By The Tobacco Road Scribe
Greensboro, NC – North Carolina’s first public test under Michael Malone began with defensive breakdowns and an early deficit. It ended with a convincing demonstration of how the new coach wants his Tar Heels to win. Behind Jarin Stevenson’s 25 points and 10 rebounds, UNC tightened its defense after halftime and pulled away from Southern California for an 88-70 exhibition victory Friday evening at First Horizon Coliseum.
The final margin concealed a competitive opening stretch. USC led 39-37 at halftime and remained a threat well into the second half before Carolina established control. The Tar Heels ultimately outscored the Trojans 51-31 after the break, turning a night of introductions into an encouraging first look at a substantially rebuilt team.
Because the game was an exhibition, the result does not count toward either program’s regular-season record. Its value for Carolina was nevertheless considerable: an opportunity to test unfamiliar combinations, see how players responded to adversity and measure whether the defensive priorities emphasized in practice could survive contact with an outside opponent.
Friday supplied reasons for optimism and a clear list of improvements to pursue. Stevenson delivered the leading individual performance, Isaiah Denis provided important scoring, and Neo Avdalas contributed across several categories. Carolina also committed too many turnovers and needed its reserves to compensate for quiet nights from two starting guards.
For Malone, the most consequential development was the team’s response after an uneven first half.
Defense changes the direction of the game
USC’s offense looked substantially different after intermission.
The Trojans shot 46.9% in the opening half but made only nine of 34 attempts in the second, a 26.5% success rate. Carolina’s improvement was especially apparent during the stretch that decided the game, when defensive stops allowed the Tar Heels to build a lead rather than continue exchanging baskets.
The change mattered beyond the shooting percentages. A defense that repeatedly forces difficult possessions reduces the pressure on its own offense to score every trip. Carolina could miss a shot, recover and still maintain momentum because USC was struggling to generate a response.
That is a more sustainable foundation than depending on a succession of contested jumpers. For a team still learning its offensive timing, reliable defense can provide room to grow.
Malone’s postgame assessment emphasized the connection between defending and attacking. Better stops gave Carolina opportunities to advance the ball and approach its possessions with greater purpose. The second-half performance offered an early example of that relationship.
It also established a useful standard. The Tar Heels demonstrated that they could defend effectively against this opponent for an extended stretch. The next challenge is producing that level of attention from the opening possession.
A preseason turnaround is encouraging. A team that eventually expects to compete through the ACC schedule will need to make such stretches routine.
A 12-0 run breaks open a close contest
The game’s decisive sequence arrived after USC had moved ahead 53-49.
Carolina answered with 12 consecutive points, building a 61-53 advantage with 9:16 remaining. USC’s offense went scoreless for roughly six minutes, transforming a narrow Trojan lead into a situation in which the visitors had to chase the game. Before that separation, the contest had featured seven ties and 14 lead changes.
The run was important because it interrupted the pattern established earlier in the evening. Neither team had been able to hold an advantage for long. A successful possession at one end was often answered at the other, leaving the outcome unsettled.
Once Carolina began stacking stops, individual baskets carried greater weight. The Tar Heels no longer needed a spectacular offensive sequence to gain ground. Ordinary productive possessions became enough because USC was not matching them.
That distinction helps explain why the final score grew more comfortable than the first half suggested it would.
For a newly assembled roster, closing a competitive game also presents a different test from playing freely at the start. Possessions become more deliberate. Defenders have to communicate through fatigue. Players must recognize when to attack and when to preserve an advantage.
Carolina’s second-half separation offered an initial indication that the group could manage those demands. It was one exhibition, but the Tar Heels gained something useful from the manner of the victory: evidence that they could change the game through sustained collective work.
Stevenson provides the centerpiece
Stevenson gave Carolina a scoring option USC could not consistently contain.
He made eight of 14 field-goal attempts, including four of seven from 3-point range, and finished with a double-double. His combination of perimeter shooting and rebounding made him the game’s most productive player. Tar Heel Blog
The significance was broader than his point total. A forward who can threaten from outside and remain involved around the basket creates difficult choices for a defense. Give him space, and he can shoot. Commit a smaller defender, and he may have an opportunity closer to the rim. Bring additional help, and openings can develop elsewhere.
That versatility is particularly valuable while a team is sorting out its guard rotation and half-court organization.
Stevenson’s performance suggested that Carolina can use him as more than a complementary scorer. He supplied an option the offense could return to, including during possessions when the Tar Heels needed a dependable way to pressure USC’s defense.
The next question is consistency. A strong October showing establishes what is possible; it does not guarantee that production against opponents with different personnel and more detailed scouting reports.
Stevenson will encounter defenses designed to limit his preferred opportunities. Some will crowd his catches. Others will test his decisions with help or challenge him to create farther from the basket.
Friday’s performance gave him-and Carolina-a productive starting point. The task ahead is retaining that assertiveness when the opportunities become less obvious.
A familiar player takes on new responsibility
Stevenson’s emergence also carries a local connection. The former Seaforth High School standout has described the value of being close to family and returning to the community after his time at Alabama.
