The biggest play of the season for North Carolina, positive or negative, wasn't Austin Rivers' game-winning 3-pointer to lift Duke over the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, any moment of UNC's loss to Kansas in the Midwest Region finals, or any part of Carolina's rout of Duke in Durham.
It was when Kendall Marshall broke his right wrist late in a win over Creighton in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. That was it. UNC, which may have been the only team in the nation that could have beaten Kentucky in the national title game, was done. Over.
Marshall was the team's engine and became its leader late in the season. He was also its best player as the team entered March. Carolina was still very talented, but if you replace Eli Manning with an untested, so-so armed, undersized rookie from East Podunk State, it's doubtful the Giants would be their usual selves.
With respect to Stilman White, that's the difference between Marshall and White heading into the Sweet 16.
Still, Tyler Zeller won the ACC's Player of the Year award, John Henson was ACC Defensive Player of the Year, Marshall won the Cousy Award, Harrison Barnes made some second-team All-America teams, and Reggie Bullock did a terrific job filling in for injured guard Dexter Strickland and growing his game.
North Carolina finished 32-6 overall and 14-2 in the ACC, winning its second consecutive regular season title. Here is the Tar Heels' report card for their performance this season:
UNC offense: At times, the Tar Heels were breathtaking. They could score in spurts like no other team in the country. And at times, especially before February arrived, they would go through rough patches where poor perimeter shooting made running an efficient offense difficult. Overall, though, this was easily the ACC's best offensive team. UNC led the league in scoring (81.3), field goal percentage (45.9), were 8th in 3-point shooting (33.5 percent), 1st in rebounding offense, and first in assists. Grade: A.
UNC defense: Carolina was criticized more than it should have been for its defense. That doesn't mean the Heels didn't occasionally go through periods where it lunged at opponents instead of defending them, and this was most obvious in the first half of the season. But for the most part, this was a better defensive team than most care to admit. UNC finished 7th in scoring defense (67.1), 2nd in field goal percentage defense (39.4), 5th in 3-point defense (31.9 percent), 2nd in blocked shots and 3rd in steals. Grade: B.
UNC intangibles: Carolina led the universe in rebounding, learned to impressively close out games in the second half of the season, and had developed the necessary rugged exterior to make a run toward a national title. The occasional ugliness of the first two months (at UNLV, at FSU) were eventually purged from this team's soul. But injuries were just too much to overcome. That UNC even competed with Kansas is a testament to the team and its coach, triangle-and-two zone notwithstanding. Grade: B+.
UNC final grade: This team's stars came back to win a national title. It was their stated goal and something they realistically had a chance to achieve. They were good enough on offense, good enough on defense, and probably tough enough to get it done. Injuries are part of the game, and UNC was unable to achieve its goals. Grade: B+.
