Tar Heels secure ACC semis spot, face rival Duke again

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

North Carolina guard R.J. Davis goes up for a shot in the Tar Heels' 68-59 win against Wake Forest in the ACC basketball tournament at Spectrum Center.

North Carolina got all it could handle but pulled away from Wake Forest.

Tied 57-57 with just over three minutes left, Tar Heels center Ven Allen-Lubin split two free throws and senior guard R.J. Davis hit a three-pointer to spark the Tar Heels to a 68-59 win.

“We’re built for that,” North Carolina coach Hubert Davis said. “In the locker room, just telling them so proud of how they've stayed connected, stayed the course through ups and downs. There’s a level of toughness here that has developed over the last seven or eight months that we've been together, and we were in these types of situations earlier in the year and weren't able to get stronger. We were able to do it today.”

The win sets up round three between Duke and North Carolina. The Blue Devils won both regular season matchups, and the Tar Heels will be looking to strengthen their chances of making the NCAA tournament.

The Tar Heels came into the week uncertain of whether they could earn a bid to the field of 68. With wins against Notre Dame and Wake Forest, they’re playing their most consistent ball of the season. Davis hasn’t spoken to his team about the postseason.

“The thing that I always focus on is what is real… and my communication with them in regard to the NCAA Tournament has been zero,” he said. “What is real for us is our improvement as a team. What is real for us has been the opponent right in front of us. Right now, it's playing Duke tomorrow at 7. Those are the things that we're focused on. I've always believed this from coach [Dean] Smith and coach [Bill] Guthridge, if you just focus on the preparation, the process and your play, everything else will take care of itself. That’s where our focus is on, and I feel like we‘re getting better, and I feel like we're improving.”

Tar Heels center Ven-Allen Lubin said this is what the team wanted — another shot at their arch rival.

“We want that competition,” he said. “We want our revenge. It just gives us another opportunity to get a win against them, and just to play a really great team, to give us a chance to
play in the championship.”

Lubin had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds and will likely need a similar outing North Carolina to advance to the title game.

“I just tried to get inside position and really just track the ball in the air,” Lubin said. “It is just really important for me to get those second-chance opportunities on the offensive side and on the defensive end, just limit them to one shot. It was really important for me to insert myself in the paint and just grab those balls.”

Jae’Lyn Withers, a former North Mecklenburg High standout, was another bright spot for the Tar Heels. He scored nine points and nine rebounds and hit two big three-pointers to get the Tar Heel fans on their feet.

“There's so many ways that you can be impactful out there on the floor to help your team win,” Davis said. “Winning plays is not just scoring. There's rebounding, talking on defense, diving on loose balls, getting steals, deflections, making a free throw. All those different types of things and being able to execute. Ven is a junior, J-Wit is a fifth-year senior, that type of experience, they've been in tight situations before and feel comfortable about stepping up and making plays in those situations.”

North Carolina and Duke last met in the tournament in 2019, in Charlotte where the Blue Devils won 74-73 in the semifinals behind Zion Williamson’s 30-point outburst. North Carolina won the two regular season matchups.
Davis kept it concise when asked about the opportunity to play Duke again. 

“Playing Duke is an opportunity to play against the No. 1 team in the country,” he said. “Obviously, they’re playing extremely well. We just played them last week on senior night on our home floor, and we're excited about the opportunity to be able to compete against them tomorrow night at 7.”

Comments