UNC men's basketball defeats No. 9 Florida State in top-15 ACC clash

In an ACC clash of top-15 teams, the North Carolina men's basketball team (16-3, 4-1 ACC) pulled away late in a 96-83 win over No. 9 Florida State (16-2, 4-1 ACC) on Saturday at the Smith Center.

What happened?

The No. 11 Tar Heels continued its run of quick starts at home, opening on a 14-5 run after building a 26-4 lead in its 51-point win over N.C. State on Sunday. UNC forced the Seminoles into early turnovers and kept its short-handed frontcourt out of foul trouble.

But it didn't last forever. The Seminoles whittled away at the North Carolina lead and eventually seized it with 7:38 left in the first half on an Dwayne Bacon 3-point play.

Without Tony Bradley — who missed Saturday's game with concussion-like symptoms — the Tar Heels turned to an ultra-small lineup when Isaiah Hicks, Kennedy Meeks and Luke Maye all headed to the bench with two fouls. UNC ended the half on a 7-0 run, punctuated by a Joel Berry 3-pointer to give him 19 first-half points.

The foul trouble continued into the second half, as Meeks and Hicks picked up their respective third fouls in the first four minutes of the half. When Florida State cut the UNC lead to 59-56 with 14:54 left, the Tar Heels rallied behind a small-ball lineup and 10 straight points from Justin Jackson to take an 11-point lead.

The Seminoles didn't go down easy, holding the Tar Heels without a field goal for a five-minute stretch and cutting the lead to three with just over six minutes left. But a fierce dunk by Theo Pinson — his first field goal of the season — sparked an 8-2 run and energized the Smith Center crowd.

From there, North Carolina added big play after big play to fend off Florida State and capture its first top-10 win of the season.

Who stood out?

It was an impressive outing on Saturday for many of the Tar Heels' main contributors.

Isaiah Hicks was aggressive from the outset, scoring 10 points in the first seven minutes. The senior power forward put the ball on the floor against the massive Florida State lineup, finishing the game with 22 points on 12-of-14 shooting from the free-throw line.

Joel Berry led the way for the Tar Heels, scoring 26 points and hitting three 3-pointers. Justin Jackson also pitched in 22 points, at one point scoring 10 straight for UNC to pull away from the Seminoles. Luke Maye also hauled in a career-high 15 rebounds with teammate Tony Bradley sidelined.

When was it decided?

With the UNC frontcourt mired in foul trouble and Florida State mounting a comeback, the game looked to be in jeopardy for North Carolina.

But with 5:46 left, his team clinging to a 4-point lead, Theo Pinson slammed home a one-handed dunk for his first field goal of the season. The basket invigorated the Tar Heels, who added a Hicks alley-oop moments later to put the nail in the Seminoles' coffin.

Why does it matter?

After two close wins and a loss in their four conference games this season, the Tar Heels had struggled to return to the elite form they showed in the Maui Invitational early in the year.

But North Carolina showed up in its biggest win of the season. The Tar Heels withstood foul trouble and had season-defining performances from Hicks and Maye, who both were relied upon with Bradley's injury.

After a top-10 victory and a 51-point drubbing of in-state rival N.C. State in a six-day span, North Carolina looks like the team many expected two months ago.

Where do they play next?

The Tar Heels face another ACC test in two days' time, as Syracuse visits the Smith Center on Monday at 7 p.m.

@CJacksonCowart

sports@dailytarheel.com