National Basketball Association
North Carolina 91, Virginia Tech 72
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 26, 2017
Where: Dean E. Smith Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Officials:
# Mike Eades, # Roger Ayers, # Mike Roberts
Attendance:
20113
By The Sports Xchange
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The big advantage in size came in handy for No. 9 North Carolina on Thursday night, but the Tar Heels had a chance to showcase their shooting touch as well.
Justin Jackson scored 26 points as North Carolina used sharp outside shooting and dominance in the lane to pound visiting Virginia Tech 91-72 at the Smith Center.
The ACC-leading Tar Heels made a season-best 14 shots from 3-point range and held a 43-22 advantage in rebounding.
"If we hadn't been making some (of the 3-pointers), I would have been going crazy because we need to get some touches for those guys inside," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said.
Joel Berry's 15 points and Kennedy Meeks' 15 points and 14 rebounds also contributed to the rout for North Carolina (19-3, 7-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), which pushed its winning streak to seven games.
Berry and Jackson both drained five 3s, with the final one from real deep by Jackson as the shot clock was about to expire with 1:35 to play. North Carolina was 14 of 30 on its 3-point attempts.
"We've got some pretty good shooters," Williams said. "Other than the one Justin made there with the shot clock, they were shots we work on every day in practice."
Seth Allen scored 19 points, Justin Robinson added 17 and Zach LeDay had 12 for Virginia Tech (15-5, 4-4).
The Tar Heels, who've scored at least 85 points in each game of their winning streak, began the second half by hitting three 3s to extend their lead to 53-36.
"We knew if we won this game we'd be at the top of the ACC and that's where we want to be," Berry said.
By the 12-minute mark, North Carolina had matched it season high of 12 3s.
The advantage grew to 74-49 with about 10 minutes to play.
"We've been giving up too many points," Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams said.
Even when they missed, the Tar Heels benefited from the overwhelming rebounding edge.
"It was good for us," Roy Williams said. "Rebounding was again big for us. We get 73 shots to their 51 shots, that really helps."
Virginia Tech shot 51 percent from the field, so that gave something for North Carolina's Williams to fuss about.
"We do have to do better defensively," he said. "To go from good to great, our defensive field goal percentage has to get better."
North Carolina led by as many as 15 in the first half before settling for a 44-33 edge at the break.
"They have so many good, elite players and then when they shoot it like that," Buzz Williams said.
The Tar Heels were 7 of 13 on 3s in creating a 29-19 lead. Jackson hit the final two of that sequence, while Berry had three 3s before that.
North Carolina was getting it done closer to the basket as well. The Tar Heels held a 16-1 edge in offensive rebounds at the half.
Despite shooting 50 percent from the field in the first half, the Hokies trailed for almost the entire period. North Carolina shot 40.5 percent across the opening 20 minutes.
NOTES: North Carolina G Theo Pinson suffered an injured right ankle in the first half and was held out of the second half as a precaution, Roy Williams said. ... The Tar Heels have won seven consecutive meetings with Virginia Tech, pushing their series lead to 67-13. ... Virginia Tech F Ty Outlaw, who hails from nearby Roxboro, N.C., made his third consecutive start. The redshirt junior began his college career at UNC Greensboro. ... Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams will have to wait for his 200th career coaching victory. He's 199-128. ... The Hokies entered the game coming off back-to-back one-point victories, something they hadn't done since 2008. ... Virginia Tech hasn't defeated a Top 10 team on the road since 2009. ... North Carolina has a quick turnaround, playing at 1 p.m. Saturday at Miami. Virginia Tech is home Sunday night against Boston College.
Top Game Performances
| Virginia Tech |
|
North Carolina |
|
Seth Allen 19 |
Scoring |
Justin Jackson 26 |
|
Justin Robinson 7 |
Assists |
Joel Berry II 4 |
|
Ty Outlaw 5 |
Rebounds |
Kennedy Meeks 14 |
|
Chris Clarke 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Isaiah Hicks 2 |
|
Seth Allen 1 |
Steals |
Joel Berry II 1 |
|
Justin Bibbs 1 |
Blocks |
Justin Jackson 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Virginia Tech
|
72 |
51.0 |
9-25 |
11-18 |
14 |
17 |
3 |
4 |
10 |
| North Carolina
|
91 |
49.3 |
14-30 |
5-9 |
25 |
41 |
5 |
3 |
7 |
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