Ian Jackson’s scoring run already one for the UNC basketball record books
The cut under Ian Jackson’s right eye gave him the look of a boxer. He had just made a mark of his own in the North Carolina record book.
The first freshman to score 20 or more points in four straight games since Tyler Hansbrough, Jackson had every sense what all of that meant after his career-high 27 in Saturday’s 74-73 win over Notre Dame.
“So when somebody else does it, it’ll say ‘Since Ian Jackson?’” Jackson asked in the aftermath, and exalted in the confirmation.
The lanky forward showed the first flashes of his scoring prowess in North Carolina’s loss to Alabama, but over the past two weeks he has become the fulcrum of the UNC offense with Seth Trimble out and opponents fully dedicating themselves to forcing the ball out of R.J. Davis’ hands.
What once seemed like a simple defensive equation for North Carolina opponents has become a complicated one, with SMU the next to attempt to solve it Tuesday at the Smith Center.
It’s been an incredible run for Jackson: 24 against UCLA, 26 against Campbell, 23 at Louisville, 27 at Notre Dame. His personal highlight in Saturday’s win was a transition dunk off a feed from Davis, but he also carried the Tar Heels through a first half when he was the only option they had on offense, then made the feed to Elliot Cadeau for a game-winning 4-point play in the final seconds.
Jackson has become North Carolina’s go-to option when the offense breaks down, able to create his own space and his own shot, and the most impressive thing about his ability to score is how easy he makes it look, a free-wheeling wild card who can be as unpredictable with the ball in his hands as he is explosive.
That can get him in trouble. It can also get him buckets few others can. The duality of Ian Jackson must be embraced.
“You’ve got to let him go a little bit,” North Carolina coach Hubert Davis said. “He likes to get into it. That’s who he is. … That’s where he is at his best, when he’s playing fast and free.”
Jackson started out a bit player, working his way into the rotation until the Alabama game, when his full arsenal of offense was suddenly on display. That was just a taste of what was to come. The performance against UCLA at Madison Square Garden provoked his promotion into the starting lineup; Jackson has not looked back.
When you’re doing things that haven’t been done since Hansbrough, and that Hansbrough didn’t do, that says so much.
“I wouldn’t say anything has changed,” Jackson said. “The opportunity presented itself and I was ready. Coach Davis put me in the starting lineup and gave me the opportunity to go out and perform.”
The Notre Dame game wasn’t just another example of him carrying the North Carolina offense through a drought the way he did in the first half. It also showed his defensive improvement, becoming less of a liability in that department, blocking a shot on the baseline, stripping a ball-handler.
But that’s not his true strength, which is the way he can score both within and outside the framework of the offense, in tight spaces and in the open court, with frequency and ability and …
“... ease” Davis said, jumping in to finish a question.
“He’s 6-6, athletic, he can get to his spots anytime he wants,” Davis continued, answering the question he had finished. “Ballhandler. Score at three levels. Score with contact. It’s just easy for him. A lot of the time, it’s coming off of just playing basketball. It’s not necessarily me calling ‘Secondary Ian.’ He’s always been a gifted scorer. He’s getting better defensively, distributing the basketball, learning how to take care of it as well. We needed every bit of his game today.”
No one had done that since Hansbrough, but it was more than that. No North Carolina freshman had ever scored 23 or more in four straight games, not even Hansbrough.
Not until Ian Jackson.
Never miss a Luke DeCock column. Sign up at www.newsobserver.com/newsletters to have them delivered directly to your email inbox as soon as they post.
Luke DeCock’s Latest: Never miss a column on the Canes, ACC or other Triangle sports
This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Ian Jackson’s scoring run already one for the UNC basketball record books."
