UNC Basketball: Biggest Lessons Learned During Nonconference Games

Next Tuesday it is, the final nonconference game of North Carolina's season. After the new year passes, it will be strictly ACC opponents until the postseason.

With an 8-3 record, the nonconference slate for Carolina was mostly successful. Wins over three ranked foes highlight the two-month period. UNC's last game against Ohio State was one of the best it's played all season.

However, even through wins and success, there are lessons to be learned and conclusions to be drawn. Experience is not gained only through failure and defeat. Every game is a learning experience, especially for young players.

The defensive glass is just as important as the offensive glass.

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North Carolina grabs offensive boards like nobody's business. In fact, UNC is third in the nation in offensive rebounding. Its bigs love to gobble up misses and collect easy putbacks. A lot of the offense is derived from teammates missing shots.

However, rebounding on the other end cannot be taken for granted. Just because the Heels have athletes and big bodies, it does not mean they're guaranteed to collect a missed shot on the defensive end.

The team has learned this lesson the hard way. With 163 offensive rebounds allowed, UNC is 337th in the country. Disrupting boxouts is great. It is just as important to prevent your own boxouts from being disrupted, though.

Don't take any opponents for granted.

It is hard to know whether North Carolina suffered from the dreaded look ahead when it lost to inferior foes Butler and Iowa. The Butler game came at the very beginning of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament with some major heavy hitters pending.

The Iowa loss came after the aforementioned tournament had concluded, so there is no logical explanation for UNC to be caught off guard.

Nevertheless, chances to take an opponent for granted will come early and often in ACC play. With so many ranked foes, it is human nature to pinpoint or circle the big games coming up. It will be just as important to bring full effort against those other teams.

Not all freshmen progress at the same speed.

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All of Justin Jackson, Theo Pinson and Joel Berry were highly rated prospects coming out of high school. They are all expected to be big contributors to the Carolina program. Not all freshmen grow and mature at the same rate though.

Expectations can be high, but just because Pinson is not Justise Winslow doesn't mean it's time to give up on him. Just because Berry isn't Tyus Jones doesn't mean it's time to wallow in failure. Their Duke peers (along with many other talented freshmen) may have gotten off to better starts, but a collegiate season, let alone a full career, is a marathon, not a sprint.

Three-pointers are worth 50 percent more than twos.

UNC is 320th in the nation in three-point percentage and 302nd in attempted threes. The silver lining here is that at least the players aren't jacking up shots when they know most won't go in.

However, it is so frustrating for fans, coaches and even players to know that any opponent on any given night can take this team out by catching fire from distance. The added point with a shot from beyond the arc makes North Carolina vulnerable. The Heels can't make up the difference.

If at some point the wings don't begin to hit threes, points will be a battle to come by all season long.