The North Carolina men's basketball team dominated the N.C. State Wolfpack from the start Sunday afternoon in Chapel Hill. UNC held a 56-23 at the half and ended the day with a 107-56 win.
What happened?
N.C. State entered Sunday afternoon's matchup as an underdog, but with a 12-3 record and fresh off a conference win against Virginia Tech, the Wolfpack was supposed to put up a good fight against the Tar Heels.
That fight never materialized on the court. North Carolina scored points by the boatload, destroying N.C. State in transition and finding whatever shot it wanted in the halfcourt. There was an early stretch in the second half when N.C. State attempted to go zone, and UNC shredded it with simple ball movement.
At the first media timeout, the Tar Heels held a 16-4 lead. With five minutes to go in the first half, UNC was up 43-16. At the half, UNC sprinted into the locker room with a 56-23 lead.
In the second, N.C. State never put up a fight to try and climb back into it. North Carolina's Aaron Rohlman and Shea Rush entered right after the under-four media timeout, maybe the earliest they've entered the game all season.
Who stood out?
Sunday's 1 p.m. start was not the original tip-off for the first of two meetings between North Carolina and N.C. State this season. The game was scheduled to be played Saturday evening at 8 p.m., but snow throughout the Triangle forced the postponement of the game till the next afternoon.
North Carolina's fans, especially the students, still showed up and delivered. The crowd gave the Tar Heels a big-time boost in the game's opening minutes. Also, the reception for North Carolina guard Theo Pinson, who took the court for the first time in the 2016-17 season Sunday, was also very warm.
