MMBOD Mar 06: T.J. Carter - North Carolina-Wilmington

So what if their shooters can't hit the side of a barn? When you limit your tourney opponents to 33%, 30% and 38% shooting, you can afford to toss it into the pasture more often. UNC Wilmington will take the sixth most efficient defense in the country (.872 PA per def. possession) all the way to the Tournament. They used that D to win 25 games in an extremely tough Colonial, and you know what they say about defense and championships and all that.

It would be unfair to call any of these UNCW players the heart and soul of that defense, because it's a collective soul. But the 6'3" Carter has shone is weekend, locking down defenders and leading the Seahawks in scoring each of UNCW's three games, culminating his experience in Richmond with a devastating 23-and-13 double-double. He's led his team in scoring the last seven games, so some unlucky power-conference team will have to solve him. If they can't, UNCW might just repeat its 2002 Round Of 32 performance.