Carolina used a 25-6 run at the end of the first half to erase an early 12-point deficit and held off Michigan State in the second half to win 85-69 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday evening. With the win, UNC advances to its 38th regional semifinal appearance in program history.
𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐍.#CarolinaFamily | @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/NsxXO3vcdk
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) March 23, 2024
The Tar Heels trailed 26-14 before rallying for the team’s largest NCAA Tournament comeback since 2007.
“They [Michigan State] just were playing better than us,” said head coach Hubert Davis. “We came into the huddle, and I said, ‘Look, we can’t talk about any basketball stuff until we join the fight.’ Once that started, the level of play… rose. That’s when things started to change.”
Harrison Ingram tied a season high by knocking down five three-pointers, three of which came during the run. The last swished through the net with eight seconds to go, giving the Tar Heels a 40-31 lead heading into halftime. He finished the game with 17 points.
“I feel like I’m in a dream right now,” Ingram said after the game. “Sweet 16 at UNC. What else can I say?”
R.J. Davis led the Tar Heels with 20 points and three made threes, including one on the fast break to give Carolina a 32-28 lead. Overall, UNC made 10 threes on the night, its most in a single game since March 5 against Notre Dame.
It came after a miserable shooting start for the Tar Heels, who missed 12 of their first 18 shots. Michigan State, meanwhile, started 11-17, including a pair of three-pointers from star guard Tyson Walker. Walker, like Davis, is a finalist for the Jerry West Award, given to the nation’s top shooting guard. But Carolina’s defense buckled down after that, and the Spartans missed 10 of their next 11 shots.
“We were getting over screens, we were talking on defense,” said Hubert Davis. “I think the change came on both ends. Not just offensively, but defensively as well.”
Michigan State stayed competitive in the second half, opening on a 15-8 run to trim the lead to 48-46. But Carolina never gave up its advantage, eventually pushing it to as large as 17 points in the final few minutes.
Armando Bacot scored 18 points and Cormac Ryan added 14. Bacot did not record his usual NCAA Tournament double-double, grabbing only seven boards amid a quiet rebounding day for the Tar Heels. Carolina lost the rebounding battle 37-32, its first time doing so since December 20 against Oklahoma. That’s a 25-game span.
“Michigan State, they’re a scary team,” Bacot said. “They’re physical… I was super stressed going into the game. I told [assistant coach Sean May] before the game, ‘Man, I don’t wanna lose this game.’ But I was poised at the same time.”
Bacot and others described several Spartans talking trash to the Tar Heels, even as early as initial on-court warm-ups.
“It was chippy,” Ingram said. “It was a lot of hostility out there.”
“The way they were describing us as a team, I don’t know if they’d been watching film or what it was,” Bacot said. “So be it. They’ll do what they’ve gotta do.”
Against a Michigan State defense which forced nearly 13 turnovers per game on the season, Carolina only gave the ball away five times. It’s the fewest turnovers recorded by the Tar Heels in an NCAA Tournament game since the 2017 national title game against Gonzaga. Carolina forced 11 Spartan turnovers, which it turned into 16 points.
With the win, UNC is now 6-0 against Michigan State in NCAA Tournament play. The No. 1 seed Tar Heels will be back in action on Thursday in Los Angeles to take on the winner of No. 4 seed Alabama and No. 12 seed Grand Canyon. The Crimson Tide and Antelopes will play on Sunday.
Featured image via Todd Melet
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
Win 2 of 6.