'We're mad': Sense of urgency carries UNC men's basketball to win in Jumpman Invitational

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Coming off back-to-back losses against UConn and Kentucky, Harrison Ingram did not mince words.

“We’re mad,” the junior forward said Tuesday ahead of the Jumpman Invitational.

And then again for emphasis.

“We’re mad. We want to win tomorrow, and we want to win bad.”

Ingram and his teammates channeled that frustration and urgency into what head coach Hubert Davis said was their best defensive performance of the season in an 81-69 win over No. 7 Oklahoma Wednesday night at the Spectrum Center. The Tar Heels forced a season-best 18 turnovers and recorded a season-high 10 steals to hand the Sooners their first loss.

Oklahoma entered the night averaging over 84 points on 51 percent shooting, but against North Carolina the Sooners shot just 40 percent and came 15 points shy of their season average.

“Going into this game, we wanted to play defense for a full 40 minutes,” senior guard RJ Davis said. “I think that was evident through the steals. We had guys in the gaps, guys in the right positions and overall we were making the defensive plays that were needed to be made, especially in crucial times.”

Hubert Davis uses the phrase “will and want to,” and you could see that from his Tar Heels early and often. North Carolina’s first points of the game came soon after graduate guard Cormac Ryan launched himself onto the hardwood. After he hit the floor to secure a loose ball, he passed the ball to Ingram who found RJ Davis for a  transition triple.

Ingram played mad in the first half, recording four steals. In one of those steals, he helped off his man, clogged up the lane and stripped the rock from the grasp of Oklahoma's Otega Oweh before racing down the floor and finishing with a smooth Euro-step layup. UNC's defensive intensity was also present in its rim protection — sophomore guard Seth Trimble, graduate center Armando Bacot and Ingram all had emphatic rejections late in the first half.

And then in the second half, RJ Davis had his layup bothered on one end but chased down the Sooners' Rivaldo Soares on the other and picked his pocket, creating yet another turnover.

The energy was palpable. Ingram and RJ Davis said Wednesday marked the most energy UNC had played with all season. 

Steals, blocks and everything in between. It seemed at times as though the Tar Heels had an extra man on the floor. How did they do it? 

Hubert Davis cited North Carolina’s preparation. He said the last couple practices for the Tar Heels were among the best they’ve had from a defensive standpoint.

“One of the things that Oklahoma is great at is getting consistent points in the paint, whether it’s post, penetration, offensive rebounds,” Hubert Davis said. “So it was a huge emphasis on us when they ran their action, which was mostly ball screens, to protect the paint. And I thought that is what allowed us to get some steals and deflections.”

The Tar Heels just suffocated the Sooners, and they did it in a game they wanted bad.

“We knew [this game] was a must-win,” Bacot said. “An undefeated team. It’s one of those big wins we need to get into the [NCAA] Tournament. So we definitely came into this game with a sense of urgency.”

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