Seniors Help No. 10 UNC Fend Off Late Syracuse Rally, Move Tar Heels' Winning Streak to Six Games

Experience paid off big time for the 10^th-ranked Tar Heels down the stretch Wednesday night at the Carrier Dome, as seniors Joel Berry and Theo Pinson helped UNC withstand a late Syracuse rally on the way to a 78-74 victory over the Orange—the team’s season-high sixth win in a row.

Berry finished with 12 of his 18 points in the second half—including a critical steal and layup with less than two minutes remaining.

Syracuse trailed for nearly the entire game, but stormed back with a 9-0 run to tie things up at 74. Following a UNC miss, the Orange had the ball with a chance to take the lead. That’s when Berry stepped in for the strip and took it the other way for the score, a play that gave the Tar Heels the lead for good.

He then clinched things up with a pair of free throws in the final seconds after a critical defensive stop.

Theo Pinson was incredible for UNC against Syracuse on Wednesday, posting a career-high 23 points to go with seven assists and six rebounds. (AP Photo/Nick Lisi)

Once again, Berry found a way to show off his clutch gene when UNC needed it most—but it was Pinson that controlled the flow of the game right from the jump.

Although Syracuse’s trademark 2-3 zone defense entered Wednesday’s game as the No. 6 unit in the nation in regards to field goal percentage defense, Pinson picked it apart with surgical precision.

The Greensboro native shot 9-for-12 as he tallied a career-high 23 points, while also racking up seven assists and six rebounds playing heavy minutes at the high post for head coach Roy Williams, a known soft spot in the Syracuse zone.

“We’ve always tried to get the ball right inside the foul line [against the 2-3 zone], and sometimes we make good decisions.” Williams told reporters afterwards. “Theo made a bunch of good ones for us tonight, and was taking the ball to the basket.”

Precision passing—led by Pinson–was the key on offense, as the Tar Heels assisted on an incredible 25 of their 29 shots.

Another important factor for UNC was receiving 12 points off the bench from freshman forward Sterling Manley, who also did a great job patrolling the paint inside the heart of the zone. No other Tar Heel besides the two senior standouts scored in double figures.

On the other end, Syracuse’s backcourt duo of Tyus Battle and Frank Howard seemed determined to take advantage of UNC’s defensive struggles at every chance they could find.

Battle finished with a game-high 26 points—including a number of critical shots that brought the Orange back into the game–while Howard chipped in 23 of his own.

Still, though, the Tar Heels were able to use their experience in order to keep their longest winning streak of the season alive.

Only two games remain before the start of the ACC Tournament but Williams still isn’t quite ready to anoint his team just yet. While the offense has been clicking as well as it has all year, spotty defense threatens to be UNC’s downfall heading into March should the right opponent catch fire.

“We’ve been playing pretty well,” Williams said. “We’ve been making shots, that’s the biggest thing we’ve been doing. Still not as good defensively as I want us to be.

Up Next:

The Tar Heels will have the weekend off from games, before returning to action for Senior Night at the Dean Dome on Tuesday, Feb. 27 against Miami. That game is scheduled to tip-off at 9 p.m.

Game Notes:

It was just the second time in Pinson’s four-year college career he scored at least 20 points.
Junior forward Luke Maye was limited to just nine points and three rebounds.

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Cover photo via Nick Lisi (Associated Press)