The UNC men’s basketball program brought out the brooms Saturday, sweeping NC State after a 79-70 victory.
Despite being the superior team, the Tar Heels struggled out the gate and the finish, proving no matter the record, when two rival teams face off you can throw records out the window. Outside of play being played at a higher level due to the rivalry aspect, UNC did a few right and wrong things that caused the rollercoaster affair.
A lot went right for UNC to secure the victory, but a majority of what went wrong took place in the first half, which is why the game was close in the first place.
In the first half, the defense was nonexistent, with NC State knocking in seven triples (64%), shooting 57.6% from the field to pour in 45 points. 13 of those 45 points were scored by UNC turnovers, as NC State continued to capitalize off the Tar Heels mistakes.
The second half painted a completely different story, with UNC playing juggernaut defense. They held NC State to 22.8% from the field in the second half, including a stretch of 15 consecutive missed shots for the Wolfpack. NC State’s hot shooting from three also vanished, knocking in 2 of 8 three-point attempts.
The finish was nearly a disaster, with UNC not delivering the blowout that was breading but getting the job done despite the few drops of sweat.
From an offensive standpoint, UNC did a great job attacking the basket, resulting in 27 free throw attempts, which they capitalized by shooting 85.2% from the line. [autotag]Elliot Cadeau[/autotag] had an aggressive outing, pushing the pace with 15 points and seven assists.
This win was ideal for UNC, who has two big games left, big for their reasons. They will take on Notre Dame on Tuesday, marking [autotag]Armando Bacot’s[/autotag] and potentially [autotag]RJ Davis’s[/autotag] last game in the Dean Smith Center. Then they travel across the street to take on arch-rival Duke Blue Devils, as they look to complete the regular season sweep.
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