No. 7 UNC Outclasses Tennessee Tech at Dean Dome, Moves to 4-0 to Start Season

It took less than 10 minutes for the seventh-ranked UNC men’s basketball team to build a double-digit lead against the visiting Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles at the Dean E. Smith Center on Friday night, as the Tar Heels rolled to an easy 108-58 blowout victory.

With the win, UNC improves to 4-0 to start the 2018-19 season. Tennessee Tech–a member of the Ohio Valley Conference–drops to 0-4 with the loss and has now lost all of its games by an average of 23.5 points.

Up by 12 with a little more than seven minutes remaining in the first half, the Tar Heels rattled off a 17-5 run before halftime to take a 50-26 lead into the locker room and erase any possible questions about the final outcome.

The second half brought more of the same, as UNC continued to bury its over-matched opponent without ever taking its foot off the gas pedal. The game’s final margin of victory of 50 points was the Tar Heels’ biggest lead of the night.

Senior forward Luke Maye led UNC in scoring and rebounding against Tennessee Tech on Friday, finishing with 15 points and eight rebounds. (Todd Melet)

Senior forward Luke Maye led all players with 15 points and eight rebounds on the night, while a total of six Tar Heels scored in double figures and eight tallied at least seven points.

Perhaps the most telling statistic on Friday was the fact that UNC made just five of its 23 attempts from three-point range. Despite the struggles from long range, the Tar Heels flexed their massive advantage on the inside as they converted on a combined 21 layups and dunks.

Defense was the main subject on UNC head coach Roy Williams’ mind following the Tar Heels’ 90-72 victory over Stanford on Monday, due to what he perceived as a lack of effort and attention to detail in the second half of that game.

There weren’t any problems like that against Tennessee Tech, if that comes as any surprise.

UNC held the Golden Eagles to just 36 percent shooting from the field and forced them into committing 22 turnovers–which the Tar Heels turned into 22 points on the other end.

“We did a much better job of playing defense without fouling, as opposed to the way we played Monday night,” Williams told reporters afterwards. “Again, we were more blessed and we should win [this] kind of game. But I think we did gain something from the way we felt after Monday night’s game.”

While it’s tough to draw any major conclusions from a game where the talent disparity is so evident, UNC once again flashed its incredible wealth of scoring options on offense and provided a much more spirited effort defensively.

This early in the season, that’s about all that can be asked for as the team continues to gel and create its identity.

Up Next:

Another home game at the Smith Center awaits the Tar Heels on Monday, Nov. 19, when they host St. Francis (PA) for a game that is scheduled to tip off at 8 p.m.

Game Notes:

Seventh Woods hit a three-pointer in the first half, which was his first since the Tar Heels won at Hawaii in the fourth game of the 2016-17 season–a span of nearly two years. He also finished the game with seven points and a career-high eight assists without turning the ball over.
Kenny Williams left the game midway through the second half with a sprained right ankle and did not return.
This was UNC’s second time scoring at least 100 points this season, with last Friday’s 116-67 win at Elon representing the other.

FINAL BOX SCORE

Cover photo via Todd Melet

No. 7 UNC Outclasses Tennessee Tech at Dean Dome, Moves to 4-0 to Start Season

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