After coming back from Dayton on Monday night, the Tar Heels were unable to recreate that same magic last night, losing to Auburn 85-72, in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational, denying the program a chance to win their 5th Maui title. In a theme that has shown up in every game against power conference competition, Carolina found themselves down double digits in the early going, as Auburn, powered by Johni Broome’s double-double, raced out to a 21-6 lead, and never looked back. It got as close as 23-21, before Auburn answered with a 7-0 run, to regain control of the game. Carolina found themselves down by 8 at the half, and with the way that Carolina has played in the second half this season, you felt like they had a run in them, but that was denied right away, as Auburn started out on a 13-2 run, to build a double-digit lead that was too much to overcome.
After Carolina’s guards combined to score 67 points in the comeback win over Dayton the night before, but Auburn limited the damage of the backcourt trio. Seth Trimble did score 17 points, on 7-13 shooting, but RJ Davis was held to 12 points, on 5-11 shooting, and he only attempted 4 three-pointers. Elliot Cadeau’s Hawaii struggles continued, as he scored just 10 points, on 5-15 shooting, with most of his misses, coming at or near the rim. But the story of last night’s loss, begins and ends with Auburn’s frontcourt overwhelming Carolina, with their size, and their physicality. On the very first possession, Johni Broome got isolated on the block, backed down Jalen Washington, and promptly scored over him, which set the tone. Broome, put together a 23-point, 19 rebound, double-double, as he was the best player on the floor, and controlled everything on both ends.
Hubert Davis said after the win over Dayton, that the level of play that Carolina has been playing at, was unsustainable if they were to become the team that their talent suggests that they could. As blunt as that message may sound, it was the truth but probably wasn’t resonating with the players in the locker room, because in their previous games against power conference competition, they were able to erase sizeable leads, and either win the game or like at Kansas, put themselves in position to win the game at the final media timeout. Hopefully, that message finally hit home last night, and that feeling in the locker room of being denied the opportunity to play for a Maui Invitational title fuels the rest of their tournament action, and on into the rest of the non-conference season. Here’s what to take away from last night’s disappointing loss to the Auburn Tigers.
Size Matters: Everyone that covers college basketball, has noted how small Carolina is, as compared to recent seasons, and last night, Auburn exposed that. Johni Broome dominated Jalen Washington so bad, that Ven-Allen Lubin played extended minutes in the first half, and even started the second half. Carolina lost the rebounding battle, 42-36, including 31-29 on the defensive glass, and 11-7 on the offensive glass. One back-breaking possession, featured three offensive rebounds for Auburn, which resulted in an open three, stifling any chance at a comeback. Carolina was able to hold their own in the loss to Kansas, but last night, Auburn’s size, length, and physicality were too much for Carolina to overcome, bringing to the forefront, the biggest concern about this team in 2024-25.
4 Man Problems: Carolina not only has an issue at the “5” spot, they also have an issue at the “4”. Jae’Lyn Withers may have scored 10 points and grabbed 7 rebounds last night, but he’s hurting this team in more ways than one. Too many times, Withers missed a box out or failed to close out on a shooter on the perimeter. Offensively, while he was effective at the foul line, he hasn’t shot the ball well from behind the three-point line. After Drake Powell’s impressive play down the stretch in the comeback win against Dayton, it was fair to wonder if he would start over Withers, but that didn’t happen. Powell may have only played 10 minutes last night and may have failed to score, but he had the highest plus/minus at 9, not just of any reserve, but of any starter, furthering the argument that Carolina is better with him on the floor than without him. To make matters worse, Cade Tyson has failed to build off his performance against American, and is borderline unplayable. He played one minute last night, and committed two fouls, and missed the front end of a one-and-one, just to highlight his struggles to start the 2024-25 season.
Perimeter Struggles: In the win against Dayton, Carolina was able to shoot their way back into the game, by launching from behind the arc, but last night, that wasn’t even an option, as Auburn limited Carolina to just 16 attempts from behind the arc. Seth Trimble was the leading man from deep, going 3-6. The Tigers length was able to limit the attempts of RJ Davis from deep, as he only got off 4 attempts. The Tar Heels shot 38% as a team from behind the arc, but the number of attempts hindered their ability to make a second straight comeback.
Free Throws: Carolina is one of the best free throw shooting teams in the country, in terms of makes, attempts, and overall percentage, but that wasn’t the case last night. Carolina was only 12-19 from the foul line, well below their average in terms of makes, and well below their average so far this season. In the comeback against Dayton, UNC made 27 free throws, converting with the clock stopped, but that was not the case last night.
Cadeau Continues to Struggle: One player who’s probably ready to leave Hawaii is Elliot Cadeau, who has struggled ever since Carolina arrived on the island last week. After battling foul trouble against Hawaii and Dayton, last night, Cadeau was overwhelmed by the size of Auburn’s guards, who hindered him from finishing at the rim. Cadeau was 5-15 from the field and had to earn every bucker he scored. As well as Trimble played last night, Cadeau has to operate at a high level to unlock Carolina’s full offensive potential. Hopefully, he can bounce back tonight, in the third-place game, before the showdown next week with Marc Sears, and the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Up Next: Carolina concludes play in the Maui Invitational later tonight against the Michigan State Spartans, in the third-place game. Tip is set for 9:30 PM on ESPN2.
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