John Wall is building quite a reputation as a clutch player

It started with a game-winning jumper in his debut as a Wildcat as Kentucky held-on against a hot-shooting Miami OH team.

Then in the finals of the Cancun Challenge, Wall hit a tough 12 foot fadeaway to tie the game with thirty seconds left before hitting two free throws with 2.4 seconds left to send the game to OT.

Today, he sealed Carolina's fate.

UNC was down by as much as 17 in the first half, but the resilient Heels kept chipping away as Wall dealt with leg cramps in the second half. After a Deon Thompson tip-in cut the lead to three, Wall stepped to the line, shook off a rough second half, and calmly sank two free throws to ice the win. He would finish with 16 points, 7 assists, and 5 boards, going for 13 and 6 dimes in the first half.

John Wall threw down in transition early in a win against UNC.
(photo credit: AP)

Wall struggled a bit in the second half, which, regardless of reputation, should be expected from a freshman playing his first game against a top 10 team after being slowed by cramps.

But that should not diminish how good Wall, and the Wildcats as a whole, looked in the first half.

Wall was the main spark in a massive 26-2 first half run that turned a 9-2 deficit into a 28-11 lead. He looked unstoppable in transition, as he finished three impressive drives early on. First, he crossed over Larry Drew at the foul line before finishing with a dunk. A minute later, he went around two UNC defenders, finishing a tough, acrobatic lay-up on the other side of the rim as he was falling down. A few possessions later, he went left, using his long strides to get around Drew and finish a left-handed lay-up while drawing a foul.

We all know this about Wall, however.

Every basketball fan in the country has seen his youtube mixtapes or the viral videos of NBA players getting dunked on.

What impressed me the most about Wall in the first half is that he not only made the spectacular plays, he made the right plays. The smart passes. He was kicking to open shooters when he drew an extra defender. He attacked back pedaling defenders in transition and pulled the ball out when he didn't have numbers. He was able to get Patrick Patterson touches in the post.

Wall today showed why many believe he is destined to be the first pick in the NBA Draft.

That's not to say that Wall doesn't still have quite a bit to learn.

The biggest issue was his turnovers. Where Wall made the right decision seemingly every time he touched the ball in the first half, the second half was a different story. He over penetrated, he picked up a charge, and, to use a basketball cliche I typically hate, he didn't seem to be as in tune with the flow of the game.

Basically, he played like a freshman.

"John (Wall) turned it over and did some crazy stuff, but that is what a freshman does," Coach Cal said after the game. "We called a play and he drove in and ran a guy over."

"Other than the seven turnovers, if he had three turnovers then he would have played a perfect game for a point guard."