2/23/2019 basketball Edit

Decisive Run Fuels Carolina

UNC's bench certainly appreciated the 16-1 run that fueled a 77-59 victory over No. 16 Florida State at the Smith Center. (Jenna Miller, THI)

Jacob Turner

Tar Heel Illustrated

CHAPEL HILL - Basketball is a game of runs.

And, in Saturday's 77-59 win over Florida State in Chapel Hill, North Carolina used a second-half eruption to end the sixteenth-ranked team in the country’s eight-game winning streak.

With 10:36 remaining on the Smith Center clock, FSU’s RaiQuan Gray hit a contested 3-pointer to cut UNC’s lead to 56-52. On the next possession, however, Luke Maye banked in a deep three that turned out to be the catalyst for a game-sealing 16-1 run that stretched all the way to the 4:24 mark.

The Seminoles missed ten shots during that six-minute stretch and didn’t make a single field goal until Devin Vassell hit a 3-pointer with 1:57 remaining, showing just how dominant the Tar Heels were during a crucial portion of the game.

Senior Cameron Johnson, who finished with a game-high 18 points along with freshman Nassir Little, said UNC’s domination during the run was down to keying in on FSU’s biggest threats on offense.

“You kind of identify guys that are dangerous in certain aspects and you kind of pick up on their tendencies throughout the game,” Johnson said. “The better you can shut that off, the more you can frustrate them and force them to do stuff they’re uncomfortable with. And, we had guys that made shots and made plays and that was really helpful.”

Junior point guard Seventh Woods said guarding the ball was a key during that stretch.

Maye got the run started and the Heels didn't let up until it reached 16-1. (Jenna Miller, THI)

“I think we just locked down on the defensive end,” Woods said. “They actually went on a run too where they got to the basket real easily a couple times but we just had to lock back in and start guarding guys. We understand that our scoring really comes from our defense so, when we play great defense, scoring the ball will be easier on the other end.”

Despite his recent shooting struggles, freshman point guard Coby White knows how important it is for he and the team to stay aggressive on both ends of the court.

“We just continued to attack and tried to get stops on the defensive end and I think we locked in defensively and got stops (during the run),” White said.

While defense was the primary reason for UNC’s victory, Woods still believes this team hasn’t reached its ceiling on that side of the ball.

“We’re still improving,” Woods said. “Even games like that, we had a lot of miscommunications and stuff like that so, we’re nowhere near where we want to be defensively but we’re definitely better than we were to start the season.”

The Tar Heels stepped up defensively on Saturday when they needed it most, helping fuel a decisive run to secure the victory. And, for a team with big aspirations, that’s a positive sign as March approaches.