The No. 15 North Carolina men’s basketball team used a blistering offense to cruise past Wake Forest  , 87-71, inside Joel Coliseum Wednesday evening. The Tar Heels improved to 15-4 overall and 5-1 in ACC play.

With the loss, the Demon Deacons dropped to 9-10 overall and a 1-5 mark in league action.

***Listen to the story***

Kennedy Meeks meets J.P. Tokoto (Todd Melet)

Kennedy Meeks meets J.P. Tokoto (Todd Melet)

The Tar Heels shot a season-high 60 percent from the floor to stifle any hopes for an upset bid. For the first time since the 2007-08 season, Carolina begins the ACC campaign with a 3-0 road record.

But maybe most encouraging for UNC head coach Roy Williams was the physicality displayed  by his team in finishing baskets. The Tar Heels owned a commanding 50-26 edge in points in the paint.

“It was a weird night for us. We were a little low on personnel. We lose Theo [Pinson] and then at the end, lose Nate [Britt] too. Justin [Jackson] I think played the entire second half. I think Marcus [Paige] may have played the entire second half. We needed them to do some things like that. It’s a tough stretch we’re in,” Coach Williams says.

***Listen to Roy Williams’ postgame remarks***

Brice Johnson with a monster dunk (Todd Melet)

Brice Johnson with a monster dunk (Todd Melet)

UNC junior forward Brice Johnson turned in an impressive performance, leading the Tar Heels in scoring with 19 points on a sharp 8-11 shooting. And despite getting into foul trouble early, UNC sophomore forward Kennedy Meeks continued to battle, closing with 16 points and eight rebounds.

Wake Forest’s Codi Miller-McIntyre led all scorers with 20 points and also tossed in six rebounds and six assists.

Not all the news was positive for Carolina. Freshman talent Theo Pinson went down with a bruised left foot and did not return to the game. Nate Britt also got banged up Wednesday night. Pinson and Britt join a laundry list of injured Tar Heels, including Joel Berry, Stilman White and Luke Davis.

The first half established the physical nature of the contest. A bruising battle for the boards resulted in Meeks picking up his fourth foul a few minutes before halftime.

The nip-and-tuck nature of the first 20 minutes of play saw the Tar Heels unable to establish more than a six-point lead at any stage – it just so happened the largest margin came at the halftime buzzer.

Tokoto extends for the slam (Todd Melet)

Tokoto extends for the slam (Todd Melet)

At intermission, the upset-minded Deacons trailed the Tar Heels 40-34.

The Tar Heels must have received a pointed locker room speech from Coach Williams. UNC started the second half on a torrid pace, making seven of the first eight shot attempts to establish a 54-40 advantage with 15:15 to play.

UNC’s offense was in full flow to the finish line, consistently knocking down shots against the Wake Forest zone defense.

Next up for the surging Tar Heels are the Seminoles of Florida State. FSU will visit Chapel Hill for a 2 p.m. tipoff Saturday in the Smith Center.

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