Bacot's Decision-Making Important Against Pack Line Defense

CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina has lost eight consecutive contests against Virginia in Charlottesville, dating back to 2012. Tyler Zeller finished with a game-high 20 points to go along with six rebounds in the win nearly 4,400 days ago.

On Saturday, the Tar Heels (20-6, 12-3 ACC) will have a chance to not only break the streak, which is the longest for North Carolina at any one arena or any opponent’s home court in history, but also maintain the top spot in the ACC.

Perhaps the biggest factor for the Tar Heels will be how they handle Virginia’s pack line defense. The Cavaliers (20-7, 11-5 ACC) ranks third in the country allowing just 58.3 points per game, while sitting 15th in opponent field goal percentage, holding them to 39.8 percent shooting.

Part of the pack line defense under Tony Bennett involves double-teaming the post in hopes of getting their opponents towards the corner and causing turnovers off of rushed passes.

Armando Bacot’s performance will go a long way in stifling those defensive efforts, as his decision-making can help lead to high-percentage looks and open shots for North Carolina.

Using post players as a passer is one way to mitigate the defensive scheme, and Bacot’s ability to recognize the coverage is coming and quickly redirect the basketball is important.

“It’s going to be pivotal. It’s going to be a huge part of the game,” said Bacot on Friday at the Smith Center. “I need to get the ball out of my hands, but also make the right reads and get guys open and not do too much.”

Letting the ball “stick” in your hands too long can lead to live ball turnovers and an even lower number of shots versus an already slow Virginia team.

“They’re so physical in the way they double, [that] once you hold the ball and they get you in the corner, it’s going to be a turnover every time," he said. "I've just gotta be smart.”

UNC Coach Hubert Davis has seen an improvement in Bacot’s game when it comes to holding onto the basketball and either avoiding or getting out of double teams.

Instead of letting the defense overwhelm him, he has prevented the number of turnovers and rushed passes, giving his head coach even more confidence in him.

“There’s two areas where Armando has really improved in that,” said Davis. “One, he can get the ball out and he can get it to the right players. The other thing is, and I think it’s the most important thing, is he’s really comfortable with the double team now. He’s not in a hurry.”

Getting it to the right players, particularly the Tar Heels’ perimeter shooters is critical to their offensive success.

On the season, North Carolina is shooting 35.6 percent from beyond the arc, their highest percentage in a season in which they play in Charlottesville since 2018.

Even if Bacot is not able to find an open shooter, he can help start ball reversals, which in turn can exploit a weakness of the pack line defense.

Another aspect of the pack line defense strategy is to force perimeter shots and prevent dribble drives, but quickly and decisively moving the ball can ensure these looks are ones the tenth-ranked Tar Heels want.

“I think for us, our approach going into this game, we gotta be patient in a sense to where we’re making the right plays, but still keep our pace and limit turnovers,” said Bacot. “We have to go in there with a mindset of hitting singles and not home runs.”

Those singles for Bacot include taking advantage of the one-on-one matchups when not being double-teamed and using them to score down low.

North Carolina’s offense has been a major issue when visiting John Paul Jones Arena for a majority of Bennett’s tenure.

In their four wins in Charlottesville from 2008-2012, the Tar Heels averaged 68.5 points per game.

In their eight games since, they have mustered just 54 points per contest, which is aided by a 74-point outing in 2016. The Tar Heels have eclipsed the 50-point mark just once over their last five trips to Virginia.

Even as North Carolina has its best chance to win in Charlottesville in years, and the Cavaliers come off of their worst loss of the season, defeating the Hoos is certainly no easy task and Hubert Davis knows that.

“Virginia is Virginia because they bring their best every game," he said.

And UNC has learned over the last decade-plus, that's absolute.