North Carolina got down 12-0, trailed by six at the half, used strong defense to pull even and finally turned the page in overtime to defeat Virginia Tech 72-60.

They turned to Paige, Marcus Paige in overtime. Paige scored eight in overtime and, after breaking the Hokies press, dished to Leslie McDonald for another bucket.

Paige had turned the ball over late in regulation, giving Virginia Tech an opportunity for the last shot. But Eric Green, who leads the nation in scoring, missed a long fade-away two pointer to leave it 55-55.

“Turning the ball over at the end of regulation like that made me want to play better in overtime,” the freshman Paige said.

In overtime, Desmond Hubert gave the Tar Heels a 57-55 lead with a tip follow. With the Heels ahead just 59-58 and three minutes left, Paige took over.

Paige swished a three from the left wing to make it 62-58 with 2:57 left. It was the largest Carolina lead up to that point.

Following a Virginia Tech turnover, Paige stroked in a baseline jumper from the right side to put the Heels up 64-58.

He hit the first of a one-and-one, made that assist McDonald and then hit two free throws to put the game out of reach at 69-60 with a minute left.

“He made some big shots for us,” Coach Roy Williams said of Paige. “In the overtime, he was the most important player for us on the court.”

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