North Carolina is off to a 3-0 start under new head coach Michael Malone, winning all three of their games at home so far this season. While they are 3-0, there have been some struggles.
It took big second half showings to beat Western Carolina and most recently Wyoming. The Tar Heels haven't looked great in these three games and while it's still early, Malone doesn't want to make this a habit. With the Tar Heels struggling at halftime, Malone sent a simple message to his team: "The streets talk."
“The streets talk,” Malone said. “And right now, the streets are saying, ‘Go into the Dean Smith Center and push them boys around.’”
That chatter he's referring to? Other teams being more physical than the Tar Heels including outrebounding them a few
times this season.
As Inside Carolina notes, UNC has been outrebounded 162-148 across four home games, including the preseason vs. Charlotte this season. That's simply not good enough.
UNC has struggled with physicality this season and no disrespect to their opponents so far but these teams won't be the best the Tar Heels play this season. So Malone took it upon himself at halftime to send that message and make sure they figure it out sooner than later.
The message was well received.
North Carolina was much better in that second half. They went on a run which eventually gave them a double digit lead. They closed out the game strong and now the hope is to continue this momentum into Friday's game against Georgia.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Michael Malone had a message for his team during the Wyoming game
