bgorman@heraldsun.com; 419-6668
CHAPEL HILL -- After the No. 10 North Carolina men's basketball team fell to No. 2 Texas in Dallas on Saturday, there was a reasoning for the loss that came up among different players in the postgame interviews.
Lack of effort.
It's a statement that's been heard multiple times this season, after both wins and losses, and senior Marcus Ginyard clearly is starting to get frustrated.
"I just think that's been an issue for us the entire year," Ginyard said after Saturday's 103-90 loss to the Longhorns. "I don't know what else to say about it."
Ginyard admitted the effort might be worse on the road, as the Tar Heels (8-3) have lost to No. 5 Syracuse in New York City, No. 3 Kentucky in Lexington and to Texas at Cowboys Stadium.
But the Tar Heels also talked about lack of focus and effort after home victories against unranked opponents.
So what is the cause of this lapse in energy?
"I don't even know, honestly," senior Deon Thompson said. "I don't have any words to put to why our effort is the way it is or why it's not where it should be."
And the Heels can't afford to be lackadaisical when they host Marshall tonight (7 p.m., FSS) before taking a holiday break. UNC won't play again until Dec. 28 when Rutgers visits the Smith Center.
The Thundering Herd (9-1) is off to its best start since the 2000-01 season and has hit the century mark in its past two games. Marshall has 10 players that play at least 12.6 minutes a game and is led by Tyler Wilkerson, who is averaging 13.5 points and seven rebounds.
"It's just a decision we have to make individually and as a team to go out every night and give our best effort," Ginyard said. "I don't necessarily know how to work on that, it's just something we've got to do."
Ginyard said the Tar Heels didn't have any energy against Texas, and it was part of the reason the much smaller Longhorns were able to out-rebound one of the most talented front lines in the nation, 60-41.
"They just wanted it more than us," UNC sophomore Ed Davis said.
UNC coach Roy Williams said his team needs to do a better job of boxing out, but he thought his team played harder against Texas than against Kentucky. In both games, the Tar Heels fell behind by double-digits but were able to rally in the second half to have a shot at winning the game.
Thompson said he didn't want to make any excuses after Saturday's loss -- he confessed there were times against Texas when his effort wasn't there, as he finished with a season-low eight points. But he did say that the Tar Heels need to execute better.
"I think everyone has to take a look in the mirror, myself included, and make some real self evaluations and go from there," Thompson said.
