Marcus Paige, UNC prepare for N.C. State

Marcus Paige turned to his friend at Buffalo Wild Wings, right as N.C. State’s Trevor Lacey drained a step-back 3

.

“OK,” the North Carolina point guard said. “It’s over.”

Paige was referring to the N.C. State-Duke matchup Sunday afternoon, a contest that ended with the Wolfpack snapping Duke’s undefeated streak and storming the court after a double-digit victory. N.C. State had 10 blocks, shot 55 percent from the field, and hit 10 of 16 3-pointers.

“That was about as impressive a show as you’ve seen in a quite a while,” Coach Roy Williams said.

Now it’s No. 15 UNC’s turn to head to PNC Arena. And if there’s one thing Paige is certain of, it’s the atmosphere that awaits the Tar Heels.

“It’s going to be rowdy over there,” Paige said. “I’ve talked to (the young guys) a bit about it this week — there’s not too much we’ll experience this year that’ll be like at N.C. State.”

Both teams are coming off the biggest wins of their seasons: UNC’s one-point nail-biter over Louisville and N.C. State’s 12-point triumph over Duke.

By Tuesday afternoon, Williams hadn’t talked to his freshmen about PNC Arena, but he too knows what’s ahead.

“We’ll tell them it’s a great road game, great opportunity and we’ve got to pretend like they’re yelling for us,” Williams said. “Freshmen, you can tell them about anything, so we’ll lie to them or something.”

The last time these teams met featured an overtime showdown between Paige and reigning ACC Player of the Year T.J. Warren. With just a fraction of a second left in the extra period, Paige won it for UNC. That night, he scored a career-high 35 points — 31 after halftime — while his counterpart, Warren, scored 36.

But this year is different. Warren is in the NBA, and the new Wolfpack go-to is redshirt junior Lacey. The 6-foot-3 guard averages 16.9 points per game and is shooting 50 percent. Paige is shooting 36.6 percent from the field this season, down from 44 in 2013-14.

“Technically, there’s nothing wrong with his shot. It just hasn’t gone in as much,” Williams said. “(He’s) probably getting more attention from the defense, but I think he got quite a bit attention from the defense last year, as well.”

Paige also is fighting plantar fasciitis in his right foot, a condition that causes pain in the heel and forces him to sleep in a splint. But Williams isn’t blaming Paige’s decreased numbers on that, and neither is the junior himself.

Tonight in Raleigh, that pain won’t matter. It’s N.C. State versus UNC.

“Part of what makes this league fun is playing in games like, you know, at Raleigh, where they’re not particularly fond of us,” Paige said.

sports@dailytarheel.com