Seahawks Spread the Love in Opening Victory
Balanced effort helps UNCW blow past Mount Olive early, mix lineups late
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For all of UNCW’s accomplishments in the past three seasons, one had eluded the Seahawks until Monday night.
That one — as in 1-0 — became reality for the first time under Coach Takayo Siddle as UNCW never trailed in a 105-66 victory over Mount Olive at Trask Coliseum.
“Is that so?,” Siddle asked play-by-play man Mike Vaccaro. “You can’t be 2-0 unless you’re 1-0, right?”
It was the first season-opener in Wilmington since 2020, and the packed student section was treated to a preview of the new-look Hawks’ balanced, uptempo style.
Trazarien White led UNCW with 23 points and 7 rebounds in just 18 minutes, while KJ Jenkins hit 4 of 6 from 3-point range on his way to a 14-point debut, playing 17 minutes.
Nick Farrar had another excellent all-around performance with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists, while Shykeim Phillips returned from injury to score 10 points in his 100th game as a Seahawk.
The game was never in doubt after the first five minutes, and the Seahawks led by as many as 42 points before emptying the bench. We’ll keep it brief tonight, given the margin, but there are a few points worth touching on.
Keeping their Balance
After watching UNCW lean on a few players for buckets over the past two seasons, Monday night was a little different.
In all, 12 Seahawks scored while 10 different players saw at least 15 minutes of action. Only two — Shemar Rathan-Mayes (24) and Nolan Hodge (27) — played more than 20 minutes.
With the amount of talent UNCW had on the floor tonight, it’s tough to believe we’re not far removed from having to dress manager for a game.
In all, the Hawks handed out 15 assists on 38 made buckets and shared the ball well. As Siddle pointed out, UMO also provided one-on-one opportunities that might not be there against bigger Division I teams.
“We’re so much more balanced now that we don’t have to play selfish basketball,” Siddle said. “I still think it’s a lot more assists out there for us to get. We had our way, kind of getting downhill and getting to the rim one-on-one, but I just told them that’s false reality a little bit; let’s make sure we’re making the right play.
“My message is going to be — and has been — ‘Just play the right way.’ That was one of our keys for offense — that was the only key I had — just play the right way, and we’ve got to continue to do that.”
Also of note, the five-for-five substitutions and fairly vanilla offense didn’t put much on tape for UNC Asheville ahead of Saturday’s game, as the Seahawks didn’t put any unnecessary minutes on anyone’s legs, either.
Get Tough
The Seahawks completely controlled the game, and it was never in doubt.
The Seahawks didn’t dominate the game or play as well as they could have.
Both things can be true, and we’re pretty fortunate to be able to say that after a 39-point victory.
“I told them I didn’t think we were tough enough right now,” Siddle said.
Mainly, Siddle wasn’t pleased that UMO held a 23-20 rebounding edge in the first half, including a 10-4 advantage on the offensive boards.
“There were so many loose balls; they shot a lot of threes, so many loose balls floating around the 3-point line, and sometimes we stand, and we watch versus anticipating and going to attack it.
“We’ve got to grow in that area tremendously if we want to go up there (Asheville) and beat a really good team.”
Part of that toughness equation was also seeing the Trojans come up with 5 of 7 50/50 balls in the first half.
“I don’t like that … we’ve got to clean that up in order to win at the highest level, and I know we will,” Siddle said. “I know they care about winning, so we’ll clean that up this week.”
It seemed the halftime message was received, at least, with UNCW winning the second-half rebounding battle 28-18.
The Missing Piece
In each of the past two seasons, the Seahawks have lacked a true knockdown sharpshooter, and as a team, struggled to knock down the 3-pointer.
It seems that’s going to change this season, thanks in part to the arrival of Jenkins.
He gave the crowd a little preview of his lightning-quick release early in the first half, including one completely absurd pull-up three in transition.
It’s hard to say a guy is going to make X number of threes or be as good as X great player in program history, but man, if that shooting stroke wasn’t as beautiful as a a certain guy whose jersey is hanging in Trask.
“He’s really good, isn’t he?,” Siddle said, smiling. “He can really shoot it; probably one of the best I’ve seen up close, in-person; one of the best I’ve coached for sure.
“It’s smooth when it comes off. It’s to a point now, when he shoots, every time you think he’s going to make it, so that’s a good thing. We needed that with our group, and I’m glad we have him on our side.”
Overall, the Seahawks hit 9 of 22 shots from beyond the arc on Monday night.
Last season, UNCW hit nine or more 3-pointers in just six of 34 games. Only four times did they hit 40 percent or better in games in which they put up 20 or more attempts.
Credit the Students
On a night that there was wall-to-wall college hoops on television and all of the other stuff you can do in Wilmington, the students showed up big-time to watch a blowout.
There were times we were a bit critical of the student turnout last year, so credit where it’s due: they not only filled up the bleachers courtside, but also used a number of the overflow seats upstairs.
Unfortunately, the rest of Wilmington didn’t follow suit, with a total attendance of 3,577. Hopefully, that changes long before we get to CAA play.
Up Next
Saturday, at UNC Asheville (2 pm, ESPN+)
The Seahawks aren’t wasting time jumping into the fire, traveling to visit the Big South favorite on Saturday afternoon.
Coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance, the Bulldogs have eight players in their fourth or fifth year of college hoops, including Big South Player of the Year Drew Pember (20.9 points, 9.1 rebounds).
We’re fortunate to be a part of one of the best mid-major matchups of the season.