UNC coach Hubert Davis got mad, hopping mad, in the first half when Armando Bacot was bloodied by a Michigan elbow. It carried over to his players on the court as the Tar Heels went from two down to eight ahead and Carolina never trailed again, beating Michigan 80-76 in Charlotte. (12/21)
“After Armando got hit in the mouth, I felt like we said, ‘let’s start swingin,'” Coach Davis said. “We had a competitive fight on the defensive end that made us more effective on the offensive end.”
The elbow – more like a forearm shiver – was delivered by Hunter Dickinson, Michigan’s second team All-America big man. Bacot, feeling as if he had been fouled, threw up a wild, high arching shot. The ball went in but the foul wasn’t called.
Replays, showed that the physical contact was purposeful. And the Tar Heels didn’t like it.
After the ensuing 16-6 run, Carolina led 38-30. During the run, tempers flared after a Dickinson foul and four players – two on each team – picked up technical fouls, which counted as personal fouls.
The lead hovered between six and nine points most of the rest of the game.
Back-to-back Wolverine threes, though, pulled Michigan within a basket at 71-69 with 2:15 to go.
The Tar Heels, who struggled from the free throw line, hit five in a row in the last minute to stave off the Michigan attack. Carolina had opportunities to open the game up but the Heels were just 10 of 21 from the foul line before hitting five of their last six.
Bacot won the battle of the big men as he scored 26 points on an 11 of 15 effort, compared to nine points for Dickinson. “We have the best big man in the country,” UNC’s Leaky Black said, adding that the Tar Heels don’t get credit for being tough.
“We made players when we had to make plays,” Black said. “Every timeout, we said, ‘dig deeper, dig deeper.”
R.J. Davis scored 19 points, going four of eight from three-point land. Meanwhile, Caleb Love, who had a big steal and one-handed slam dunk in the second half, was the only other Tar Heel in double figures with 18 points.
Kobe Bufkin scored 22 while Jett Howard had 17 for Michigan, which falls to 7-5.
The game was part of the new Jumpman Invitational at the Spectrum Center.
Carolina, now 9-4 overall, plays conference foe Pittsburgh Friday, Dec. 30 in an away game.
For a box score and more on the game, please click here.