A big reason why North Carolina has been able to win three straight games on the road in the Atlantic Coast Conference has been their defense. The Tar Heels look like a totally different team on the defensive end of the floor as Hubert Davis has held Pitt, Clemson, and NC State to under 60 points.
One of the keys to the defensive resurgence has been Armando Bacot with his ability to grab boards on the defense end and impact shots. On Wednesday, Bacot went up against NC State center DJ Burns for the latest battle between the two teams. Burns finished the game with 11 points and 2 rebounds, matched up with Bacot as well as Jalen Washington at times.
Following the game, Bacot talked about Burns and the matchup:
“I think today I saw that I got smaller, and he got a lot bigger. And I told him, I was like ‘damn!’. I mean, I don’t know. He got a lot bigger than last year,” Bacot told reporters. “And I told him that. I’m like ‘dang!’ Because you know, I dropped like 10-15 pounds and it was tough. Coming into an environment like this and you know, every time he gets the ball they go crazy and I’m like ‘oh lord.’ But it was good, overall I think we did a great job.”
Bacot and Burns had their battles last year and it continued in the first matchup between the two teams. While Bacot only finished with nine points, he’s more than happy to get the most important thing — a win.
The two will meet again later in the season when NC State plays at North Carolina.
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