UNC relies on the play of its big men in victory against Furman

In this modern era of fast-paced and highly-skilled basketball, a “traditional center” — the player who lives and dies in the paint —  is a thing of the past. 

That's unless you’re a big man on the North Carolina basketball team playing against Furman, of course. 

Forwards Armando Bacot, Dawson Garcia and Brady Manek — the three tallest Tar Heels — played an old-school style of basketball on Tuesday night, dominating the Paladins in the paint for forty minutes. 

They took advantage of the mismatches and combined for 28 total rebounds, 11 offensive rebounds and contributed to the team’s impressive 44 points in the paint. 

The three bigs also played a significant role in the second-chance points category. While scoring 19 second-chance points, UNC held Furman to zero — the first time it has held an opponent to zero second-chance points since facing Gonzaga on Dec. 15, 2018. 

That's exactly what head coach Hubert Davis wants out of his bigs — all the time. 

“I really feel like we have an advantage down low on the block,” Davis said. “You have to attack the basket, and our bigs have been really good all year being a post presence consistently on the offensive end.”

Consistency has been one of the many key points so far this season, especially for Bacot from whom coach Davis wanted more in the second half against Furman. 

It was Garcia and Manek carrying the offensive load in the first half with Garcia scoring 16 points and Manek chipping in 11. Bacot, however, struggled to get looks at the basket as he only contributed four points in 14 minutes. 

“Halftime, coach went in and challenged me because Dawson and Brady, they got off to a really good start, and I really couldn’t get a shot up and find the ball,” Bacot said. “He just mainly told me just go out there and be aggressive.”

Davis got Bacot involved by force, forcing him the ball through the guards. Bacot also got opportunities from fast-breaks and getting on the boards. 

With the skill-set of the Tar Heels’ bigs, however, they cannot always be constrained to the paint as they have the versatility that goes beyond the low-post, especially in Garcia’s case. 

This season, Garcia has learned how to balance coach Davis’ need for an assertive paint presence with the shooting and space that he can also provide on the floor.

Tuesday night, that balance was made possible by what he said was taking what the Furman defense gave him. Despite coach Davis’ emphasis on playing from the inside, Garcia still took advantage of some perimeter looks he was given, and when those looks were not there, he looked for other ways to get involved. 

“I think he’s more efficient when he starts inside out as opposed to outside in,” Davis said of Garcia. “Let’s get into the post. Hey, let’s get to the free-throw line and then step out and knock down that three, and I think that’s a little, minor adjustment that he’s made.”

Tuesday night’s game made it known that Davis’ team is finding its identity through its bigs. A huge part of the team’s success relies on their ability to dominate in the paint as they did against Furman. 

Of course — not every team will be as much of a mismatch, but size and talent will not be an issue as long as the bigs bring the nasty, “old school” interior mindset on a nightly basis. 

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com