Chapel Hill Defeats Rival NC State; Bacot Achieved 2 School Records

Chapel Hill, NC – UNC Men’s Basketball (13-6, 5-3 ACC) scored their third win as rival NC State (15-4, 5-3 ACC) visited the Dean Center on January 21st with a score of 80-69. The Tar Heels add to their record of 10-0 at home this season.

Terquavion Smith, a sophomore guard who leads the conference in scoring at 19.1 points per game, has helped the Wolfpack win their last four straight games. 

With a 35-5 record in their previous 40 encounters and a current three-game winning streak in the series, UNC now leads the all-time series against rival NC State 163-79.

The first half consisted of several runs by each team. The Wolfpack lead throughout the 1st quarter due to 4 turnovers caused by UNC. It was not until Leaky Black gained a steal that was quickly followed by R.J. Davis’s two three-pointers that gained momentum for the team which caused them to take the lead 22-20 with 6:25 to go until halftime. 

R.J. Davis had an outstanding first half as he played on-ball defense and ended the half leading his team with 16 points. The Tarheels went on a 14-2 closing the first half.

At the start of the 3rd quarter, Armando Bacot achieved his 62nd double-double, now holding the record of having the most double-doubles in Carolina history. His matchup against D.J. Burns for NC State was very competitive as each exchanged big-time plays in the paint for their team. With 17:38 to go in the 2nd half, not only Burns but Casey Morsell and Smith all had 3 fouls which were very critical being it was a fairly close game within the third quarter and having a significant amount of time until the game was over. The Wolfpack gained 6 team fouls within less than 5 minutes. 

With 9:45 remaining, Wolfpack player Terquavion Smith was fouled by Leaky Black while trying a layup and fell horribly. He rolled about in discomfort after falling on his butt, as had to be restrained. Emergency crews from UNC entered the court to attend to him and Leaky Black was ejected from the game having a flagrant 2 foul called. Wolfpack Players gathered around their PG before he was carried off in a stretcher. It was reported that he has an elbow and neck injury.

At the end of the 2nd half, UNC maintained their lead and had a 33-7 free throw advantage against the Wolfpack. UNC hit their school record of having 39 free throw attempts in a game against NC State.  

Along with holding the double-double record, Bacot also grabbed 1,220 rebounds being the all-time leader for rebounds in UNC history. Bacot ended the game with 23 points and 18 rebounds, Davis with 26 points, and Love with 16. 

NC State’s key players were Jakeel Joiner and D.J. Burns, leading their team with 18 points each. 

Chapel Hill takes on rival Syracuse away on January 24th, at 9 pm.

Feature photo: Lawrence Davis III (@lawdavis13)