Eagles’ tempo topples Heels

JAN. 4 — In the days leading up to North Carolina’s ACC opener against Boston College, senior Danny Green said his team needed to be tested.

Needed to be pushed and prodded. Needed to react to adversity instead of rolling over victim after victim like the Tar Heels did in the season’s first 13 games.

Little did Green know he would get exactly what he wanted Jan. 4 at the Smith Center. Boston College extended a six-point halftime advantage to 15 points with 6:23 to go before holding on for an 85-78 win.

The team that was thought unbeatable had been defeated.

“Nobody is incapable of losing,” Green said after the game. “We’re human too. We’re allowed to lose.”

The then-No. 1 Tar Heels (13-1, 0-1 ACC) certainly looked mortal against the Eagles.

From the offensive to defensive ends, Boston College dictated the tempo and physical style of play. The Eagles bullied the Tar Heels while the backcourt combo of Tyrese Rice and Rakim Sanders always seemed to answer a UNC bucket.

Rice and Sanders scored more than half of BC’s 85 points — posting 25 and 22, respectively — and the two kept the Eagles in contention in the game’s early moments.

The Eagles (13-2, 1-0 ACC) hammered the boards — they had 13 offensive rebounds in the first half — and hit the Tar Heels with a methodical combination of ball movement and dribble penetration.

“There’s no question that we kept it at our pace, at least as far as I’m concerned, on the offensive end,” BC coach Al Skinner said. “I thought we were very prepared for whatever pressure they brought. We only had two turnovers in the first half, and I thought that was key.”

At the end of the first half, Boston College led 46-40 and North Carolina faced a halftime deficit for the first time all year.

And as play resumed after halftime, North Carolina’s play only worsened. The Eagles had taken UNC out of its comfort zone, and instead of matching BC’s intensity, the Tar Heels continued to crumble.

“It felt like tonight they definitely outmanned us,” Green said. “They were very physical in the beginning of the game. They were dominating the boards. They were hitting shots. They were playing the game they wanted to play.”

After Green hit a three with 4:09 remaining, UNC went 2-for-14 from the field, and Tyler Hansbrough went 2-for-5 from the line. UNC finished the game shooting 38.4 percent — 29.3 percent in the second half — and missed 12 free throws.

“Shots weren’t falling,” said Hansbrough, who led UNC with 21 points and nine rebounds. “You look at a lot of guys that usually make some shots, and obviously my free throws weren’t the best.

“But it happens.”



Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.