3 things to know from UNC men's basketball's season-opening win over Tulane

The North Carolina men's basketball team earned its first win of the season Friday, defeating Tulane 95-75 in New Orleans.

UNC’s experience stood out. While most other college basketball teams are getting used to playing with each other or getting the kinks out of certain lineups, the Tar Heels are already in midseason form. North Carolina’s starting five barely missed a beat despite the losses of Brice Johnson and Marcus Paige to graduation and Theo Pinson to injury.

The Daily Tar Heel wasn't in New Orleans for UNC’s win over Tulane — but we were watching.

Here are three things to note about the win.

Business as usual for Berry, Jackson, Hicks

North Carolina’s three most important returning contributors — Joel Berry, Justin Jackson and Isaiah Hicks — all played well in the comfortable win over Tulane.

Jackson finished with a career high 27 points. His 3-point shooting stood out, as he converted four of his five chances from beyond the arc. An offseason of work from that area seems to have paid off early for the junior.

Berry also had a career high with 23 points on 6-for-12 shooting. He looked comfortable all night long, and whenever Tulane creeped back into the game, Berry drilled a jumper to quiet the run.

Hicks finished with 16 points on 7-for-7 shooting. Critically, though, he had three fouls. An ongoing narrative to watch this season will be if Hicks can get his fouling under control to stay on the floor and be the impact player North Carolina needs in late-game situations.

None of these three Tar Heels’ performances qualifies as surprising, but as a sign of big things to come.

Tony Bradley impresses

First-year Tony Bradley was UNC’s highest-rated recruit in the Class of 2016. Expectations weren’t super high for him coming into this season, because North Carolina only needs him to be a role player and an instant impact player coming off the bench.

In his first game as a Tar Heel, Bradley impressed with 10 points and five rebounds. He also only missed two shots from the field, while making five. Bradley’s ability to protect the rim on the defensive end of the floor and finish efficiently on the offensive end is a valuable combination.

Brandon Robinson and Seventh Woods, the Tar Heels’ two other first-years, played more inconsistently than Bradley. Woods had a handful of nice passes and looks to have an advanced understanding of how to read the floor already, but he missed an easy layup in transition. Robinson finished with three points.

Look for Bradley to emerge as a player that Coach Roy Williams can trust off the bench immediately. It might take more time for Robinson and Woods to earn that trust, though they will get plenty of minutes as long as Pinson is out.

Meeks steps up on boards

All offseason, Williams stressed to his team that Brice Johnson — one of the best rebounders in the ACC last season — wasn’t walking through that door. Someone else would have to step up to help the Tar Heels control the boards as they did so many times last season.

In game one, Kennedy Meeks was the man who stepped up. Meeks had 15 rebounds, helping the Tar Heels to a 51-39 advantage on the boards. Berry and Hicks were the team’s next highest rebounders, with six apiece.

Tulane did nab 18 offensive rebounds, so concerns about the Tar Heels’ prowess on the boards are far from being put to rest. However, Meeks’ strong performance tonight is a good sign for the Tar Heels.

@bauman_john

sports@dailytarheel.com