UNC basketball’s weakness was exposed in an 85-72 loss to Auburn in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational on Tuesday.
The 12th-ranked Tar Heels (4-2) faced the same issue against the fourth-ranked Tigers (5-0) that it was presented with in its first loss of the season at No. 1 Kansas (6-0).
Johni Broome, like Hunter Dickinson before him, overpowered UNC’s frontline to present the Heels with a problem that they haven’t been able to solve through six games.
Broome was dominant from the tip, finishing with 23 points, 19 rebounds and five assists against the Tar Heels’ primary post players. Jalen Washington, Jalen Withers and Ven-Allen Lubin combined for 22 points and 18 rebounds against Auburn, which led by as many as 19 points in a wire-to-wire victory.
“(Broome) dominated this entire game,” UNC head coach Hubert Davis told reporters after the Maui loss. “He was the best player on the floor and I don’t think it was even close.”
The 13-point loss was UNC’s largest margin of defeat since losing to Virginia Tech by 13 in the 2022 ACC Tournament.
If the Tar Heels are going to make up for their lack of size in the frontcourt, the effort has to be there from start to finish. Through six games, the consistency has yet to be present for a full 40 minutes.
“For us to be good, we have to live and dwell in the trenches … those toughness plays,” Davis said. “Auburn won all of ‘em the entire game. They were better than us.”
UNC will try to bounce back and show improvement in the third-place game against Michigan State (5-2) on Wednesday (9:30 p.m., ESPN).
Rodd Baxley covers Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his ACC coverage on X/Twitter or Bluesky: @RoddBaxley. Got questions regarding those teams? Send them to rbaxley@fayobserver.com.
