College Hoops...Heels have Disappointed

Let me get this out of the way: I am a University of MD alumni, B.S. & M.S., who roots for UNC basketball. There...I said it. But, I have a reason. Growing up, I started watching college basketball at an early age. While other kids watched Sesame Street or He-Man or Nickleodeon, I watched the ACC. However, thanks to Bob Wade, the Terps were hit with sanctions including a television ban.

So, as a young and impressionable child, I watched the teams that were always on TV: including my TarHeels. I rooted for them year in and year out, and I became a dedicated/diehard fan. When I got to UMD, I tried to become a Terps Basketball fan, but I couldn't change allegiances. I was too loyal. So, as it stands now, I root for the Terps in every sport except basketball- including being a season ticket holder for Terrapin football. Now, if the Terps aren't playing the Heels, I like to see them do well. But, when the Heels come to town, I root UNC.

Now that I explained my strange athletic allegiances, I have to say that the TarHeels are disappointing. This team is stacked with talent, but they seem to be getting worse as the season goes along. They have been playing horrendous team defense lately. Frasor doesn't cover PGs well, but he gets legit minutes. Wright blocks shots, but he doesn't play good interior defense. Ellington isn't a shutdown defender by any means. On top of these problems, Roy Williams insists on playing 10-11 guys a night. That's fine at the beginning of the year when you need to find out who the studs are. But come February/March, this team should have gotten down to a nice 8 man rotation where the best players are on the court a lot.

IMO, Roy should have gone to a starting 5 with Lawson, Ginyard, Terry, Wright, Hansbrough. Ginyard is a tenacious defender who can stick like glue to the top 2 or 3 on the other team. And, there are plenty of scorers on the court to pick up for his weak offense. Then, Roy can bring Ellington, Danny Green, and Thompson off the bench. Thomas/Frasor can steal a few minutes here and there, and Miller could come in and shoot some threes. But, the best players need to get more minutes.

Now, with the ACC tourney fast approaching, the Heels need a win against Duke on Sunday to lock up a 1st round bye in the tourney. Hopefully the defense will pick it up, because a loss to Duke would sting.