Five Takeaways From UNC's Loss at Gonzaga: Following Francis, Keeling Coming On and More

The Tar Heels suffered their fourth straight loss on Wednesday night.

North Carolina dropped its fourth straight game as hot-shooting Gonzaga pulled away for a 94-81 victory on Wednesday night in Spokane, Wash.

Garrison Brooks had 16 points and six rebounds to lead the Tar Heels (6-5) in the losing effort, while the Zags got a combined 46 points from Filip Petrusev and Corey Kispert on their way to a 59-percent shooting night.

Five takeaways from the game:

Their Own Game

Gonzaga looked an awful lot like a good Carolina team on Wednesday night.

The Bulldogs got up and down the floor, taking advantage of rim-running big men to win the fast-break scoring battle 23-14 and, despite having a seven-man rotation, outscored the Tar Heels 38-36 in the paint.

Not only were the Zags’ speed able to set up easy buckets at the rim, but given the mismatches in transition, they got several good looks from 3-point range, making 9 of 18 from beyond the arc.

Without Cole Anthony, who Roy Williams believes has been Carolina’s best perimeter defender this season, and only 14 minutes of Armando Bacot to protect the rim, the Tar Heels are having a hard time stopping anyone.

Carolina now ranks 42nd nationally in defensive efficiency per KenPom and 337th in turnover rate.

Battered Bacot?

Bacot bounced back from his sprained ankle quickly to play at Virginia, but he hasn’t been himself in the past two games, making a combined 3 of 20 attempts from the field with 10 points and 16 rebounds.

When healthy, Bacot has occasionally been weak with the ball around the basket, but in the Wofford and Gonzaga games, he’s been tentative in attacking the basket and struggled with having his shots blocked at the rim.

Opponents have been physical with the freshman big man, but it’s possible he’s suffering some lingering effects from the ankle. If that’s the case, it might be wise to sit him for the next two nonconference games.

James Snook / USA TODAY Sports

Following Francis

The biggest reason for optimism in the past two games is the play of Jeremiah Francis.

Two weeks ago at this time, the freshman was barely practicing five-on-five, finishing what’s been a long road in recovering from two torn ACLs in high school. Against Wofford, there were some flashes, and on Wednesday, Francis had the look of a long-term, program-leading point guard that can make everyone around him better.

Playing just over 22 minutes, Francis finished with 11 points and three assists, hitting 4/9 from the field while committing zero turnovers. Plus/Minus isn’t a perfect stat, but among Carolina’s rotation players, Francis was on the only one on the positive side.

Not only did his night look good in the box score, but Francis appears to have a great command as a floor general, understanding when to push, penetrate and pass. Not bad for a guy who’s still getting back into shape and sharpening his instincts.

Stock Up, Stock Down

The good news for Carolina is that Christian Keeling seems to be finding his footing, hitting 5 of 7 field goal attempts on his way to 12 points to go with three rebounds, two assists and two turnovers in what has easily been his best two-game stretch for the Tar Heels.

Andrew Platek’s fit in the rotation is a tough one, as the junior guard is finding his stroke from 3-point range, hitting 4 of 5 in the past two games. Beyond that, he’s struggled to impact the game, grabbing a total of two rebounds and making one steal.

On Wednesday, the negatives outweighed his contributions as Gonzaga targeted his defense, with Platek finishing with a team worse -23 in plus/minus.

If he can generate more looks from beyond the arc, his floor spacing can be of great value for the Tar Heels. If not, there’s not enough of an impact to justify those minutes.

Appreciate It

Hey, that was really cool.

There are arguments to be had on both sides of the spectrum as to whether teams need to play true nonconference road games, but what can’t be argued is just how great they are for college basketball.

The Spokesman-Review called it the biggest home game in the program’s history, and looking at the list, it’s an unfortunate indictment of scheduling. As one of the game’s elite programs, Gonzaga (and Carolina and Duke and everyone else) should be involved in something like this every season.

Last year’s meeting in Chapel Hill had the Smith Center on fire in mid-December, giving both teams and fans more than any beating of an overmatched low-major could deliver.

Let's do it more often and grab a national audience in an otherwise-quiet period for sports.

Next up For UNC: Saturday, vs. UCLA at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, 3 p.m. (CBS)