By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — There was no tension for once and plenty of joy for North Carolina in one of its most impressive games of the season as the Tar Heels showed that they might be finding a bit of a groove.
RJ Davis definitely found his, hitting a banked-in, deep 3-pointer to beat the shot clock late in UNC’s 82–67 victory Tuesday night at the Smith Center. Davis finished with 26 points, three 3-pointers and a bloody nose after taking a right cross — actually an elbow from Matt Cross with two minutes left.
“I kind of stood my ground a little bit and reached in, and then his head face-planted in my nose, so that was gushing,” said Davis, who had gauze in his left nostril, adding that he has a sensitive nose and has suffered nose-bleeds since he was 7 years old. “I think today was the most blood I ever had because it was all over my hands. And I looked down, and there’s blood on the court.”
But it was a bloody-good game for the Tar Heels (10–6, 3–1 ACC), giving them a second consecutive victory and confidence heading into Saturday’s game at N.C. State.
“Overall, from a collective standpoint, I really like the way we played together,” RJ Davis said. “We shared the basketball. We were going from good to great shots. It was getting good stops defensively, and that was allowing us to get a transition bucket. So, I do believe we took a step forward.”
Carolina’s first-half energy led to top-level defense, and the Tar Heels outrebounded the taller Mustangs for much of the game. It also helped that some of the improved communication on defense continued.
“It was one of our best defensive halves,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said of the first half. “I felt like our pressure, our presence on the ball, created turnovers. We finished defensive possessions with a rebound.”
SMU (11–4, 2–2), the top offensive-rebounding team in the ACC, got better under the boards in the second half and won that battle 41–39, but Carolina’s work under the boards was a catalyst, led by seven rebounds from freshman Ian Jackson, who scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half.
“That always gives us life,” Coach Davis said of rebounding. “It allows us to get out in transition, where I feel like we’ve been consistently good all season. But it’s something that we talked about the last couple of days, just in terms of not allowing them to get second chance opportunities, how good they were keeping the ball alive.”
Like against Notre Dame, UNC built a lead and had a rough second-half stretch. But the Mustangs never got closer than 14 points as Carolina finished the victory.
Drake Powell found his shooting stroke with 14 of his 17 points and three of his four 3-pointers in the first half.
“My coaches keep telling me to be aggressive and just to let the game come to me,” Powell said. “It felt great just to keep shooting; my teammates were able to give me the ball.”
Guard Seth Trimble returned after missing three games with an upper-body injury, coming off the bench to play 10 scoreless minutes with three rebounds and two assists. Finding his rhythm will take some time since Monday’s practice was his first since recovering, and this was his first game since the Dec. 21 victory over UCLA.
“There’s nothing that you can do to get your rhythm other than being out there on the floor,” Coach Davis said. “And so he’ll be much better at practice on Thursday, and he’ll be much better on Saturday. But I expected him to be a little rusty because he hadn’t played for a long time, but I’m so happy that he’s back.”
Elliot Cadeau (7 points, 1 assist, 4 turnovers) got UNC rolling with a 3-pointer, a steal and a layup in the first 45 seconds but also picked up two fouls in the first four minutes, and SMU quickly tied it at 6. UNC scored the next nine points, finishing with Powell and Davis 3-pointers, to take a 15–6 lead with 13:06 left in the first half, with Trimble, Ven-Allen Lubin and Jackson also on the floor for most of that run.
A Davis jumper gave UNC a 10-point first-half lead for the second consecutive game. After SMU cut its deficit to six, a Cadeau transition layup restored the 10-point edge. A Powell jumper capped a 13–3 run.
Jackson scored his first points on a 3-pointer to put UNC up 16, and the Heels led 39–24 at halftime with seven 3-pointers after only averaging 7½ per game before Tuesday.
After SMU came out with energy that produced four offensive rebounds in the first two minutes after halftime, UNC matched that energy with good defense as it scored seven straight points to go up by 18 on a Ven-Allen Lubin bucket. The lead hit 25 when Jae’Lyn Withers’ three-point play off of a twisting baseline drive finished a another 13–3 run with 12:32 left.
UNC hit a sloppy offensive stretch with several turnovers. The Tar Heels went without a field goal for more than seven minutes, and SMU sliced the lead to 14 at 6:05 with a 14–3 run.
A Powell corner 3-pointer broke the field goal drought, and Davis hit two free throws after a technical foul on SMU coach Andy Enfield, pushing the lead back to 19.
