Not everything went smoothly for Hubert Davis’ fourth UNC basketball team in Monday night’s 90-76 home win over the Elon Phoenix in the Dean E. Smith Center. A 14-0 Elon run to take a 71-69 lead with 6:48 to play highlighted the No. 9 Tar Heels’ concerns in their regular season opener.
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But one clear-cut positive for UNC is the apparent advancements that starting floor general Elliot Cadeau has made in his game since his freshman campaign.
Most notably, the 6-foot-1, 180-pound New Jersey native, who shot 18.9 percent from 3-point land last season, finished 3-for-4 beyond the arc against the Phoenix after shooting a combined 3-for-5 from downtown in the Tar Heels’ two exhibition outings.
“You will not recognize Elliot Cadeau this year. I mean it.” – Hubert Davis
📺 ACCN pic.twitter.com/YcAZwZGCNy
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) November 5, 2024
“I feel a lot more confident,” Cadeau said after knocking down three 3-pointers for the first time as a Tar Heel. “I feel like I’ve put in a lot of work. It’s cool to see. I’m very comfortable behind that 3-point line now.”
Plus, Cadeau appears to have further refined his electricity and efficiency as a playmaker. In orchestrating an offense that committed only six turnovers, the lowest recorded total by any UNC basketball squad in a season opener, the 20-year-old delivered eight assists, the most by any Tar Heel in a season opener in his lifetime.
Add in the fact that Cadeau tallied 17 points, two shy of his career high, as the Tar Heels improved to 8-0 when he scores 10 or more.
For good measure, he even added a career-high two blocks. That’s not to mention his four rebounds and three steals.
With all of the above in mind, despite the closer-than-expected final score, it’s no surprise that Cadeau posted a career-high plus/minus of +28 across his 32 minutes of action.
Elliot Cadeau and the Tar Heels next face a road battle against No. 1 Kansas (1-0, 0-0 Big 12) at 7 p.m. ET Friday (ESPN2).
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