In September, he discussed visiting Seaforth and seeing students and teachers again. He also emphasized the defensive communication and trust being developed under the new staff. Those comments supplied context for a player whose responsibilities now extend beyond his own scoring.
Returning players have a distinctive role during a coaching transition. They understand the institution while also having to learn a different system. Their choices and habits can help newcomers navigate both.
For Stevenson, leadership need not depend entirely on being the loudest voice. Consistent effort, decisive play and a willingness to handle demanding assignments can communicate expectations just as clearly.
Friday’s showing gave Carolina an example of that kind of influence. His effectiveness offered teammates a productive target on offense and helped establish the physical involvement the Tar Heels needed.
There is also a practical benefit to having an experienced player succeed early in a new system. It demonstrates that adjustment can produce opportunity. New terminology and different responsibilities become easier to embrace when players can see tangible results.
For readers who followed Stevenson’s development in Chatham County, the performance was another notable step. For Carolina, its importance rested on what he contributed to the current team.
Denis makes his opportunity count
Denis was one of the evening’s most important contributors, particularly when Carolina needed help recovering from its early difficulties.
He had 14 points on four-of-eight shooting, including two 3-pointers. He also made all four free throws and finished without a turnover. Avdalas added 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists, giving UNC another substantial source of production.
For Denis, the clean turnover column was a useful companion to the scoring. A guard can change a game by creating offense, but maintaining possession is part of that responsibility.
His performance gives the coaching staff another option as it evaluates combinations. Different lineups need different qualities: ball handling, shooting, defensive pressure or the ability to attack a gap. A productive reserve can help address whichever element a group is missing.
Denis’ previous season had been disrupted by a finger injury, and UNC’s postgame analysis described his growing responsibility in running the offense. That makes Friday’s performance significant as an opportunity to demonstrate progress.
It does not settle where he belongs in the eventual rotation. Exhibition minutes are evidence for those decisions, not a final verdict.
The strongest case a player can make is repeated usefulness. Denis’ next task is showing that his decision-making and willingness to attack remain dependable across practices and subsequent games.
Avdalas offers several ways to contribute
Avdalas’ contribution illustrated the value of a player who can influence possessions without always finishing them.
His scoring mattered, but his rebounding and passing helped connect different parts of Carolina’s performance. A player who can secure a miss and then help organize the next possession gives a team flexibility. A player who can create for teammates adds another route to offense when an individual matchup becomes difficult.
At ACC Tipoff earlier in the week, Malone described Avdalas as a connector and emphasized the importance of selfless players who improve the group around them. The coach also outlined a broader approach built around defense, rebounding, pace and sharing the ball.
Friday provided an early look at how those priorities might intersect.
Versatility can reduce the burden on any one position. If several players can rebound, Carolina does not have to rely exclusively on its center to finish defensive possessions. If more than one player can initiate offense, the team has alternatives when an opponent pressures its primary guard.
The challenge is converting that flexibility into clarity. Multiple ball handlers are useful only when teammates understand spacing, timing and responsibilities.
That coordination takes repetition. Friday showed some of the ingredients Carolina can work with, while leaving the staff further opportunities to determine which combinations make the best use of them.
Adams and the reserves strengthen UNC’s options
Freshman Maximo Adams supplied 11 points and six rebounds, adding a productive debut to Carolina’s second-unit effort.
His involvement was especially useful on a night when the Tar Heels needed contributors beyond their expected starting options. Malone praised his effort on the glass afterward and identified rebounding as a way Adams could affect games even when he was not scoring.
That is a valuable lesson for a young player. Offensive opportunities can vary from night to night. Pursuing rebounds, defending and competing for loose possessions provide additional ways to remain useful.
Those contributions also make lineup decisions easier. A coach can turn to a reserve with greater confidence when his value does not depend entirely on whether his first shot goes in.
Depth should ultimately be measured by function. Having several available players is different from having several players who can meet the needs of a particular game.
Friday suggested that Carolina has options worth exploring. The staff can continue testing which reserves complement the starters, which combinations defend best and which groups provide enough offensive organization.
The result also showed the benefit of receiving production from different places. A team becomes harder to disrupt when an opponent cannot assume that limiting two players will eliminate most of its offense.
Keita gets an early lesson against outside competition
Freshman center Sayon Keita experienced both the difficulty and the opportunity of a first college exhibition.
He finished with eight points and six rebounds. One memorable sequence saw him secure a steal and race toward an uncontested dunk, drawing an enthusiastic reaction from Carolina’s bench. He also accumulated four fouls in 19 minutes.
The combination offered a useful picture of a developing interior player: activity that can change possessions, alongside adjustments still needed to remain effective and available.
For young centers, timing is central. Helping too early can expose another player. Arriving late can lead to a foul. A successful defensive play requires reading both the ball and the movement around it.
The same applies to rebounding. Size helps, but positioning and anticipation determine whether a player actually secures the possession.
An exhibition against an unfamiliar opponent provides information that practice cannot completely reproduce. Teammates know one another’s tendencies. Outside competition introduces different speeds, physical habits and decisions.