“It was a challenging game,” Enfield said. “We missed some wide open 3s that enabled North Carolina to get a lead on us. They’re an outstanding transition team, we missed seven straight layups, and they were able to get out in transition. They made some tough shots tonight, and they’re a very good offensive team. It’s tough to win on the road, especially against North Carolina with the talent they have.”
Reserve Chuck Harris led SMU with 18 points, with B.J. Edwards adding 15 and Cross 13.
NOTES — UNC visits N.C. State at 4 p.m. Saturday (ACCN). The Wolfpack (9–6, 2–2) beat Notre Dame at home 66–65 on Wednesday night. … The Tar Heels have won 22 consecutive when holding opponents to fewer than 70 points. … SMU has two players who played in the ACC last season: guard Boopie Miller (9 points), who was at Wake Forest, and forward Cross, who was at Miami. … For the first time this season, junior Cade Tyson didn’t play. … With the win, Carolina is only 1½ games back of first-place Duke, and is one of five teams with one loss behind the unbeaten Blue Devils. … UNC is 3–1 against SMU after the first meeting since a 90–74 Tar Heels win in the Smith Center on Dec. 12, 1987. … Carolina shot 53.8% in the second half, the seventh consecutive game the Tar Heels have shot 50% or better after halftime. … UNC is 8–0 this season when leading at the half. … It was the 15th time in 16 games UNC shot a higher percentage in the second half than the first. … It was Davis’ 40th career game with at least 20 points (UNC is 31–9 in those games) and the 18th time he has scored 25 or more (UNC 13–5). … Jalen Washington, the only UNC player with a negative plus/minus at -1, blocked four shots and has nine in the past two games. … UNC’s three centers, Washington, Lubin and James Brown, combined for nearly 40 minutes but only seven points (all from Lubin) and five rebounds. … The attendance was announced as 19,594.
UNC 82, SMU 67
UNC lineup combinations
| Score | Time | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Segment score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starters | 20:00 | Cadeau | Davis | Jackson | Powell | Washington | 6–0 |
| 6–0 | 17:04 | Trimble | Jackson | 0–2 | |||
| 6–4 | 16:03 | Davis | Trimble | Jackson | Powell | Lubin | 12–6 |
| 15–9 | 12:34 | Powell | Withers | 9–5 | |||
| 18–10 | 11:59 | Washington | 5–3 | ||||
| 23–13 | 9:45 | Jackson | 0–1 | ||||
| 23–14 | 8:51 | Cadeau | Lubin | 4–3 | |||
| 27–17 | 6:42 | Davis | Trimble | Jackson | Powell | 3–2 | |
| 30–19 | 5:08 | Brown | 4–1 | ||||
| 34–20 | 2:47 | Lubin | 2–0 | ||||
| 36–20 | 2:15 | Trimble | Jackson | Powell | Withers | 3–4 | |
| 39–24 | 21.2 | Cadeau | Davis | Jackson | Powell | 0–0 | |
| 39–24 | Half | Washington | 6–6 | ||||
| 45–30 | 16:22 | Davis | Trimble | Lubin | 3–1 | ||
| 48–31 | 15:28 | Withers | 11–7 | ||||
| 59–38 | 13:04 | Cadeau | 4–0 | ||||
| 63–38 | 12:14 | Jackson | Powell | Washington | 1–4 | ||
| 64–42 | 10:44 | Davis | 0–0 | ||||
| 64–42 | 10:14 | Lubin | 0–2 | ||||
| 64–44 | 8:48 | Trimble | Powell | 0–1 | |||
| 64–45 | 7:46 | Davis | Trimble | Jackson | 12–15 | ||
| 76–60 | 3:00 | Cadeau | Davis | Washington | 3–5 | ||
| 79–65 | 2:03 | Trimble | 3–2 | ||||
| 82–67 | Final |
| Team | League | Overall | NET* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 3 Duke | 0–0 | 11–0 | 2 |
| California | 0–0 | 10–1 | 63 |
| No. 12 North Carolina | 0–0 | 10–1 | 15 |
| No. 23 Virginia | 0–0 | 9–1 | 21 |
| Miami | 0–0 | 10–2 | 33 |
| Virginia Tech | 0–0 | 10–2 | 58 |
| No. 11 Louisville | 0–0 | 9–2 | 17 |
| SMU | 0–0 | 9–2 | 43 |
| Stanford | 0–0 | 8–2 | 98 |
| Clemson | 0–0 | 9–3 | 32 |
| Notre Dame | 0–0 | 9–3 | 65 |
| Wake Forest | 0–0 | 9–3 | 59 |
| N.C. State | 0–0 | 8–4 | 34 |
| Georgia Tech | 0–0 | 7–4 | 189 |
| Syracuse | 0–0 | 7–4 | 96 |
| Pittsburgh | 0–0 | 6–6 | 154 |
| Boston College | 0–0 | 5–6 | 177 |
| Florida State | 0–0 | 5–6 | 148 |
* — Through Wednesday games
Tuesday’s results
No. 12 North Carolina 77, East Tennessee State 58
