth Trimble, who logged 11 minutes, while each starter played at least 30 (Cormac Ryan played the whole 40).

Both teams were pretty even in statistics, though Syracuse generated 10 steals to North Carolina’s four.

The Tar Heels will try and right the ship against Virginia Tech, which beat Florida State on Tuesday for its first win in four games. Not only does UNC need to bounce back, but it will also be Hokies guard Tyler Nickel’s first game since transferring out of Chapel Hill.

Virginia Tech is led by its high-scoring guard duo of Hunter Cattoor and Sean Pedulla, who combine for nearly 30 points per game. After center Lynn Kidd (13 points per game), no other Hokie averages double-digits.

If there’s one thing working in VT’s favor, it’s the fact at least nine players average 10 minutes.

What exactly does UNC need to do in order to nab just its third win in six games?

UNC Basketball at Boston College: Game preview, info, prediction and more

A red-hot UNC basketball team and decent Boston College team collide on Saturday, Jan. 20 at 2:15 p.m. ET. Who is going to win?

As former UNC basketball standout Justin Jackson said recently, it’s never easy winning an ACC game on the road.

Up to this point, the ACC-leading Tar Heels (14-3, 6-0) have played well away from home. They’re 6-3 in those contests – 3-3 in neutral-site events, plus a perfect 3-0 in true road games.

Where Carolina’s about to play next, however, is no easy task.

UNC will put its 7-game winning streak to the test on Saturday, Jan. 20, facing a feisty Boston College squad looking to win its second-consecutive game. The Eagles (11-6, 2-4) have historically struggled, but are looking to nab their first winning record since the 2017-2018 campaign.

The Tar Heels were scared by Louisville on Wednesday night, but pulled away late for an 86-70 win. While Carolina guard RJ Davis led all scorers, Jae’Lyn Withers stole the show with a double-double against his old team.

Boston College started the year hot, winning its first four games and ending non-conference play 9-3. This is great for a program that hasn’t won many games in years’ past.

The Eagles are a dangerous offensive team, with four players averaging double-digits in points. Tall, sharp-shooting Quinten Post is the main offensive cog, leading Boston College in points (16.9), rebounds (7.4) and blocks per game (2.1), plus his 44.4 percentage mark from downtown in second-best on the team.

Let’s take a deeper dive into what UNC needs to do for its eighth-consecutive victory.

Jae’Lyn Withers delivers a breakout game against his former team

UNC transfer Jae’Lyn Withers delivered a breakout game against his former team Wednesday, posting his first double-double as a Tar Heel.

The UNC men’s basketball team underwent significant change in the off-season, with the transfer portal playing a big role in revamping the roster.

The change seemed to be the best decision for the Tar Heels, with transfer players [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] and [autotag]Harrison Ingram[/autotag] having sizable roles in UNC’s game plan. One transfer that has started to garner more attention and playing time is [autotag]Jae’Lyn Withers[/autotag], who shined in UNC’s 86-70 win over Louisville.

Withers had a breakout game, and it could not have come against a better opponent, finishing with a double-double against the team he shared blood, sweat, and tears the past four seasons. The transfer senior had a season-high in points (15) and rebounds (10), but it was the hustle plays that did not show up on the stat sheet that was the icing on the cake on a remarkable performance.

Following the win, the ACC network interviewed Withers about his feelings about playing against his former team.

“The emotions were a little all over the place,” Withers said. “Started out with being anxious a little bit, catching up with old teammates.”

Hustle plays helped deliver Wither’s best game as Tar Heel, being a key contributor in getting the lead back to double-digits in the second half. UNC hype train is real, and Withers expresses the mindset to continue good play while sharing his gratitude to be a part of it.

“The goal is the National Championship. The mindset is not to let anybody get comfortable. If somebody gets comfortable, or they get going, take that away from them. We don’t want to let too many teams get too comfortable with us and be in a tougher game.”

“Being at the highest caliber of teams historically and currently. We are top five so, that’s really great… I’m really lost for words to be a part of something like this.”

