UNC Basketball Moments After – UNC vs. Va. Tech 96-81 Win
UNC Tar Heels Basketball Team Bounces Back With a Great Home Win Over the Hokies
by Derrick Isaiah Clyburn
The North Carolina basketball team looked to bounce back against Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon after a tough loss to Syracuse last Tuesday night. After going scoreless for the first couple of minutes of the game, the Tar Heels finally woke up and went on a 9-0 run to put them ahead. However, the game was close for the first ten minutes of the first half. Virginia Tech hit some tough shots early and took advantage of UNC’s lack of intensity defensively. Once the Tar Heels picked up their intensity defensively, they started to pull away from the Hokies because of their consecutive stops that would lead to transition offense for the Heels. In addition, UNC made a concerted effort to use their size advantage and dominate in the paint. Carolina would extend their lead to as much as 14 in the first half and Harrison Ingram was the driving force as he had a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds before halftime.
In the second half, UNC picked up where they left off in the first half continuing to dominate in the paint. The key to UNC’s second-half success though was their excellent ball movement offensively, and their ability to run Virginia Tech off the three-point line and force the Hokies into contested shots. The Tar Heels held the Hokies to just 27% from three and completely disrupted everything Virginia Tech was trying to do offensively. Meanwhile, offensively, North Carolina shot 57% from the field after halftime and led by as much as 16 in the second half. The Heels finished with 54 points in the paint and dominated on the boards as well. Carolina’s size and length inside and their ability to score in different ways was just too much for Virginia Tech. The Tar Heels also did a pretty good job for most of the game defensively. UNC held Virginia Tech’s two top scorers, Sean Pedulla and Hunter Catoor, to 3-13 and 3-10 from the field respectively, making everything difficult for them every time down the court.
After the Tar Heels took the lead early in the game, they never relinquished it and just wore down the Hokies for the rest of the game with their pace, consistency in getting downhill to the basket, and their overall defense. Armando Bacot was completely dominant and unstoppable in the second half with 19 points and finished the game with 25 points and 10 rebounds, really making his presence felt inside. Three other starters including RJ Davis, Cormac Ryan, and Harrison Ingram, scored in double figures. The Heels also got strong contributions off the bench from Jae’lyn Withers, Jalen Washington, and Seth Trimble. It was a complete team effort from North Carolina from start to finish, which led them to their 20th win of the season and 96-81 victory over Virginia Tech.
UNC Game Stats
| 1 | 2 | T | |
| Virginia Tech 14-11 | 39 | 42 | 81 |
| 7 North Carolina 20-6 | 50 | 46 | 96 |
| STARTERS | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| A. Bacot | 25 | 12 | 1 | 11/16 | 0/0 | 3/3 | 3 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| R. Davis | 20 | 2 | 5 | 6/13 | 3/8 | 5/6 | 3 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| C. Ryan | 16 | 2 | 2 | 4/11 | 4/7 | 4/4 | 3 | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| H. Ingram | 12 | 17 | 2 | 4/11 | 0/4 | 4/5 | 1 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| E. Cadeau | 8 | 2 | 4 | 4/7 | 0/2 | 0/0 | 3 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| BENCH | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| J. Washington | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3/4 | 0/0 | 1/2 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| S. Trimble | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1/2 | 0/0 | 2/2 | 2 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Withers | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2/4 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| P. Wojcik | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| D. Farris | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| J. Okonkwo | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| R. Landry | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Z. High | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| C. Lebo | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 96 | 40 | 18 | 35/68 | 7/21 | 19/23 | 18 | – | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| STARTERS | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| M. Collins | 18 | 3 | 3 | 7/15 | 2/6 | 2/2 | 2 | 39 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| H. Cattoor | 11 | 4 | 3 | 3/10 | 1/6 | 4/4 | 2 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| L. Kidd | 11 | 2 | 0 | 5/7 | 0/0 | 1/1 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| S. Pedulla | 10 | 6 | 5 | 3/13 | 0/4 | 4/6 | 1 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| R. Beran | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0/2 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| BENCH | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | FT | PF | MIN | STL | BLK | TO |
| M. Poteat | 15 | 8 | 0 | 5/8 | 0/0 | 5/5 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| T. Nickel | 14 | 1 | 1 | 5/8 | 4/6 | 0/0 | 1 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| J. Young | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0/2 | 0/2 | 2/2 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| P. Wessler | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| B. Rechsteiner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/1 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Camden | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| M. Ward | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| C. Venable | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| M. Long | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Total | 81 | 29 | 13 | 28/67 | 7/26 | 18/20 | 19 | – | 5 | 3 | 6 |
UNC Bright Spots
Armando Bacot had 25 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1 block.
RJ Davis had 20 points, 5 assists, and 1 block
Cormac Ryan had 16 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists,1 steal, and 1 block.
Harrison Ingram had 12 points, 17 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Needs Work
When Carolina has a lead, they need to do a better job of extending their leads. Too many times they get lazy and unfocused defensively and allow their opponent to get a rhythm offensively. In addition, offensively, they need to stick with running the successful plays that got them the lead and not fall into the trap of playing iso ball and jacking up threes.
Final Observations
The Tar Heels improve to 20-6 on the season, 12-3 in ACC play. This is the 64th consecutive season with at least 20 wins and just shows why North Carolina continues to be one of the best college basketball programs in the country. Over the last couple of games, the Tar Heels have been up and down with their play. The one bright side is after every recent loss, they have bounced back with a win and avoided consecutive losses. This shows their ability to get back up after losing, overcome adversity, and step up to the challenge when presented to them. That is what separates this team from the last couple of North Carolina teams and why they have positioned themselves as a top-10 team.
When the Heels are clicking on all cylinders and locked in, we know they can be one of the top teams in the country. North Carolina’s focus now needs to be bringing the same energy, urgency, and focus to each game and playing like they have something to prove every game they play. UNC is atop the standings in the ACC and is now playing for a top seed in the NCAA tournament. With a week off until their next game, it will give ample time for the Tar Heels to address any nagging injuries to players and areas they can be better and more efficient at on the floor as they enter this last stretch of the regular season. Next up is Virginia on Saturday, February 24 at 4:00 P.M. on ESPN.