UNC ‘really improved’ since last meeting against FSU.
During their perfect start to ACC play on Saturday, North Carolina made Florida State their latest victim. The Tar Heels defeated the Seminoles 75-68 in Tallahassee to win their tenth straight game and go to 9-0 in ACC play. After the game, FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton complimented UNC, saying the Tar Heels had “definitely improved” since their first encounter on December 2, when UNC won 78-70.
“I have to give Carolina credit,” Hamilton said after the game. “They did a tremendous defensive job, especially in the second half. We showed a lot of inexperience, and they took advantage. Defensively, we could have done a better job contesting those threes. But that’s what great teams. They’ve really improved since the last time we played them.”
Hamilton went in-depth on why Florida State faltered down the stretch after taking control late in the first half. He touched on the steady improvement his team has made this season and the Seminoles’ chances at the NCAA Tournament, among everything.
Here’s everything Hamilton said after the loss to UNC:
OPENING STATEMENT
“I have to give Carolina credit. They did a tremendous defensive job, especially in the second half. We didn’t execute ball screen defense nearly as well. They did a very good job. We showed a lot of inexperience, and they took advantage. The effort was good. We rushed some things in the second half. Defensively, we could have done a better job contesting those threes. But that’s what great teams. They’ve really improved since the last time we played them.”
Their defense has advanced significantly. Harrison Ingram and the other guys had more opportunity to drive the lane and get rebounds since we had to work so hard to stop Armando Bacot. That’s the work of winning teams. Their squad is well-balanced, allowing them to attack you from five distinct angles. You must give them the upper hand. A squad that performed far better than us defeated us.”
ON KEEPING IT CLOSE AGAINST THE NO. 3 TEAM IN THE NATION
“It means we’re getting better. Early in the year, we had a lot of coming and going. It didn’t allow us to get the right rotation that we seem to have now. We seem to be in a good place with us learning more about how to utilize who we are. We got a couple of guys who are still adjusting mentally and emotionally. Give Carolina credit for what they did. Let’s come back and evaluate and correct those things. That effort seems to be a little bit more consistent. We have to get that execution part down. You’ll see us continue to get better.”
ON LACK OF EXECUTION LATE IN THE GAME
“We work on those things all the time. What happens is you focus on the end-game situations but it’s that play during the overall part of the game that puts you in those situations. We need to be more consistent in rebounding and more consistent at contesting threes. It’s very hard to hit a three when you contest. The three three-pointers they hit at the beginning of the second half, we really didn’t have the same level of effort to contest those shots. Good shooters will make those shots.”
ON THE SEMINOLE FANBASE SHOWING OUT
“They have had a lot to do with the success that we’ve had here, just being there through the good times and the bad times. All we have to do is just do our part. At the beginning of the season, we were not nearly as good as we are now. We didn’t have the quality of the depth that we have now. We got some guys back healthy. People respond to what you give them. We’re starting to show that the effort is there, and there is potential for us to have a good season. The fans were so loud it was hard to communicate. I got a kid 10 feet from me, and I can’t hear what he’s saying, and he can’t hear what I’m saying. I have to give our fans a big shout-out.”
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