Diary Series: C.B. McGrath, Asst. Coach - North Carolina

As a basketball coach, you have to roll with the punches.  We always wish everything would be right to plan but most times you have to rework it.  This season was supposed to be easy, if you read all the preseason hype.  It is still a work in progress with some ups and downs already.  Our record is 10-2 but we have a stretch of five more home games before we have an ACC road contest.

I must admit that we started our season with a bang.  The Carrier Classic was an unbelievable experience.  We played in a game outdoors on the flight deck of the USS Carl Vinson against Michigan State in San Diego.  We got to meet the President and play in front of many active military personnel.  It was an honor for both teams and something we will never forget or take for granted.  We played in the Las Vegas Invitational over Thanksgiving and suffered our first loss in the finals.  We did not play with enough effort on the defensive end and UNLV used the energy from the partisan crowd to get the victory.  We bounced back with a win over Wisconsin in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge.  It was their first loss of the year and we were pleased with our effort on the defensive end.

Our next game was supposed to be #1 versus #2 when we visited Kentucky in Rupp Arena, but we didn’t uphold our end, so it was #1 versus #5.  We jumped out quickly in the first half and had the lead until the second half.  It was a great game to watch from a fan’s perspective.  Numerous players were on the court with a lot of talent and athleticism.  We came up short at the end of the game by not converting on our last possession.  We will use it as a learning experience as the journey through the season continues.

The first semester has ended for the guys and they will get a five day break for Christmas after our game against Texas.  We recently showed a little holiday cheer for some people less fortunate.  We did our annual Salvation Army shopping at Target.  We adopt kids, who are called angels, and we receive a wish list for each of them.  Our players then go shopping for 2-3 of them and it is a lot of fun.  We use some of the profits from our autograph basketball program to pay for the gifts.  It takes our mind off of basketball and school for a few hours, and we realize how fortunate we all are.  Each player has a budget and they try and get as close to that as they can.  Most times it turns into a competition of who can get the closest to the budget.  This year we had about five guys within one dollar. 

As I said earlier, we wish things would have gone to plan but we have adjusted our sails a little.  We are still focusing on getting better everyday – which never changes.  Sometimes fans and media want you to be perfect from day one and with all the experience we have we realize that is not going to happen, even as much as we want it too.  I think our guys are still getting used to each other.  We added a couple of pieces to our team since last year.  We ended last season on a roll up until we lost to Kentucky in the Elite 8.  We had won 18 of our last 21 games.  We added Reggie Bullock back from injury and had a five-man freshman class led by James Michael McAdoo and PJ Hairston come in.  We also lost Leslie McDonald, who tore his ACL this summer.  It has been an adjustment but we are making progress.

We have had many bright spots.  Kendall Marshall has broken some assist marks already.  He had games of 14, 15 (twice) and 16 assists already this season.  No other player in Carolina history had two games of 15 or more assists in their careers.  Harrison Barnes’ shooting percentage is much better this season.  John Henson has improved on the offensive end.  Reggie and PJ have been huge spark plugs off the bench with their shooting ability.  We will need everyone to start playing to their potential to get this train on track toward our ACC and end-of-the-season goals.

Happy Holidays from all of the Tar Heels.  We hope everyone gets some time with their families and loved ones.

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