UNC Tar Heels Basketball Team Pulls Off Their Sixth Win

by Derrick Isaiah Clyburn

Coming into this game against Syracuse, The Tar Heels basketball team had won 5 straight games. The Heels came out playing well on both ends of the floor in the first half, shooting 55% from the field and holding Syracuse to only 36 percent shooting. In the second half, Carolina continued to exploit Syracuse’s 2-3 zone, extending their lead led by Theo Pinson’s 15 second-half points. Syracuse would then bring out the full court press forcing the Heels to take some quick shots and helping Syracuse make their run to tie up the game 74-74 with two minutes left. Down the stretch, UNC would execute and close out the game with some big plays made by Joel Berry, leading the Heels to their sixth straight win.

UNC Game Stats

North Carolina

Box Score  FG     3PT     FT    REB   AST    STL    BLK    TO      PF       PTS

1. Pinson         9-12  2-2      3-4      6          7          3          0          2          2          23
2. Maye            4-8    0-0      1-2      3          4          3           1          1          4          9
3. Johnson      2-9    0-4      2-2      5          3          1          0          0          3          6
4. Williams     2-7     1-3      0-0      8          4          1          1          3          3          5
5. Berry II       6-17  4-12    2-2      3          4          1          0          1          1          18
6. Manley       4-10  0-0      4-5      6          2          0          1          1          0          12
7. Platek         2-2     1-1       0-0      0          0          0          0          0          0          5
8. Woods        0-0    0-0      0-0      1           1          0          0          0          1          0 

TEAM  29-65  8-22    12-15  38      25        9          3          8          14        78

                        44.6% 36.4% 80.0% 

Syracuse

Box Score  FG    3PT     FT     REB   AST    STL    BLK    TO      PF       PTS

1. Brissett     4-11  3-8      6-6      10        3          1          3          0          0          17
2. Dolezaj       2-2   0-0      0-0      5          1          0          0          1          4          4
3. Chukwu     1-1     0-0      0-0      11        0          1          4          3          4          2
4. Howard     9-18 5-10    2-2      2          3          1          0          2          2          25
5. Battle        8-22 0-5      8-9      1          6          1          0          4          1          24
6. Moyer        1-2    0-0      0-0      1          0          0          0          0          3          2
7. Sidibe       0-2     0-0      0-0      1          0          0          0          0          2          0

 TEAM 25-58  8-23  16-17  34       13        4          7          10        16        74

                        43.1% 34.8% 94.1%

UNC Bright Spots

Theo Pinson had a career-high 23 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals.

Joel Berry had 18 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal.

Sterling Manley had 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block off the bench.

Needs Work

The bench needs to be productive when they are in the game so the starters do not have to play so many minutes.

 Final Observations

The Tar Heels have been rolling as they are on a sixth game winning streak. They need to continue to play well these last couple of games so they take this momentum into tournament play. Theo Pinson has finally realized how to maximize his game. He is showing more efficiency on offense while being a stat sheet stuffer.