For the second straight game, Marcus Paige was held to just three points. And for the second straight game, that didn't really matter for the No. 5 North Carolina men's basketball team.
Kennedy Meeks led the Tar Heels (16-2, 5-0 ACC) with 23 points in his first game back as a starter since Dec. 12 against Texas, and Joel Berry and Nate Britt combined to help limit N.C. State (10-8, 0-5 ACC) point guard and ACC leading scorer Cat Barber to a season-low nine points and five turnovers.
The first matchup against the Wolfpack showcased just how deep this UNC team is, as three Tar Heel starters (Paige, Justin Jackson and Brice Johnson) combined for just 15 points, yet the team still managed a 67-55 victory.
Paige has shot just 2-for-17 in his past two games, including 1-for-12 from behind the 3-point line.
"Somebody jinxed me at the press conference (Friday), talking about if I was in a funk or not because of the way I played at Syracuse, so they jinxed me," Paige laughed. "So I'd like to thank them for that ... But I'll be fine.
"I'm not missing left and right, I'm missing short and long, so I'll figure it out. This week, leading up to the game in workouts and stuff, I shot better than I have all year."
But when Paige's shots aren't falling, Saturday's win showed UNC has players who are more than capable of picking up the slack, a contrast to years past.
Berry in particular shot the ball well from the perimeter, making 5-of-9 shots and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.
"We got guys — Joel Berry is so much better, Isaiah (Hicks) is so much better," Paige said. "Our offense just flows better, to the point where if I'm struggling I'm going to stay aggressive, but it's not going to hurt the team if I'm not scoring at a high clip."