Keita now has that experience to bring back to practice. The staff has a clearer basis for teaching, and he has a clearer picture of what those lessons require at game speed.
Carolina finds a better offensive balance
UNC’s offensive improvement after halftime deserves attention alongside its defense.
The Tar Heels made 15 of 28 second-half shots, compared with 11 of 31 in the first half. They also attempted fewer 3-pointers after the break: nine rather than 22. For the game, Carolina made 25 of 30 free throws and finished with a 47-33 rebounding advantage.
Those numbers suggest a more productive balance, although a box score cannot identify the quality of every attempt.
An effective offense needs perimeter shooting to stretch defenders. It also needs ways to pressure the basket and earn opportunities at the foul line. When those threats work together, defenders have fewer comfortable choices.
The distinction is between taking a shot because it is available and creating the kind of shot the team wants.
Carolina’s second half produced better results without requiring a dramatic increase in 3-point volume. That is an encouraging sign for a group still establishing its preferences.
Rebounding supported the effort as well. Securing the ball ends an opponent’s chance or extends a team’s own. Those additional possessions can matter greatly when the offense is still finding its rhythm.
The broader objective will be preserving that balance against different defensive approaches. Some opponents will concede outside attempts; others will crowd the perimeter and invite drives. Carolina needs enough options to respond.
Turnovers leave clear work to do
The most obvious concern was ball security.
Carolina committed 18 turnovers, and USC converted those mistakes into 24 points. The Trojans finished with 14 turnovers themselves, but UNC’s giveaways supplied opportunities that kept the visitors competitive before the game broke open.
A turnover damages more than offensive efficiency. Depending on where and how it occurs, it can leave the defense scrambling before it has time to establish position.
That creates a direct tension with Malone’s priorities. A team trying to build its identity around defense cannot repeatedly give an opponent easy opportunities through careless offense.
The remedy will require more than asking players to slow down. Some mistakes come from rushed decisions, while others result from uncertain spacing or teammates reading an action differently.
Film review can distinguish those problems. Repetition can then reinforce when to pass, where support should be available and which risks are worthwhile.
Carolina’s new combinations make some unevenness understandable. They also make the remaining preseason period important.
The encouraging defensive performance should not obscure this issue. Better possession management would allow the Tar Heels to receive more benefit from the stops and rebounds they worked to produce.
Malone gets a useful first test
Malone’s debut brought a warm reception and a practical introduction to coaching this group in a public setting.
“The reception [from the fans], I don’t take that lightly,” he said afterward.
The atmosphere gave the evening significance, but the coach’s most useful material came from the game itself: how the players reacted to falling behind, which substitutions helped and where the team’s execution improved or deteriorated.
Carolina entered the season with considerable change. UNC’s preseason information listed 11 newcomers and only one returning starter, Stevenson, following a 24-9 season in which the Tar Heels finished 12-6 in ACC play.
That amount of turnover makes early evaluation essential. Familiarity cannot be assumed, and roles may evolve as players demonstrate what they can consistently handle.
Returning players described intense, energetic practices in September, with teaching periods and live segments addressing different parts of the game. They also emphasized defensive communication and trust.
Friday began testing whether that preparation could hold up together. The answer was uneven at first and considerably better later-a useful outcome for a coach seeking both evidence of progress and specific teaching points.
Exhibition context keeps the assessment grounded
The victory came against a USC team that also had substantial adjustments to make.
The Trojans’ preseason roster included three returners, seven transfers and a highly regarded incoming recruiting class. Eric Musselman and Malone brought NBA head-coaching experience to the matchup, giving the exhibition an additional point of interest.
Neither team fielded its intended full roster. UNC’s postgame analysis reported that USC was missing KJ Lewis, Eric Reibe and Christian Collins because of injuries. Carolina played without Cameron Fens while awaiting eligibility clearance.
Those circumstances matter when interpreting the margin. Additional players can change defensive matchups, rebounding assignments and substitution patterns.
The result remains useful evidence of what the available Tar Heels accomplished. It should not become a sweeping forecast of either program’s season.
Exhibitions are most informative when they identify repeatable habits. Carolina’s defensive response, Stevenson’s assertiveness and contributions from several players are encouraging. The early breakdowns and turnovers remain part of the same assessment.
Next comes the test of repetition
Carolina’s next exhibition is scheduled for Oct. 18 against Indiana in Indianapolis, followed by an Oct. 27 home exhibition against Charlotte. The regular season opens Nov. 2 against Western Carolina in Chapel Hill.
Those games offer a chance to determine whether Friday’s strongest qualities carry forward. Can the Tar Heels defend with urgency before falling behind? Can Stevenson remain an assertive option? Can the guards reduce turnovers while preserving an attacking approach?
An 18-point victory gave Malone an encouraging first evening on Carolina’s sideline. Its clearest takeaway was the team’s ability to improve within the game and establish control through defense.
Greensboro supplied the first evidence of this team’s possibilities. The coming weeks will show which of them become dependable habits.