CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – With the Phoenix down by double digits late with a raucous crowd behind the Tar Heel faithful, it seemed like a comeback of any sort would be insurmountable for the Elon University men's basketball team in its season opener on Monday night.
Even though No. 9 North Carolina held a commanding 12 point lead with 10:58 left, the Heels quickly saw its margin dwindle when the Elon backcourt went on an impressive scoring run.
"To be in this environment, it can be pretty intimidating, but our guys were ready to step up when the moment was called upon," head coach Billy Taylor said.
As sophomore guards Nick Dorn and
TJ Simpkins scored 14 unanswered points over the next four minute stretch – respectively notching six and eight points in the span – each basket progressively deflated a rambunctious Dean E. Smith Center.
With All-ACC rookie guard Elliot Cadeau's hand in his face, Dorn drained a fading sidestep three-pointer on the left wing in front of the Elon bench to knot the Phoenix and the Heels at 69-apiece with 7:12 left.
In addition to his game-tying three, Dorn scored 17 points while making 5-of-10 three-pointers, or 50% on the night from beyond the arc. Dorn explained his poise to hit a shot like he did was rooted in affirmations of reassurance from the entire team and staff.
"It's really just staying confident in my shot, no matter if I miss it," Dorn said. "Miss it long, miss it short, right, left, just staying with the flow. My coaches believe in me, my teammates believe in me and I believe in the work that I put in."
Taylor said the ability of his team to stay composed, especially on the road against an AP top-10 opponent, stems from a collective confidence throughout the entire roster.
"The great thing about our team is they believe in themselves," Taylor said. "Obviously, we were picked 12th in the [CAA this] preseason. Not many people gave us much of a chance at all in here tonight. But our kids don't believe in any of that nonsense."
Dorn added that a play like his game-tying shot reminded him how much he likes to be part of big moments in high-pressure situations, especially under the brightest of lights.
"It was a great feeling playing in here, it's very loud, you feel it on the court when everybody starts jumping," Dorn said. "I love playing [in] environments like that. Just brings the best out of me."
Simpkins provided valuable minutes off the bench and gave the Phoenix a 71-69 lead at 6:48 thanks to a pair of free throws off a fastbreak attempt. Simpkins' makes also marked Elon's first advantage since 19-17 at the 12:47 mark in the first half.
Taylor explained his newcomer guard's ability to come off the bench as a sparkplug in his first game – finishing with 18 points in 22 minutes – is inspiring for the depth of the Elon roster going forward.
"To see Tajuan step up like that after a slow start, again, really says a lot about him as a player," Taylor said. "And it just [speaks] to the versatility that we have someone like Tajuan that can come off the bench and score 18."
Though Cadeau and RJ Davis, the reigning ACC Player of the Year, took over late in the game and never relinquished the Tar Heels' lead again en route to a 90-76 win, Taylor said he was very pleased his team hanging around late with a high-caliber opponent like North Carolina.
"I love the tenacity that we showed," Taylor said.
"They came out and competed the way they did, [I] couldn't be more proud," Taylor added.
Dorn said because Elon was able to challenge and go head-to-head with one of the best teams in the country, it gives the Phoenix a sense of belief that the roster can compete with any team on any night this season.
"It just gives us a lot more confidence going into any opponent that we play the rest of the schedule," Dorn said.
"With the rest of our schedule, we feel like we can do damage," Dorn added.
Even though Taylor was content with some facets of Elon's play, he explained there are still several things his team needs to improve upon going forward. With the Phoenix having double-digit turnovers, a negative assist-to-turnover ratio and giving up 18 offensive rebounds, Taylor said if the team can polish up on those areas, he believes the Phoenix should be in a great position moving forward.
"We have a very good team, and now it's just a matter of us going back and tightening up some of the areas that we didn't feel we were as sharp," Taylor said.
"It really speaks to what we can become if we can clean up some of those areas of our game," Taylor added.
The Phoenix will look to its home opener at Schar Center scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 9 at 8 p.m. against Bluefield.
'Rising Phoenix' is a student-led initiative to cover Elon Athletics. Through innovative content creation and storytelling, Elon University students will have the opportunity to highlight the moments, people and events that make an impact, leveraging the athletic department's various web and social media platforms for distribution. Follow Rising Phoenix on X (@EURisingPhoenix) and Instagram (@elonrisingphoenix). Interested in joining this initiative as a content creator (video, graphics, writing, storytelling, or more)? Contact Chase Strawser at cstrawser@elon.edu.
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