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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“Turning the ball over at the end of regulation like that made me want to play better in overtime,” the freshman Paige said.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Following a Virginia Tech turnover, Paige stroked in a baseline jumper from the right side to put the Heels up 64-58.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n