North Carolina hit 10 threes and Jae’Lyn Withers, a Louisville transfer, had his best game as a Tar Heel, scoring 15 points and hauling in 10 rebounds as UNC beat Louisville 86-80 in Chapel Hill. (1/17)
“He was huge for us,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said of Withers. “It’s always tough to play against a former team but we don’t win this game without J Wit. He was our MVP of the game. Terrific on both ends. He came off the bench and gave us a spark.”
In the first half, Cormac Ryan, who finished with 14 points, hit four three pointers and the Heels came up with seven steals to take a commanding 46-29 lead at the half.
The Cardinals, however, came back early in the second half by hitting eight of their first nine shots and cutting the lead to 55-50 after a Mike James three with 12:23 to go.
But a 10-2 Carolina run over the next four minutes righted the ship and found the Heels back in control at 65-52. During the run, RJ Davis, who led team with 21 points, hit a pull up three behind a screen and Elliott Cadeau found Withers streaking down the baseline for an up-and-under basket. It never was close again.
“After they cut into the lead, I was really happy and proud of how we reacted and responded,” Coach Davis said adding that the defense had been lacking during Louisville’s 17-4 run that cut it to five.
Carolina got its first double-figure lead of the game when Davis drilled a three to put the Heels up 15-4 to end an 11-0 run in the first five minutes of the game. The Heels worked the lead up to 20 at 46-26 late in the first half after Withers came up with a steal and drove down court between defenders for a layup.
“My emotions were all over the place,” Withers said about playing his former team. “I was anxious at the beginning and it was nerve-wracking at times. But after a while I was joking around and having a good time.”
Withers had two or three highlight reel plays in the second half including hitting a crossbody shot down low with two men on him. He also kept his footing and kept dribbling at one point, getting past two defenders who were harassing him, and found an open Davis, who hit a three from the right corner.
Skyy Clark finished with 16 points to lead Louisville, now 6-11 and 1-5 in the ACC.
The Tar Heels, winners of seven in a row, improve to 14-3 overall and 6-0 in the conference with an away game coming up Saturday afternoon at Boston College.
For a box score and more on the game, please click here.