Yeah, you still gotta take care of the rock

While marching to an NCAA title last season, few teams took better care of the basketball than North Carolina.  The Heels finished fourth nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.45.

"Be more like Ty, dammit!"

To give you an idea of how revealing the assist-to-turnover statistic is, the teams that finished in the top ten in that category in 08-09 had an average win total of 25.6.  At the other end of the spectrum, the teams that finished in the bottom ten of this category had an average win total of 9.7.

So it should be no surprise that North Carolina’s paltry win total to this point (13) has a whole lot to do with the fact that the team is currently ranked 92nd nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio.  At 1.05, that means the Heels are pretty much matching every assist with a turnover.

Carolina actually gets worse in ACC games, with an 0.8 A-T ratio against league opposition. We all knew that the loss of point guard Ty Lawson would hurt the Heels, I just didn’t think it would hurt quite this bad.

A team’s A-T ratio is pretty much tied to its point guard, so it’s no surprise that current Tar Heel point guard Larry Drew is sitting at 94th in the nation in this category at 1.92.  Compare that with the sick 3.48 ratio that Lawson generated last season.

But the stat that is probably most revealing about this team is turnover margin.  In league play, the Heels are dead last at -3.75, and it’s not even close, with Miami next in line at -2.56.

To be brutally honest, I don’t see things getting  much better for a team this sloppy.   At 13-10 with a month to go in the regular season, a sub .500 record for the defending champs is a very real possibility.

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