UNC men's basketball team pulls away from Pittsburgh for 88-71 win in ACC Tournament quarterfinals

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The North Carolina men’s basketball team’s ACC Tournament quarterfinal match against Pittsburgh was a game of runs.

And in an 88-71 win over the eighth-seeded Panthers, the top-seeded Tar Heels used their runs to their advantage, running away with the game late in Thursday’s contest at the Verizon Center.

Pittsburgh jumped out to an early 8-0 lead, as junior forward Jamel Artis scored the first three baskets of the game — including two 3-pointers. But the Tar Heels quickly responded.

Trailing 10-4 at the first media timeout, UNC went on a 12-4 run to grab its first lead of the game on a 3-point play by junior guard Nate Britt.

Pittsburgh chipped away at North Carolina’s lead before it capitalized on a 6-0 run, giving the Panthers a 26-22 edge.

Sophomore forward Ryan Luther made a 3-pointer with 4:36 left to increase Pittsburgh’s lead to seven points. Once again, though, the Tar Heels answered, as Joel Berry’s 3-pointer on the next possession sparked a 13-2 run by UNC entering the locker room.

Heading into halftime with a 39-35 lead, North Carolina never trailed in the second half. But the Panthers came close to tying the game with 10:48 left, when junior forward Michael Young’s layup cut the Tar Heels’ lead to two points.

Then, UNC put the game away. Sparked by a pair of free throws by sophomore wing Justin Jackson, the team used an 11-0 run to take a 68-55 lead with 8:11 left.

North Carolina’s lead remained in double digits for the rest of the contest, as the Tar Heels ultimately edged out the Panthers for a spot in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

Quotable

“We go down, and we know we can make shots. But at the same time, you can’t go back and forth with teams like that and keep them in the game. Then, they start getting confidence. Once we made that run, we kept putting it on them. They dropped their heads a little bit, they started doubting, ‘What are we doing? Are we doing it right?’ And that’s when we thrive. We thrive on that and just keep trying to punch them in the mouth.” — Sophomore wing Theo Pinson on how the team’s defense led to big runs against the Panthers.

Notable

After going 0-for-12 from behind the arc entering today’s game, first-year guard Kenny Williams made his first career 3-pointer with 8:30 left in the second half. The shot increased UNC’s lead to 66-55 and came during the team's 11-0 run.

With 19 points and 10 rebounds, Johnson recorded his ACC-leading 20th double-double of the season.

UNC’s 88 points against Pittsburgh were its most in an ACC Tournament game since defeated Clemson 92-87 in the 2011 semifinals.

Three numbers that matter

58.9: The Tar Heels shot 58.9 percent from the field, its second-highest shooting percent this season and its fourth-highest ever in ACC Tournament play.

21: UNC held Pittsburgh to 44.4 percent shooting from the field, marking the 21st straight game where North Carolina limited its opponent from shooting above 45 percent.

27: Berry scored in double figures for the 27th time this season. His 20 points today were one shy of his career high of 21, which came against Virginia on Feb. 28. The sophomore is second on the team in scoring this season with 12.5 points per game.

What’s next?

The Tar Heels will face the winner of today’s Duke-Notre Dame game in the ACC Tournament semifinals at 7 p.m. on Friday at the Verizon Center. The game will be aired on ESPN and the ACC Network.

sports@dailytarheel.com