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Social media reacts to UNC beating Louisville to go 6-0 in ACC

From the good, bad, and unseen, we look at how social media reacted to the UNC Basketball team avoiding Louisville’s comeback.

The UNC basketball program picked up their seventh straight win by beating Louisville in dominating fashion, but unless you were in attendance, you were busy scrolling social media to see why the game wasn’t on air yet.

It was a dream start for the Tar Heels, going on a 15-4 run once the ball tipped off. However, it was a nightmare for fans who didn’t get a chance to watch due to ESPN and ACC networks not having the feed available despite having coverage. College hoop displeasure about the lack of coverage was the highlight on social media for the first 10 minutes of waiting for the game to air.

UNC’s defense led the way in the first half, causing 10 turnovers, seven steaming from steals. Lousiville cut the lead midway through the first, with the Tar Heels going through a rough offensive stretch. Along with the tough stretch, questionable calls by the referees came into question, as play stopped numerous times, once seeing about a flagrant foul and the other wiping away an [autotag]RJ Davis [/autotag] three.

The second half saw a scare for UNC as what many thought was a blowout waiting to happen turned into a near collapse, as the Cardinals went on a 21-9 run to cut the lead. Social media was on fire as college hoops fans couldn’t believe the run Louisville had. Questionable referring showed up once again, to everyone’s dismay.

However, UNC showed why they are the fourth-ranked team in the nation and has Duke legends admitting he would play for them. They grew the lead back to cruise control by the three-minute mark, with [autotag]Jae’lyn Withers [/autotag]stepping up.

UNC grabbed the victory 86-70.

This game had many special moments, with Tyler Hansbrough as the color analyst, [autotag]Armando Bacot[/autotag] moving to fourth on the all-time scoring list, and Withers giving it to his former team.

From the good, bad, and unseen, we look at how social media reacted to UNC avoiding Louisville’s comeback.

UNC Basketball vs. Louisville: Game preview, info, prediction and more

The UNC men’s basketball team welcomes Louisville to Chapel Hill for a 9 p.m. tip on Wednesday. Will the Tar Heels be prepared for it?

Very few teams are playing better basketball than the North Carolina Tar Heels right now.

UNC is asserting itself as one of the top college programs – not just in the ACC, but the entire country.

Carolina teased fans it could be a special team way back in November, when it dropped 100 points on fifth-ranked Tennessee. The final score was much closer than it probably should’ve been (100-92), but it was nonetheless an impressive UNC victory.

Besides consecutive losses to Kentucky and UConn – both among the sport’s top teams – since then, the Tar Heels have triumphed against Florida State, previously-undefeated Oklahoma, Charleston Southern, Pitt, a ranked Clemson program, NC State and Syracuse. Star shooting guard RJ Davis has transformed from leading scorer to potential National Player of the Year candidate, Armando Bacot seems to have finally found his groove, transfers are proving super-valuable and – who would’ve ever guessed it – the defense is playing lights-out.

Carolina gets a significantly easier challenge this Wednesday, with a struggling Louisville squad coming to the Dean Dome for a 9 p.m. tip-off. The Cardinals are one season removed from a 4-28 campaign, their first with single-digit win totals since 1941-2942.

This is the same Louisville program that, most recently in the Rick Pitino era (2001-2017), won the now-vacated 2013 NCAA Championship.

Wednesday is the game of game, however, that UNC could easily overlook and be embarrassed in. I like to call these types of games, “trap games.”

What does Carolina need to do for its seventh win in a row?

UNC Basketball vs. Kentucky: Game info, preview, prediction and more

Saturday evening college hoops action pits a pair of historic powers, UNC and Kentucky, against each other at 5:30 p.m. ET.

Sitting at 7-2 with the non-conference portion of its schedule wrapping up, the UNC men’s basketball team is in a significantly better position than it was last year.

Even in its losses to Villanova and UConn, the Tar Heels have shown a strong ability to compete. They’re more experiened, have more scorers and – best of all come NCAA Tournament time, play significantly more down their bench.

