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CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina used an explosive first half to build a huge margin over No. 10 Tennessee, then had to fend off the Volunteers in earing a 100-92 victory Wednesday night in the ACC/SEC Challenge at the Smith Center.
Carolina erupted for a 61-39 halftime lead, and had a 24-point advantaged into the second half, but a 28-11 Volunteers run cut the margin to seven points, and it was then six moments later. But Carolina hit its free throws to salt away the game, earning a second consecutive victory over a highly touted team from the SEC.
RJ Davis led the No. 17 Tar Heels with 27 points followed by 22 from Armando Bacot, 20 from Harrison Ingram, and 15 from Cormac Ryan. Bacot also grabbed 11 rebounds, and freshman point guard Elliot Cadeau dished out 11 assists.
Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht finished with 37 points, tying the most by an opponent in the Smith Center. It was previously done by Lionel Simmons of LaSalle in 1988.
UNC improved to 6-1 while Tennessee, which last week lost close games to Purdue and Kansas in Hawaii, dropped to 4-3.
Here are some noteworthy tidbits from UNC’s victory over Tennessee:
