They say defense wins championships.
But the North Carolina JV men's basketball team doesn’t play for a championship. So why did the team still put up 14 steals, three blocks and 36 defensive rebounds in its 87-59 win over the Hampden-Sydney JV squad on Wednesday?
These Tar Heels don’t play for a championship or accolades, yet they still routinely put forth a dedicated and disciplined approach leading to a 10-0 start to the season.
Because they want to get better — the right way.
On Wednesday night, the team played under the lights of the Smith Center to a crowd of about 45 people. In a few hours, 21,750 UNC and Duke fans would fill the same stadium, attending one of the biggest ACC games of the year. But these Tar Heels didn’t seem to mind the low numbers; they were just happy to be there, in a place where they hope to play for the varsity squad one day.
“I think a lot of us would have never dreamed of playing in this kind of gym,” sophomore guard Robbie O’Han said. “And for a coach like Coach Davis.”
O’Han, who finished the game 6-10 with 14 points and five assists in 27 minutes, has had to step up as a leader for the JV team in lieu of Kane Ma’s move up to varsity. But O’Han sees this change, and any other, as something besides a challenge. He sees it as a way for him and the team to become better, smarter basketball players.
“Last year, Kane definitely took a lot of our shots and ran our offense,” O’Han said. “We’ve had to fill that leadership role and shot taking, and I think we’ve done a good job distributing throughout our lineup and finding the best shot. We’re really unselfish on offense.”