Hubert Davis Breaks Down UNC’s Strong Second-Half Surge in 85–70 Win Over St. Bonaventure as Fort Myers Tip-Off Opens with Momentum
ESTERO, Fla. – For twenty minutes on Monday night, the North Carolina Tar Heels looked like a team still searching for its identity, plagued by the familiar demons of inconsistent effort and perimeter shooting. For the next twenty, they looked like the formidable, top-15 squad their ranking suggests. This tale of two halves culminated in an 85-70 victory over a gritty St. Bonaventure team to open the Fort Myers Tip-Off, a win Head Coach Hubert Davis will likely point to as a critical lesson in resilience and adjustment.
The first half was a grind. St. Bonaventure, known for its physical, disciplined style under Coach Mark Schmidt, executed its game plan to near perfection. They mucked up the game, slowed the tempo, and forced UNC into a half-court slog. The Tar Heels’ offense, so often predicated on transition bursts and offensive rebounds, was stymied. The Bonnies built a modest lead, capitalizing on UNC’s 0-for-9 start from three-point range and outworking them for 50/50 balls.
Armando Bacot was a force inside, as expected, but the supporting cast seemed out of sync. The energy was flat, the defensive rotations a step slow. As the teams headed to the locker room with the Bonnies holding a 36-32 advantage, the specter of an early-season upset loomed large in the Suncoast Credit Union Arena.
What transpired after halftime, however, was a masterclass in coaching adjustment and player-led response. The Tar Heels emerged from the break with a palpable sense of urgency, unleashing a 21-4 run that effectively decided the contest. The final 85-70 scoreline belied the true nature of a game that was completely transformed by Carolina’s second-half surge.
In his post-game press conference, a composed but clearly pleased Hubert Davis broke down the keys to the dramatic turnaround.
“It Starts with Our Identity: Defense and Rebounding”
Coach Davis didn’t mince words when diagnosing the first-half issues. “The first half, we just didn’t play hard. It’s that simple,” he stated bluntly. “We weren’t the tougher team. We weren’t getting to loose balls, our defense was reactive instead of proactive, and we gave up second-chance opportunities. That’s not who we are, and that’s not who we want to be.”
The primary adjustment, according to Davis, wasn’t a complex X-and-O schematic change. It was a return to foundational principles. “At halftime, the message was about our identity. Our identity has to be on the defensive end and on the boards. When we get stops and rebound, we can run. And when we run, we’re at our best.”
The numbers bear out his emphasis. After being out-rebounded in the first half, UNC dominated the glass in the second, finishing with a 45-34 overall advantage. This rebounding edge, led by Bacot’s 18 boards and Harrison Ingram’s 10, instantly fueled the transition game. What were missed shots and turnovers in the first half became run-outs, dunks, and open threes in the second.
The Cormac Ryan Ignition
While the entire team elevated its play, the catalyst for the game-breaking run was graduate transfer Cormac Ryan. After a quiet first half, Ryan erupted, scoring 14 of his 16 points after the break. More than the points, it was the timing and nature of his baskets that crushed the Bonnies’ spirit.
He hit a contested three to tie the game early in the half. He followed it with a steal and a tough finish in transition. Then came another three-pointer, this one from well beyond the arc, forcing a St. Bonaventure timeout that failed to cool his momentum. Ryan’s burst provided the offensive jolt that the team had been desperately missing.
“Cormac is a veteran. He’s not scared of the moment,” Davis said. “He struggled early, but he kept shooting. That’s what we need from him. His defense was phenomenal all night, and then his offense caught up. That sequence to start the half gave us all the confidence we needed.”
Harrison Ingram’s All-Around Brilliance and the Emergence of a Deeper Threat
If Ryan was the flint, Harrison Ingram was the steady fire that kept the Tar Heels burning. The Stanford transfer was arguably the best player on the floor, stuffing the stat sheet with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists. His versatility was on full display; he battled inside for rebounds, pushed the ball off the dribble, hit a crucial three-pointer, and played tenacious defense on multiple positions.
“Harry was tremendous from start to finish,” Davis praised. “He does all the little things. He rebounds, he passes, he defends, he makes winning plays. He’s the ultimate glue guy, and he was a huge reason we were able to turn the tide.”
Furthermore, the second half saw the Tar Heels finally find their shooting stroke. After the 0-for-9 start, they knocked down 6 of their 13 attempts from deep after halftime. This wasn’t just Ryan; it was RJ Davis (14 points) finding his rhythm and Ingram and Paxson Wojcik providing timely contributions. This floor-spacing opened driving lanes for Elliot Cadeau, who, despite scoring only 4 points, orchestrated the offense with poise and dished out 6 assists, many during the critical second-half run.
Armando Bacot: The Unwavering Anchor
Throughout the turbulence, Armando Bacot remained the team’s rock. He finished with 22 points on an efficient 9-of-13 shooting, anchoring the paint on both ends. St. Bonaventure had no answer for him when UNC committed to feeding him the ball. His presence demanded constant double-teams, which in turn began to create better looks for his teammates as the game wore on.
“Armando is our anchor,” Davis said. “Even when things weren’t going well for us as a team, he was steady. He commands so much attention, and when we play through him, good things happen.”
A Blueprint for Growth
For Hubert Davis and the Tar Heels, this game was more than just a season-opening tournament win. It was a valuable early-season test that provided a clear blueprint for success and a stark warning about the perils of complacency.
“I’m proud of the way we responded,” Davis concluded. “It’s easy to play hard when you’re up 15. It’s a lot harder when you’re down and things aren’t going your way. Tonight, we learned that we can face adversity, listen, adjust, and come out and impose our will. That’s a lesson we can carry with us.”
As the Tar Heels advance in the Fort Myers Tip-Off, they do so with momentum, but more importantly, with a reinforced understanding of what makes them elite. When their effort matches their talent, when their defense fuels their offense, they are a formidable force. The challenge for Hubert Davis now is to ensure that the second-half version of his team is the one that shows up from the opening tip, ready to build on the momentum forged in the Florida heat.
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