North Carolina used last-second magic to beat host Notre Dame on Saturday. Now the Tar Heels will look to keep that positive mojo going at home in Chapel Hill on Tuesday, against an SMU team coming off a brutal loss at Duke.
Before that 89-62 loss to Duke, SMU (11-3, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) had been on an impressive run, winning seven straight. While Duke tore through SMU to the tune of 53.2 percent shooting from the field, opponents are shooting just 40.6 percent on the season against Andy Enfield’s Mustangs. Enfield preached the big picture as UNC looms.
“We haven’t lost a game in a month and a half, so this is a unique feeling,” Enfield said after the Duke loss. “You try not to overreact or underreact. One game doesn’t make or break your season. We’ll see what we can do to improve and get ready for (North Carolina).”
Well-traveled junior guard Kevin Miller (at his third school) leads the Mustangs with 15.8 points and 5.9 assists per game. Miller had 21 points against Duke.
North Carolina (9-6, 2-1), on the other hand, comes in with positive momentum off a late-game rescue against the Fighting Irish. Elliot Cadeau connected on a four-point play with 4.8 seconds left to lift the Tar Heels to a 74-73 victory. Ian Jackson had 27 points and Cadeau delivered the win, but super senior RJ Davis struggled through a 3-for-9 shooting day.
Davis has seen his production decline from 21.2 points per game a season ago to 17.7 this season, largely due to a drop from 39.8 percent to 26.8 percent in 3-point shooting. Davis is 1-for-8 from long range in Carolina’s last two games.
Meanwhile, North Carolina has allowed 79.2 points per game, near the bottom of the NCAA in that category.
“SMU is really gifted in terms of scoring, but we are, too,” coach Hubert Davis said. “Not just for SMU, but moving forward for the remainder of the year, everything is going to be tied to how good of a defensive team we are.”
–Field Level Media
