UNC men's basketball sinks season-best 14 3-pointers in Virginia Tech win

It started with Joel Berry.

Just over three minutes into the No. 9 North Carolina men’s basketball team’s 91-72 win over Virginia Tech on Thursday night, Berry took a shot from behind the arc when UNC trailed the Hokies, 8-2.

Berry drained it — the first of a season-high 14 3-pointers for North Carolina (19-3, 7-1 ACC) — to cut the deficit to three. Many of those shots against the Hokies (15-5, 4-4 ACC) were wide open, as players found opportunities behind 25 assists, the most UNC has had in an ACC game all season.

“We know that if we share the ball, we’re gonna get a good shot,” Berry said. “And that’s what we want every single time.”

Berry found another opportunity a few minutes later, breaking free of the Virginia Tech player guarding him to sink another three. And when Luke Maye dished a pass to a wide-open Berry at the top of the key, there were no doubts about the result.

Another swish that brought the Smith Center crowd to its feet.

The shooting was contagious. Theo Pinson — who left the game after rolling his right ankle in the first half — followed Berry’s back-to-back makes with a 3-pointer of his own, and Nate Britt tacked on another basket from behind the arc moments later.

“Whenever they get in that position to shoot a three, they feel like they can make it every time ... ” said Justin Jackson, who made five 3-pointers of his own. “That confidence translates into more makes.”

Normally, UNC averages 7.3 made 3-pointers per game, but the Tar Heels tallied eight in the first half.

North Carolina wasn’t done.

On UNC’s first possession of the second half, Berry drained a three, and two more 3-pointers from the Tar Heels forced Virginia Tech head coach Buzz Williams to call a timeout two minutes into the half.

But there was nothing he could do to quash UNC’s shooting mojo.

North Carolina finished the game shooting 46.7 percent from deep, compared to a 37.4 percent average entering the contest.

“Most of them were shots we work on every day in practice,” head coach Roy Williams said.

The game was the first time Berry and Jackson both finished with five 3-pointers, but success was not limited to the two juniors. Kenny Williams chipped in a 3-pointer at the start of the second half, and Brandon Robinson contributed his sixth 3-pointer of the season.

But it was the Tar Heels’ top two scorers who stole the show.

“I don’t think Justin and Joel really (were) focusing on shooting the ball as much as they do this year,” Kennedy Meeks said. “And I think that’s what we need. I think we need those guys to step up big time on the perimeter.”

It ended with Jackson.

With the shot clock dwindling with just over a minute and a half to play, Jackson was trapped far behind the 3-point line. He released his arching shot a good three feet behind the top-left side of the arc to narrowly beat the buzzer.

“I just tried to shoot it like any other shot,” Jackson said.

For the first time that night, Meeks was surprised to see the ball go in.

“He definitely can shoot the lights out, though,” Meeks said. “He works extremely hard on his 3-point shot, and it’s definitely showing.”

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