UNC men's basketball tops Appalachian State on Tuesday, 70-50

The North Carolina men’s basketball team (9-3, 1-0 ACC) defeated Appalachian State (6-7, 0-0 Sun Belt) on Tuesday, 70-50, putting the Tar Heels back in the win column after a blowout loss to Kentucky on Saturday. 

What happened?

The Mountaineers got out to a fast start, holding close with the Tar Heels early in the first half. After earning a short-lived lead, App State went cold from the field and North Carolina’s offense settled in — with the Tar Heels going 3-3 from deep in the opening 10 minutes to take a 19-12 lead. 

Senior Adrian Delph gave UNC trouble to open the game, notching a quick eight points before the 10-minute mark. 

The first half followed a common theme this year for North Carolina, as the Tar Heels struggled to pull away against an inferior-on-paper opponent in the opening 20 minutes. While UNC kept its lead from the 15-minute mark on, it was never dominant. 

Coming off a down game against Kentucky, sophomore Caleb Love was the main bright spot for the Tar Heels in the opening frame, leading the way with nine points and four assists in a team-high 19 minutes played. 

UNC went into the break leading 35-27, in large part thanks to Love, 5-10 shooting from deep and App State struggling to knock down shots. The Mountaineers went just 3-15 from beyond the arc in the first half. 

North Carolina and App State both had slow starts to the half, and the Tar Heel lead hovered around 10 for much of the first 10 minutes. The Mountaineers shooting troubles continued in the second frame, as they went an abysmal 1-15 from deep. 

Despite his impressive first half statistics, turnovers and foul troubles caught up to Love before the 10-minute mark of the second half. Heading to the bench with just over 11 minutes to go, the sophomore had already amassed four fouls and six turnovers. 

North Carolina finally started to pull away in the final 15 minutes of the game. UNC put its foot on the pedal and collected efficient second half shooting clips, knocking down 55 percent of their shots on the half to take a 70-50 victory. 

Who stood out? 

Love’s first half statistics were impressive, but after spending much of the second half on the bench due to foul trouble — and committing six turnovers — he wasn’t the best player on the floor on Tuesday. 

Instead, Armando Bacot led the way for the Tar Heels with his 26th career double-double, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds to round out a solid night in the paint for UNC. Graduate forward Brady Manek also put together a solid performance, finishing with 11 points and 11 boards. 

When was it decided?

In the final 15 minutes of the game, North Carolina started to click on the offensive end and cleaned up its defensive struggles, finally pulling away and taking a commanding lead. 

This stretch was defined mostly by paint dominance from the Tar Heels — who out-rebounded App State 47 to 33 on the night — and the culmination of a major shooting slump for the Mountaineers, who finished the game shooting 31.3 percent from the field and 4-30 from deep. 

Why does it matter?

With the Tar Heels now entering ACC play, there aren’t many givens left on their schedule. Even with much of the ACC struggling this year — Duke remains the conference’s only ranked team — consistently giving teams open shots will come back to haunt UNC in conference play. 

North Carolina’s shooting clips and offensive production have been impressive, but first half defensive lapses have continued to keep games closer than they should be.

When do they play next?

ACC play will go into full swing for the Tar Heels on Dec. 29, when the Tar Heels are slated to face Virginia Tech in Chapel Hill. 

@zachycrain

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com