No. 3 Duke 97, Lipscomb 73
No. 20 Tennessee 83, No. 11 Louisville 62
Dayton 97, Florida State 69
Clemson 68, South Carolina 61
Miami 98, Florida International 81
Georgia Tech 87, Marist 76
Wednesday’s results
N.C. State 108, Texas Southern 72
Pittsburgh 103, Binghamton 6
Syracuse 76, Mercyhurst 62
Wake Forest 71, Longwood 68
UT Arlington at Stanford, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
Friday’s games
Mississippi Valley State at Florida State, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Morgan State at California, 10 p.m., ACCN Extra
Saturday’s games
Montana at No. 11 Louisville, noon, ACCN Extra
Lafayette at Georgia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Elon at Virginia Tech, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Ohio State vs. No. 12 North Carolina at CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta, 3 p.m., CBS
Northeastern at Syracuse, 4 p.m., ACCN Extra
Maryland at No. 23 Virginia, 6 p.m., ESPN
No. 3 Duke at No. 16 Texas Tech, 8 p.m., ESPN
Stanford at Colorado, 8 p.m., ESPNU
Sunday’s games
Penn State vs. Pittsburgh in Hershey, Pa., noon, Big Ten Network
Ole Miss vs. N.C. State in Greensboro, 1 p.m., ESPN
No. 13 Vanderbilt at Wake Forest, 1 p.m., The CW
Purdue Ft. Wayne at Notre Dame, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Central Arkansas at SMU, 2 p.m., ACCN Extra
Cincinnati vs. Clemson in Greenville, S.C., 3 p.m., ESPN
North Florida at Miami, 4 p.m., ACC Network
Columbia at California, 5 p.m., ACCN Extra
Monday’s games
American at Virginia, 6 p.m., ACCN Extra
Jacksonville at Florida State, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Stonehill at Syracuse, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
Fairleigh Dickinson at Boston College, 7 p.m., ACCN Extra
East Carolina at No. 12 North Carolina, 8 p.m., ACC Network
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 10 BYU in SLC | Exhib. |
| 29 | Wednesday | W, 95–53 | vs. Winston-Salem St. | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 94–54 | vs. Central Arkansas | 1–0 |
| 7 | Friday | W, 87–74 | vs. No. 17 Kansas | 2–0 |
| 11 | Tuesday | W, 89–74 | vs. Radford | 3–0 |
| 14 | Friday | W, 97–53 | vs. N.C. Central | 4–0 |
| 18 | Tuesday | W, 73–61 | vs. Navy | 5–0 |
| Fort Myers Tip-Off | ||||
| 25 | Tuesday | W, 85–70 | vs. St. Bonaventure | 6–0 |
| 27 | Thursday | L, 74–58 | vs. No. 9 Michigan State | 6–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge | |||
| 2 | Tuesday | W, 67–64 | at Kentucky | 7–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 81–61 | vs. Georgetown | 8–1 |
| 13 | Saturday | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. East Tennessee State | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | 3 p.m. | vs. Ohio State | CBS |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | 8 p.m. | vs. East Carolina | ACCN |
| 30 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Florida State | ESPN2 |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | 2:15 | at SMU | The CW |
| 10 | Saturday | 6 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 14 | Wednesday | 9 p.m. | at Stanford | ACCN |
| 17 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | at California | ACCN |
| 21 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Notre Dame | ESPN2 |
| 24 | Saturday | 2 or 2:30 | at No. 23 Virginia | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 3 Duke | ESPN |
| 10 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 14 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | vs. Pittsburgh | ESPN |
| 17 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at N.C. State | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 21 | Saturday | 1 p.m. | at Syracuse | ABC |
| 23 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 11 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 3 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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