Hubert Davis assesses the state of UNC locker room in the midst of recent skid
After playing in the national championship game last season, North Carolina spent time this season ranked first in the country. However, head coach Hubert Davis has watched his Tar Heels lose four games in a row, including their ACC opener. Now, North Carolina isn’t even ranked in the AP Poll.
After the most recent loss to Virginia Tech, Hubert Davis was asked what his message was to the team, which seemed like it could be demoralized mentally.
“Demoralizing, I think that’s a very strong word,” Hubert Davis said. “I would say disappointed, tired, and that’s a good thing. If we went into the locker room and everybody was okay, then that would be a bad thing.”
Hubert Davis wanted to emphasize that tearing players down or demoralizing them doesn’t fit his style. He wants to build players up and win through love, not criticism.
“I’ve said this before, guys, that I like to encourage and I think you can go anywhere and find somebody to criticize, to critique, to tear you down, and my job and what I was is I want our guys to be the best that they can be. I want them to feel confident, I want them to feel good about their game, and I want them to have positive attitudes and that’s what we’ll do,” Hubert Davis said.
“We’re going to get to work. There’s some things we need to talk about and get better, but also like to get better through encouragement as well. Letting them know that I care about them and that I believe in them. And, I do care about them. I love them and I care about them too.”
North Carolina’s next game is on Saturday, December 10th. It’s an ACC game against Georgia Tech.
Hubert Davis isn’t panicking
Now isn’t the time for North Carolina, and Hubert Davis knows this. There is still plenty of season left to play.
“I wouldn’t say there’s a common thread that connects us to who this team is. I think we’ve had a hard week. I think each of the four losses, I get something different from every one of them. I don’t think I can say for each four this is what happened, and this is who we are,” Hubert Davis said.
“Well, maybe one comment thing is we’re falling short. I am, you know, disappointed, but I’m not discouraged. Disappointed with the outcome, but I was really happy with the fight in the last 15 minutes of the second half, to put us down by three and just came up short. I told them also that I’m not panicked, I’m not any of that. And, I’m convinced that we’re going to be a great basketball team by the end of the season.”