All posts by Cliff Barnes

Featured stories, UNC

Paige returns to drop 20 on former ACC foe

Leave a comment

marcuspaigemdThe 89-81 win over Maryland marked the ninth straight time the Tar Heels have beaten the Terrapins. Maybe it was a good move to leave the ACC after all.

Marcus Paige returned to the lineup to pace the Tar Heels with 20 points.

Paige, who has been out through the first six games of the season with a broken bone in his non-shooting hand, said he had nervous energy before the game. He was worried about his conditioning. “I felt better than I thought I would,” said Paige, who was also concerned about a paper he has due Wednesday and exams coming up.

But not to worry about his performance on the court at least. In the first seconds, he passed to Kennedy Meeks for the game’s first basket and with less than a minute gone he banged in a three from the right wing to give the Heels a quick 5-0 lead.

“We wanted to make a statement early and come out with intensity,” Meeks said. “That was Carolina basketball – play hard, play smart and play together.”

The Heels looked more intense from the start, perhaps because of the presence of Paige, who had been out all season with a broken bone in his hand. The crowd was also up for the game and booed former Dukie Rasheed Sulaimon every time he touched the ball. Unfortunately for UNC fans, he drained five three points on his way to 18 points.

The Heels led 26-16 midway through the first half and worked the lead up to 13 in the first half before settling for a 41-35 halftime lead.

But Maryland hit seven of its first eight shots in the second half, including four of four from three-point land, to tie the score at 55-all. The Terps took the lead 59-58 on a four-point play when Trimble hit a three and was fouled by Nate Britt.

Carolina re-took the lead at 61-59 on a three by who else, Marcus Paige. Maryland tied it back up at 69-69 before UNC’s Justin Jackson drilled a three from the left corner with 8:35 to go. The Tar Heels never trailed again although it stayed close until Joel Berry popped in a three with 4:58 left that put the Heels up by nine at 83-74.

For more on the game, including a box score, please click here.