CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was a struggle throughout and increasingly contentious during the second half, but North Carolina’s quest to keep stacking building-block victories while improving its NCAA Tournament credentials was able to continue on Thursday afternoon.
The Tar Heels had to fight and claw through a mountain of missed shots in order to overcome Wake Forest 68-59 in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals at the Spectrum Center.
RJ Davis supplied 23 points, underlined by a huge catch-and-shoot 3-pointer that finally allowed UNC a slice of breathing room and a 61-57 lead with less than three minutes remaining. Then, Ven-Allen Lubin’s big pair of back-to-back dunks in the final 2:05 of the game.
Lubin scored 10 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for the fifth-seeded Tar Heels (22-12), who held strong to weather a stretch of 12 straight missed shots for the field, in what perhaps could be viewed as an elimination game from NCAA Tournament consideration for these teams on bubble watch.
Next, it’s on to the ACC Tournament semifinals for Carolina, where a Friday night showdown awaits with top-seeded Duke. Hunter Sallis pumped in 25 points on Thursday for the fourth-seeded Demon Deacons (21-11), who downed Carolina in a 67-66 slugfest in January.
(Photo: Jim Hawkins / Inside Carolina)
Tar Heels struggle, scratch out halftime lead
Carolina led 33-31 by halftime, after Seth Trimble’s springy tip-in on Ian Jackson’s errant driving attempt with about 12 seconds remaining. Then, Trimble got up high on defense to challenge Hunter Sallis, whose shot missed just before the intermission horn.
The first-half bumped along as a low-scoring struggle. UNC reached halftime with as many turnovers as successful field goals (nine apiece), but the Tar Heels also had put together separate scoring runs of 10-0 and 9-0, while climbing back from an early 11-point deficit out of the gate.
UNC’s 33 first-half points here against Wake Forest marked their lowest-scoring first half since Feb. 10, when they lost in a blowout at Clemson. Carolina had scored 42 points or more in the first halves of their previous eight games prior to Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup.
The Tar Heels finished the first half on a 6-for-8 stretch from the field, but they still were shooting just 35.7 percent by halftime. RJ Davis scored 10 first-half points. Meanwhile, UNC forwards Ven-Allen Lubin and Jae’Lyn Withers were a combined 2-for-11 from the field, and Ian Jackson and Trimble were a combined 2-for-7 from the field off the bench by halftime.
Earlier, UNC coach Hubert Davis unleashed a big air punch in recognition of Cadeau drawing the second foul on Wake Forest big man Efton Reid, whose 7-foot size had bothered the 6-8 Lubin around the basket. Then, Jalen Washington poked away an entry pass on defense, and Trimble made a diving save on the sideline, which sent Cadeau diving to the court to retrieve Trimble’s sideline save. The Tar Heels went the other way and Cadeau deposited a tough lefty lay-in, putting UNC ahead 24-22. That marked Carolina’s first lead since 2-0 in the game’s opening moments.
Next on the schedule
UNC advances to the ACC Tournament semifinals and will meet top-seeded Duke (29-3) on Friday night, where an upset victory seemingly would rubber-stamp the Tar Heels’ case for NCAA Tournament inclusion, along with moving them into the ACC Tournament championship game for the second time in as many seasons.
Carolina and Duke will be meeting in the conference tournament for the first time since 2019, when this event last was held in Charlotte. The Tar Heels fell to the Blue Devils 74-73 in the 2019 tournament semifinals in a classic battle here at the Spectrum Center. Zion Williamson’s 31 points and 11 rebounds propelled Duke past Cameron Johnson, Luke Maye, Coby White and Co. that night.
UNC leads the all-time series 145-119 against Duke, after the Blue Devils swept both regular-season matchups between these teams. Duke dominated Carolina on the first night of February, steamrolling to an 87-70 victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium, after building a 32-point lead. The Blue Devils won 82-69 last weekend at the Smith Center in the regular-season finale. The Tar Heels fell into a 15-point deficit in the first half that night, but surged to a seven-point lead in the second half, before managing just four made field goals across the final 12½ minutes of the game.
