News & Observer | newsobserver.com | 2008 NCAA Men's Bracket

North Carolina senior Marcus Ginyard sat out his second consecutive game Sunday as he continues to rehabilitate his still-not-100 percent foot, and coach Roy Williams said Monday they've decided to "shut him down" from basketball practices and games.

"We don't have a set date — a week, two weeks, just try to get more rehab on that foot, try to get more of his explosiveness back, his quickness back, and get rid of some of that pain,'' he said.

Who would have thought UNC, now 0-2 in the league after losing to Boston College and at Wake Forest, would be so affected by the health of a guy who averaged only 6.9 points last season?

But the absence of Ginyard at full throttle has affected the Tar Heels in several ways:

1. Defense. Ginyard, who played against Boston College, was still too sore and slow to help guard point guard Tyrese Rice, who lit up the Tar Heels for 25 points. Then he had to watch from the bench as Wake's Jeff Teague scored 34 points in that victory. And it's no coincidence that UNC lost. Quite simply, last year's starting small forward is the team's best wing defender — and Danny Green, Wayne Ellington, Tywon Lawson and the reserves off the bench are struggling to take up the slack.

2. Production off the bench. While Ginyard's injury means the Tar Heels have another scorer, Green, in the starting lineup, that means there's no real offensive spark off the bench. Rebound-minded Ed Davis leads the reserves with 7.3 points per game, followed by Will Graves at 4.9 ppg. But back-up guard Bobby Frasor is making only a third of his shots — and all of a sudden, UNC is really missing freshman Tyler Zeller, who had shown a knack around the basket before he broke his wrist.

3. Leadership. Ginyard is one of the team's most vocal leaders, and it's hard to have an impact while in a suit on the bench. He's a guy his teammates look to when he's on the floor — and who sets and example by filling in the gaps with the "little things" besides points.

"What he gives us is our best defensive player; a guy that's going to take a charge, who's going to get an offensive rebound, who's going to get a key steal, who's going to bother  people with what he's doing as a total basketball player,'' Williams said. "Needless to say, we could use that right now."