College Basketball Week 1: 5 biggest takeaways

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Nov 11, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Justin Jackson (44) drives past Tulane Green Wave guard Melvin Frazier (35) during the second half of a game at the Smoothie King Center. North Carolina defeated Tulane 95-75. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

5. Can North Carolina shoot?

North Carolina entered the season facing plenty of questions for a team coming off of an appearance in the national title game. That’s a natural reaction after the Tar Heels lost two of their most productive players — seniors Marcus Paige and Brice Johnson — from a roster that finished 33-7 last season. With plenty of talent left on the roster to help assuage concerns about the impact felt by the loss of Paige and Johnson, bigger questions began to arise regarding how the team would score. Under head coach Roy Williams,

North Carolina has a bit of a history of failing to produce from beyond the three-point arc and this year’s roster seemed due to repeat the trope.

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After the Tar Heels first two games — a 20-point road win over Tulane and a 40-point thrashing of Chattanooga, a team that made the NCAA Tournament last season — it may be time to temper some of those worries. Of course it’s a small sample size, but the Tar Heels have converted 45.7 percent of their 35 three-point attempts so far this season. Most importantly, there are promising signs that swingman Justin Jackson has improved his three-point stroke. Jackson has backed up the offseason talk of an improving jumper by knocking down six of his 10 three-point attempts over the course of the two games. If he can improve his percentage from last season (29.2 percent) to something in the mid-30s, it’ll give North Carolina a much more balanced and dangerous offensive attack.