UNC Tar Heels Basketball Team Battle and Finish in OT Against Syracuse
by Derrick Clyburn
The North Carolina basketball team caught Syracuse on a hot shooting night. They hit their first seven shots led by Cole Swider who lit the Tar Heels up for 36 points. Syracuse shot 50% for the game. It was a back and forth game with several players hitting big buckets. This game had a lot at stake for North Carolina. The bracketologist has them on the bubble even though they had won 21 games coming into this contest.
The Tar Heels had to fight and scrap to get the victory over the pesky Syracuse Orange. Nothing came easy. Caleb Love came alive in the last 3 minutes of regulation and in the overtime period with 14 points. Where 8 of those points came in overtime. UNC had four players in double-figures with all of them at least scoring 17 points. Armando Bacot tied Brice Johnson for his 23rd double-double of the year with 17 points and 18 rebounds.
UNC Game Stats
1st 2nd OT TOT
North Carolina 41 32 15 88
Syracuse 36 37 6 79
North Carolina
| STARTERS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||||||||
| A. Bacot F | — | 5-12 | 0-0 | 7-9 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | ||||||||
| R. McAdoo F | — | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| B. Manek F | — | 9-18 | 3-6 | 1-2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 22 | ||||||||
| R.J. Davis G | — | 6-13 | 5-11 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 17 | ||||||||
| L. Black G | — | 2-6 | 2-5 | 2-2 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||
| BENCH | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS | ||||||||
| P. Johnson G | — | 1-3 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||||||||
| C. Love G | — | 6-19 | 4-12 | 5-5 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 21 | ||||||||
| TEAM | 29-71 | 14-36 | 16-20 | 16 | 28 | 44 | 21 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 88 | |||||||||
| 40.8% | 38.9% | 80.0% | |||||||||||||||||||
Syracuse
| STARTERS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| C. Swider F | — | 14-21 | 7-11 | 1-2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 36 |
| J. Boeheim F | — | 4-12 | 0-4 | 2-2 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 10 |
| F. Anselem C | — | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| J. Girard III G | — | 4-12 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 9 |
| B. Boeheim G | — | 5-13 | 2-5 | 2-2 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| BENCH | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | OREB | DREB | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PF | PTS |
| B. Williams F | — | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| B. Sidibe C | — | 3-3 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| TEAM | 31-63 | 10-25 | 7-8 | 5 | 25 | 30 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 11 | 15 | 79 | |
| 49.2% | 40.0% | 87.5% |
UNC Bright Spots
Brady Manek had 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Caleb Love had 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Armando Bacot had 17 points, 18 rebounds, and 2 assists.
R.J. Davis had 17 points, 2 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Needs Work
The Tar Heels with intensity on the defensive end which will spark the offense. They played great defense in spurts but need to bring more consistency throughout the game.
Final Observations
North Carolina is now 22-8 on the season and 14-5 in the ACC. They will get a double-bye for the ACC Tournament. Hubert Davis has done a great job in his first season with so many high expectations. Yes, he is still on his learning curve and needs to make quicker adjustments and use his bench more wisely to give his players some rest.
However, this team is getting better and winning games under pressure with close possessions. Puff Johnson has become a key addition this late in the season. He plays with energy and has played solid defense to starters a breather. Next up is Duke in Durham on Saturday at 6 pm.