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PITTSBURGH – North Carolina closed their January schedule with an impressive 75-65 victory in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, marking their sixth win in seven games.
The Tar Heels (11-5, 6-3 ACC) built on their size advantage at both ends of the pitch, running from the inside offensively to shoot 52.5% while consistently frustrating the Panthers at the edge (10 on 27 on layups) to keep Jeff Capel’s side at 41.8 percent shooting.
UNC held Pitt without a basket for more than eight minutes in the first half to take a 34-27 lead at the break. The Tar Heels retired with a 17-7 run midway through the second half to take a 64-49 lead with 8:24 remaining. The Panthers threatened to make it a game with a 10-0 finish, but UNC scored seven of the game’s last nine points to solidify the victory.
UNC set a record 60.7% in the second half, marking the fourth time in five halves they shot better than 51%.
The Tar Heels once again received various scoring contributions as three players hit double the numbers and seven scored at least five points. Armando Bacot led UNC with a season record 21 points on 8 of 10 shots and 10 rebounds, while Garrison Brooks added 16 points on 8 of 11 shots. Kerwin Walton contributed 10 points for his fifth game at two digits of the season.
Caleb Love struggled to shoot the ball (8 points, 3 of 10 FG, 1 of 5 3 FG, 1 of 4 FT), but had his best assist-to-spin ratio of the season (5: 1).
Justin Champagnie led all scorers with 23 points on 7 of 9 shots to go along with nine rebounds, but he didn’t get much help as his teammates combined to shoot 34.8 percent from the ground.
The victory gave UNC a much-needed Q1 victory for their resumption of the NCAA tournament after losing their first four games to this quality of opponent.
Regular post-play diet
The Tar Heels built on their size advantage against the smaller Pittsburgh side, continuing a successful trend in recent weeks. Three days after scoring 39 points on 19 of 32 shots against NC State, the UNC greats had 43 points on 19 of 26 shots. Bacot and Brooks made their presence felt early, scoring 21 points on 10 of 13 shots. in the first half.
Offensive rebound
Tuesday’s game was billed as a game between the ACC’s top offensive rebounding teams, although their differential on the defensive glass was significant both in the stat book and on the court at the Petersen Events Center.
The UNC rebounded from 43.8% of their failures and limited Pitt to an offensive rebound percentage of 32.4. The result was a 37-29 rebound and an 18-9 second-chance points advantage for the Tar Heels.
The game of the game
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– Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) January 27, 2021
next
UNC remains available for a rescheduled match this weekend, though their next contest is currently scheduled for next Tuesday at Clemson (7 p.m. / ACCN). The Tigers cooled off after a hot start, losing their last three games by an average of 24 points.
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