UNC’s game against Florida State was their first contest in over a week that spanned the Christmas holiday. The game opened with the Heels looking lethargic and seemingly a step slow against an undersized
Seminole team. The Heels looked like they needed some sort of spark to shake off the holiday rust.
Caleb Wilson was only too happy to oblige. Wilson led UNC in almost every statistical category on Tuesday night as UNC won their ACC opener against Florida State, 79-66. UNC had only managed five points in the first 6+ minutes of game action and were down by two when the freshman went to work. Wilson scored 11 of the Heels next 17 points to help turn the modest deficit into a five-point lead. While the Seminoles arguably hung around much longer than expected, it was a lead Carolina wouldn’t relinquish. Wilson scored 14 points in the first half and finished with a game-high 22 on 9-15 shooting.
Wilson has gotten a lot of (deserved) attention for his scoring prowess (19.6 points per game coming into the FSU matchup), rebounding numbers (he corralled a whopping 16 boards for his 1oth double-double), and leading the nation in dunks like this one:
Perhaps not receiving enough attention is how good of a passer Wilson is. He finished with six assists for the Heels against FSU; this mark led the team for the game. Nor were these the traditional “passing big guy” assists where he’s double teamed in the post and passes out to a shooter; Wilson’s assists were often long passes up the court off a miss. UNC basically has a 6’10” forward on their roster capable of running a fast break almost as well as a point guard. One of my favorite plays of the night was midway through the first half, where Wilson grabbed an FSU miss and passed up the floor to a driving Luka Bogavac. Bogavac missed the layup, which was promptly corralled by Wilson and dunked home. The play perfectly encapsulates Wilson’s do-everything attitude and ability to impact the game in multiple ways.
An honorable mention goes out to Kyan Evans. The Heels only shot 24% from the three-point line against Florida State which partially contributing to the game being semi-competitive into the second half. While Evans has struggled overall from deep this year, he went 5-12 from beyond the arc and finished with 15 points against the ’Noles. This ties the season high he set back in the first game of the year against Central Arkansas. Hopefully it’s a sign the point guard is improving right as ACC play starts.
