UNC bounces back with convincing win

For UNC-Asheville, it really wasn't fair.

The best the Bulldogs could have hoped for was to face a North Carolina team complacent from reading its own positive press clippings and still stuffed full of Christmas ham.

But after a 74-59 loss at Southern California on Dec. 21 - the most lopsided loss of the Roy Williams era - Wednesday's game turned from easily overlookable cupcake to statement game.

And oh, what a statement it was.

"Carolina, coming off the loss at Southern Cal, went in there and played really hard, with a lot of emotion and energy," said UNC-A head coach Eddie Biedenbach after his team's 89-47 loss to the No. 23 Tar Heels on Wednesday night in the Smith Center.

"And we couldn't match that."

They couldn't match the Tar Heels physically - as Roy Williams put it: "God's blessed us in basketball terms maybe a little better than those guys" - and they certainly couldn't match UNC's increased focus after the loss.

Not to mention the extra motivation of Williams' brutal practices.

"You go into those practices, that's something you just don't want to deal with," said senior David Noel. "You just don't want two losses back to back because you might die the next day in practice."

Even though Williams insisted "it wasn't one of those hide-the-women-and-children kind of practices," the message was clearly sent. Almost from the opening tap, North Carolina ensured that the losing streak would stop at one.

A lackluster defensive effort against the Trojans - USC shot 57 percent from the floor in the second half - was offset by the Tar Heels' aggressive trapping defense. UNC bowled over the hapless Bulldogs, who had trouble getting the ball across halfcourt, much less into the basket.

The defensive effort was evident on the stat sheet - 15 first-half steals, 22 forced turnovers in the opening frame.

But the effort of freshman Tyler Hansbrough was most indicative of the Tar Heels' scrambling play as he tied a Smith Center record with eight steals. And he's the center.

Early in the game the Tar Heels forced steals that turned into fast-break buckets on three consecutive possessions, resulting in six UNC points and igniting a 24-2 run.

"To be honest with you, it felt like we were running a drill," said freshman Marcus Ginyard, who tied a career high with 14 points. "Playing defense, getting the ball, securing the ball, then pushing the ball like we love to do."

Even the perpetually jittery Quentin Thomas looked comfortable running the point. Thomas, in only his third game of the season coming off a stress fracture, dished out a team-high five assists in 14 minutes and proved to be a capable backup to freshman Bobby Frasor.

"It allows me to go hard every possession and give the tired signal when I'm tired and I'm not worried about him playing," Frasor said.

The Tar Heels stopped worrying about free throws as well. Following a 12-for-23 performance from the free-throw line in Los Angeles, the Tar Heels hit their first 10 attempts from the charity stripe Wednesday.

And after his much-maligned scoreless effort at the Sports Arena, the friendly confines of the Smith Center were kind to Reyshawn Terry, who finished with 14 points, just above his season average.

UNC-A (2-7) didn't crack double figures until almost 14 minutes into the game. By then, the Tar Heels (7-2) had amassed 39 points and were on their way to a 53-20 halftime advantage, ensuring that the only second-half drama came in the form of how many high-rising Noel dunks there would be (one) and if any of the walk-ons would score (no).

The second half was not nearly as crisply-executed as the first, though. While UNC turned the ball over a mere five times in the opening frame, sloppiness got the best of them in the final 20 minutes, resulting in 13 giveaways after the break.

But a late 19-4 run made sure the game would remain a comfortable blowout and the rout had the Tar Heels in a jovial locker-room mood.

Even a missed dunk by Terry was a source of humor, not frustration.

"I always say 'If you can't dunk it, don't try to,'" the 55-year-old Williams said, chuckling. "So I coached him on how to dunk it because I'm such a great dunker."

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.