Carolina's Bullock amassing shooting confidence in scheme
Ken Cross, Columnist
The triplicate of Harrison Barnes, John Henson, and Tyler Zeller receives the lion’s share of attention for the No. 6 North Carolina Tar Heels. They average just over half of UNC’s points and rebounds and are generally the go-to guys in the clutch for Roy Williams when a game is on the line.
However, from the 17:06 mark of the second half until 11:06 of the second half in Saturday night’s 84-78 come-from-behind win over Long Beach State, the game was about Reggie Bullock as he scored 11 of his 15 points in that span. Each basket either tied the game or gave North Carolina the lead. The final three-pointer at 11:06 gave UNC the advantage for good at 62-59.
“I came out and kept shooting, my teammates found me, and I was able to knock down some big shots,” said Bullock in a rather modest tone.
In fact, had it not been for Bullock, the 49ers might have garnered their second win against nationally ranked competition of the season. Dan Monson's club beat Pitt back on Nov. 16.
Bullock was stellar in the second half as he made 4-of-6 shots including three triples. He has powered his game forward this season after rehabilitating a torn lateral meniscus in his left knee that sidelined him last Feb. 27.
“Thank goodness Reggie came in to make a few of those shots,” said Williams, “He’s a youngster that has gone through some tough times.”
Bullock has risen to second on the team in three pointers with 20
so far through 10 games. Barnes, who leads UNC in
scoring with 17.5 ppg., says confidence and getting back in the
flow are big for Bullock after he went down with the knee injury
last season.
“My teammates just trust me and when they pass me the ball, they expect me to knock down shots,” said the sophomore swingman from Kinston, N.C., “I have been able to do a lot of that lately.”
Building his confidence back has been a must. Feeding him the ball for threes has become a norm in Carolina ’s running game. Bullock is 10-of-18 from behind the arc in UNC’s last three games which has helped result in two 15-point outings for him.
“Coach always tells me to shoot the ball without thinking about it and its gonna go in so I have just been catching and shooting,” he noted, “The same patterns I have been doing - just catching and shooting and building my confidence.”
Bullock’s consistency has allowed him to shoot 50% from the floor while making 20-of-43 from the three point line.
“I’m a little more consistent this year,” he noted of his shooting and overall play, “I am getting a lot of shots up, keeping my reps up, and I am able to knock down shots.” It was a little mental last year. My knee is back to 100%. I am just building a lot of confidence in myself.”
Playing such a key role in a win over a strong team such as the 49ers is huge for Bullock’s mindset. North Carolina hopes that his consistency level maintains as the season goes on and they get into ACC play.
“That was a great confidence builder, Bullock summarized, “Just to be able to knock down big shots and build off of it.”
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also: CB McGrath's National Coaches' Diary Series
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--New entry coming next week--
Credit: Jeffrey A. Camarati, UNC
Athletic Communications
