Going back to basics, Bacot goes old school to set new tone for UNC in ACC Tournament
In the wake of his selection to the ACC’s all-defensive team, and his career-best two 3-pointers in his final home game, Armando Bacot had announced to some of his teammates that he was now a “3-and-D guy,” NBA shorthand for a valuable bench asset who can fill two roles.
There was, it is safe to say, some skepticism at the pronouncement.
“I don’t think anyone was saying that,” teammate R.J. Davis said.
Bacot’s teammates describe him instead, not inaccurately, as a “troll” — he’s used a photo of a shirtless Beau Maye running through the woods as his Twitter profile pic for an uncomfortably long time — but either way Bacot hasn’t exactly been shy when it comes to leveraging his public profile.
We were probably dangerously close to a “Mondo 3-and-D” T-shirt. Instead, in his 10th career ACC Tournament game, he delivered a return to his core competencies, a performance torn straight from Bacot’s greatest hits.
Bacot got back to basics. Rebounding. Battling for every inch under the basket. Layups, not long range. A return to embracing his core strengths. Old school, not new school.
“Going into this game, I just knew my approach was to get deep and try to score as easy as possible, whether posting up or getting offensive rebounds,” Bacot said. And he did both.
If his teammates seemed determined to leave no doubt in a 92-67 thumping of Florida State, setting up a Friday semifinal against Pittsburgh, Bacot seemed determined to take care of business. The opponent, one of the few teams in the ACC as tall and deep and athletic, as North Carolina, would demand Bacot to play a big role. So too would the circumstances.
“He’s a bruiser,” Harrison Ingram said. “He’s a veteran. He’s been here, it’s his fifth year, and he’s showing us the way. He’s been in all the biggest games you can think of, him and R.J. He keeps us calm, keeps us ready to go and he’s such a load inside that it makes things easier for us.”
On one possession late in the first half, Bacot had two of North Carolina’s four consecutive offensive rebounds (and also one of the misses) before his putback finally gave the Tar Heels a 46-27 lead.
For someone who has set records for recording double-doubles, it was his first in five games — 14 points and 10 rebounds, one of four UNC players in double figures — and brought him within four of Tim Duncan’s ACC-record 87. Statistically, even, this was a return to everything that has made him successful.
But even without a 3-point attempt — for the second straight game! — Bacot certainly brought the D. That’s been an ongoing process over his five years, an evolution, from liability to quarterback.
“Armando does a good job of just talking early and communicating, not just with myself, but just with the whole team,“ Davis said. “His presence has been huge for this whole team this whole year. The way he’s been defending, I know we switch a lot, so he’s able to guard smaller guards and ball at the same time, guard the post. Even with no ball screen coverages he makes my job easier, because I know he has my back and vice versa.”
As a rare treat, with the second half out of hand, Bacot also got to watch most of the final 10 minutes from a seat between coaches Marcus Paige and Jeff Lebo, resting for what he hopes is a longer stay here than previously in his career. For all his postseason experience, his ACC Tournament record is a tepid 6-4, still chasing that elusive championship. Paige won a title here in 2016. Lebo in 1989. Just as with the regular season, there’s still that hole on Bacot’s resume.
A year ago, after a Thursday loss to Virginia in Greensboro, Bacot was forced to confront the impending and unexpectedly early end of what was potentially his last season, a low point to be sure. On this Thursday, Bacot could look ahead to a Friday night semifinal, an unachieved goal coming closer into focus.
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This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 3:21 PM with the headline "Going back to basics, Bacot goes old school to set new tone for UNC in ACC Tournament."
