Jonathan Powell Matches Career High, Provides Spark Vs. USC Upstate

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Amidst an otherwise sluggish Saturday afternoon outing against USC Upstate, North Carolina found a needed spark from someone new: Jonathan Powell. 

The West Virginia transfer matched his career high with 17 points while going 3-for-6 from beyond the arc in the 80-62 win. 

“All I need is a little bit of room,” Powell said of his shooting performance Saturday. “My teammates, my coaches, they all believe and trust me to shoot the ball. So if I get a little bit of room I’m letting it go.”

The Centerville, Ohio native transferred to UNC this season after spending his freshman year in Morgantown, where he started 23 games for the Mountaineers. 

“I love the sport, so every time I come on the court, I want to play with an edge, play with energy, I think that’s what keeps that fire under me,” Powell said. “Bringing that for my team — if my team starts out a little slow or it’s one of those games — being one of the guys that come in and bring everybody up to get our energy back going and and get a run going.” 

Powell was among the first wave of subs off the bench for the Tar Heels at the 15:06 mark of the first half and seven seconds later, he sunk his first triple of the afternoon. 

“Obviously he’s a guy that can make shots and today he not only made shots, but timely shots, especially from three,” Hubert Davis said of Powell’s outing. 

USC Upstate’s Isaiah Skinner cut the Spartan deficit, which had been as high as 16, down to eight with 4:03 left in the second half before Powell drained his third and final 3-pointer of the afternoon to extend the Tar Heel lead back to double digits — where it would stay for the remainder of the game. 

Entering Saturday, Powell was shooting 32.2% from outside. He hadn’t scored 10 points in any of the team’s first nine games, but he found a rhythm in the Smith Center and kept letting it fly.

“He shoots the curl off the ball in practice,” Caleb Wilson said. “It’s only a matter of time, and whenever you get a shooter an open shot, they’ll knock them down.”

Powell didn’t just leave his imprint on Saturday’s game from behind the 3-point line, he also finished the afternoon with two steals and threw down a raucous transition dunk to force a Spartan timeout in the first half. 

“We got a lot of people on the team who can score the ball and put the ball in the hoop, but I think what helps me earn minutes and earn Coach Davis’ trust is being able to keep my man in front of me and being able to really compete on the defensive end,” Powell said of how else he can help the Tar Heels aside from his sharpshooting.

After only playing more than 20 minutes in only one of North Carolina’s first five games, Powell has registered 20-plus minutes in three of UNC’s last four games. Davis praised Powell’s activity on the basketball court and relentless nature as some of his best attributes.

“He’s also a really physical defender, very competitive, and just has a passion and a desire to be a part of this team and this program, so I was really happy he had a good game today,” Davis said of what else he saw in Powell’s game Saturday. “One of the many reasons that I love coaching him is that he has that competitive fight and that spirit that I think you have to have to even have a chance to play at this level.”