Carolina gets another difficult test on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 5:30 p.m. ET, as it travels down to Atlanta, Ga. for a battle with Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic. The Wildcats, also 7-2, are coming off an 81-66 home victory over Penn.

If there’s anything UNC fans remember about these two teams facing off, it likely goes back to the 2017 Elite 8 matchup.

Kentucky was down by a decent margin in the final minutes, then tied the game at 73 on Malik Monk’s moving 3-pointer. Carolina then pushed the ball up-court, in hopes of winning in regulation, then won it on Luke Maye’s shot as time nearly expired.

While implications for Saturday’s game aren’t nearly as high, I’m sure it’ll provide another classic between two, college hoops blue bloods.

UNC Men’s Basketball vs. Cal-Riverside: Game preview, info, prediction and more

The UNC men’s basketball team welcomes UC-Riverside to Chapel Hill for an 8 p.m. tip-off on Friday, Nov. 17. What should you look out for?

If you’re looking for ways to kick off your last weekend before the busy Thanksgiving week, might we suggest attending or watching some UNC basketball on Friday, Nov. 17?

The Tar Heels will be hosting Big West school UC-Riverside for an 8 p.m. EST tip-off. This allows plenty of fans to get home from work, eat dinner and take care of their pets before heading into Chapel Hill.

Despite a couple of slow starts against Radford and Lehigh, UNC is 2-0. The Tar Heels have shown an ability to close out games in dominant fashion, something we hardly saw last year. Armando Bacot continues climbing up the all-time scoring list, R.J. Davis continues showing why he’s UNC’s best shooter, while transfers Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan have brought some much-needed scoring reinforcements.

UC-Riverside already has one win under its belt, 76-69 against NAIA school Cal-Merced on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The Highlanders have struggled against Division-I competition, though, getting 29-pieced by Utah and 11-pieced by Portland U. (Oregon).

It’s too early to tell how good a team is this early in the season, but Riverside has five guys averaging at least five points. Its top two scorers, Barrington Hargress and Isaiah Moses, both average double-digits.

How to watch UNC basketball opener vs. Radford

The UNC men’s basketball team makes its long-awaited return to the court on Monday, Nov. 6, hosting Radford University at 7 p.m. ET.

UNC basketball fans – does it feel like Christmas morning?

If it doesn’t, it should.

After waiting eight months since one of the most disappointing seasons in school history ended, Carolina will finally kick-off its 2023-2024 campaign.

The Tar Heels welcome 3-time Big South Champion Radford University to the Dean Dome on Monday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. ET.

If UNC head coach Hubert Davis has his players fully prepared, UNC should be starting its season an easy 1-0. Carolina has enjoyed success in limited action against the Highlanders – beating them by 45 points on Dec. 4, 2016, plus dominating them by 43 points in its 2009 NCAA Tournament opener.

The Tar Heels return an experienced roster – headlined by Armando Bacot and R.J. Davis, plus bolstered by transfers Harrison Ingram, Cormac Ryan, Jae’Lyn Withers and Paxson Wojcik. Bacot should dominate a smaller Radford squad in the paint, while Carolina should be able to make shots at ease.

UNC will want to keep an eye on Bryan Antoine and DaQuan Smith, Radford’s top two scorers from a season ago. The duo combined to average 25.3 points per game,

Can’t make it to the Dean Dome? Check out how you can watch tomorrow’s game, which kicks off at 7 p.m. ET on the ACC Network.

UNC-RADFORD TV, RADIO, AND STREAMING INFORMATION

WHAT: North Carolina (0-0) vs. Radford (0-0)

WHEN: Monday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. ET

LOCATION: Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, N.C.

TV: ACC Network (Watch and stream the game live on ESPN)

ANNOUNCERS: Wes Durham (play-by-play), Dan Bonner (color commentator)

RADIO: Tar Heel Sports Network. Jones Angell, play-by-play;
Brian Simmons, analyst.

SATELLITE RADIO: SiriusXM (193)

WEBSITE: WatchESPN

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