It was FSU with the upper hand from the tip, gaining the first possession of the game and capitalizing right away with a dunk from forward Baba Miller.
UNC, after two missed 3-point attempts off the hands of graduate guard Cormac Ryan and first year guard Elliot Cadeau, finally found a response when senior guard RJ Davis drove through the lane to secure a quick layup.
The rest of the game ensued in a similar manner — hard fought, physical basketball. But, at the end of the day, it was No. 4 UNC (26-6, 18-3) that had the ultimate upper hand over FSU (17-16, 10-11 ACC), to notch a 92-67 win and advance to the semifinals of the ACC Tournament.
Senior guard RJ Davis — who was recently named the ACC Player of the Year — led the Tar Heels in scoring, with 18, while junior forward Harrison Ingram and graduate center Armando Bacot topped the score sheets in rebounding, notching 10 each.
After a slow first two minutes of the game, scoring began to heat up, with each team knocking down multiple contested shots early on. A fast-paced tempo defined the opening minutes, and multiple players from both squads were able to get on the board quickly.
After the first time out, the Tar Heels emerged with a renewed sense of energy. Despite a tough full-court trap from the Seminoles, UNC managed to get the ball into the paint and in the hands of sophomore forward Jalen Washington, off an assist from Cadeau.
"That's the specialness of our team," Ingram said. "It doesn't matter who it is, whether it's RJ, Elliot, Mondo, me, Cormac — I mean, if one person brings the energy, everyone's going to pick it up."
From that point on, North Carolina was able to slowly eek out a substantial lead. FSU, relying on aggressive defensive efforts, began to see its scoring stagnate. Meanwhile the Tar Heels, especially Ryan and Davis, started to heat up and break through the FSU wall.
"Armando, Harrison — everyone in there," Ryan said. "They're just as physical as can be, and that was a big swing for us."
