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The Daily Tar Heel

UNC thwarts Creighton to advance to Sweet 16

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UNC guard Kendall Marshall awaits an inbound pass during the second half. The Tar Heels defeated Creighton 87-73 in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum on Sunday, March 18, 2012, and will advance to the Sweet Sixteen in St. Louis.

GREENSBORO — All the headlines may belong to Kendall Marshall and his wrist injury, but there was a game on Sunday, and top-seeded North Carolina looked pretty good playing in it.

The Tar Heels (31-5) were expected to beat Creighton (29-6), and they did, 87-73. They’re expected to beat almost everyone in the tournament field, but playing up to those expectations can be difficult.

UNC forward Tyler Zeller said the win should mean something, even if it’s just a little something.

“You can’t ever settle in and say you won by two or three and be happy with it,” Zeller said. “You have to play your best ball this time of year. You have to make sure you prepare for every game.”

The Tar Heels and Creighton were tied 11-11 with 13:44 remaining in the first half. That was before everything changed — before John Henson’s technical foul.

Henson moved around a screen set by Harrison Barnes to get open in the low post. Henson went up for a shot and was fouled but turned and got in the face of Creighton’s Grant Gibbs.

“I thought the whistle blew and, boy, one of their players slapped down on my wrist three or four times,” said Henson, who played in his first game since injuring his wrist in the ACC tournament. “I don’t know if it was purposeful or not, but I thought it was unnecessary, and it got me a little fired up.”

It got everyone fired up. The pace of the game hastened and the Tar Heels propelled forward. UNC went on a 28-13 run following the foul to gain a lead it never lost.

UNC made 8-of-16 3-pointers and shot 51 percent from the floor. At one point in the first half, UNC was shooting 74 percent.

But even making half its shots pressured Creighton’s defense to stay in front of UNC’s players.

Henson looked very capable in his first game back, finishing with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Kendall Marshall tallied 18 points and 11 assists despite playing parts of the second half with a fractured wrist.

The Tar Heels were simply clicking. Each of UNC’s five starters scored in double digits, and James Michael McAdoo dropped nine points off the bench.

That level of play makes UNC a difficult out for any team, not just Creighton. With Marshall’s status in question after he fractured his right wrist, it may be tougher for the Tar Heels to reach that level.

It won’t change their preparation, though, which McAdoo said was key Sunday.

“It kind of sucks when you see other teams make it to the Sweet 16 before you even get to play, but with that we saw teams going home,” McAdoo said. “Their season ended, so I think we just use that as motivation. When we come out here, it’s life or death.”
For now, UNC is still breathing.

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@dailytarheel.com.

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