RALEIGH – North Carolina took care of business early and fended off every push NC State made Saturday, as the Tar Heels earned an 84-74 victory at PNC Arena.

Carolina opened the game with a 20-3 lead and allowed the Wolfpack to chip away the margin to below 10 points just once, late in the first half, but the Tar Heels closed strong before the intermission.

Then, UNC pushed away from a 10-point lead early in the second half using an 11-0 run to give it more than enough cushion to hold off the Pack.