For a majority of UNC’s 90-82 road victory over Boston College on Saturday, it appeared the Eagles had the perfect recipe for an upset.

First of all, it was a noon start-time. The ninth-ranked Tar Heels also struggled to put the ball in the basket early on. But above all else, Boston College freshman point guard Ky Bowman was nearly unstoppable–pouring in a career-high 33 points.

Still, though, UNC was able to come together in the final minutes to clinch its sixth straight win in ACC play.

UNC’s star point man Joel Berry has earned every bit of the national attention he’s received for his play this season. On Saturday however, Bowman—a Havelock native who once committed to UNC to play football—stole some of that spotlight for himself.

Justin Jackson led UNC with 22 points against Boston College, as he continues to establish himself as one of the most versatile players in America. (AP Photo/ Mary Schwalm)

Although Berry nailed a key three-pointer that helped seal the Tar Heel victory with just over a minute remaining, he struggled for much of the day—finishing with nine points on nine shots and not a single assist. The junior was also tasked with being the primary defender on Bowman more often than not.

Another North Carolina product—sophomore guard Jerome Robinson out of Broughton High School in Raleigh—added 18 points for the Eagles, but do not be fooled.

Robinson’s production was solid, but as UNC head coach Roy Williams put it after the game—this was the “Ky Bowman” show.

“Several years ago, Larry Fedora called me and wanted to know if I would let a football player play basketball, and I said ‘Yes,’” Williams said. “It was a guy from Havelock, North Carolina that they were recruiting really, really hard.

“Tell Larry he needs to do a better job of recruiting,” Williams continued, with a chuckle. “[Bowman] was something.”

Justin Jackson and Kennedy Meeks led the UNC offensive effort—which picked up mightily in the second half after suffering two stretches of over three minutes without a basket in the first half.

Jackson poured in a team-high 22 points while Meeks tied his top scoring output of the year with 20 points to go along with his game-high nine rebounds.

Isaiah Hicks added 14 points and Theo Pinson tallied 11 as the other Tar Heels to hit double figures.

Jackson continued to stretch the floor by hitting a trio of three-pointers, but Meeks, Hicks and Pinson each took advantage of second-chance opportunities on multiple occasions.

For defensive reasons, Williams kept Meeks and Hicks from being on the floor at the same time over the final minutes—but they each made a significant impact around the rim when called upon, as the Tar Heels (18-3, 6-1 ACC) finished with 24 second chance points on 16 offensive rebounds.

“During that time period, Isaiah’s offensive rebounds were big for us,” Williams said. “The height and size inside—the rebounding—I always think is extremely important.”

Freshman forward Tony Bradley also contributed five points and six rebounds to the UNC frontcourt’s cause in his first game back after missing two straight with a concussion.

Freshman Tony Bradley made his return to the UNC lineup after missing two games with a concussion. (AP Photo/ Mary Schwalm)

The Tar Heels bailed themselves out against the ACC’s 13th place team using the knowledge that they have much more talent and size than their opponents did.

On most nights when a team has its top two scorers have great games—like Boston College did—the results won’t always be favorable.

For that reason, Williams took time to criticize his team’s lackluster perimeter defense against the Eagles—an issue that has plagued the team for quite a few games now.

“Coming off the screens, we weren’t doing a very good job,” Williams said. “You gotta get over the screen, your teammate’s gotta help you—but give you a path. You can’t just keep going the same way or you’ll get caught out.

“If I go one way over a screen and I get caught, the next time I’m gonna try something different,” the coach continued. “The same play got us three times in a row, and that shouldn’t happen. Other than that, they played great offense.”

Despite there being plenty of kinks left for the Tar Heels to work out before the end of the season, their six-game winning streak now places them in the driver’s seat for the ACC regular season title.

Tied atop the standings with Florida State and Notre Dame, UNC has already shown a capability to win conference games in a plethora of different ways—regardless of how ugly or pretty it looks.

Bowman and the Eagles (9-11, 2-5 ACC) each threw their best punches at the Tar Heels on Saturday, yet UNC still walked away with another victory under its belt.

Up Next:

UNC will return to the comforts of the Smith Center for its next game, which takes place Thursday, Jan. 26 against Virginia Tech.

Game Notes:

  • This marks the first time in history that UNC has scored 85 points or more in six consecutive ACC games.
  • Bowman hit seven three-pointers as part of his 33 points, but also turned the ball over eight times.
  • Despite never trailing by more than 12 points, Boston College never held a lead during the game.

 

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