The North Carolina Tar Heels men’s basketball team knocked off Gonzaga 71-65 to win the school’s sixth NCAA championship Monday night.

UNC entered halftime down three points to the Bulldogs, who were making their first appearance in the NCAA title game, but came out with a hot start to take an early second-half lead.

The game slogged through the final 20 minutes as foul calls drew the game to a grinding halt resulting in a back-and-forth battle with Gonzaga keeping pace by accruing points from the free throw line.

On a night where the offense was stagnant at times and shots weren’t falling, a gutty effort from junior point guard Joel Berry led UNC to the victory. The win also served as a bit of vengeance for the Tar Heels who lost last year’s championship game on a buzzer-beating three-pointer.

Berry finished the game with 22 points, enough to earn him the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. That honor means Berry’s jersey will be honored in the rafters of the Dean Smith Center. ACC Player of the Year Justin Jackson had a rough night shooting but finished with 16 points and senior Isaiah Hicks contributed a double-digit scoring effort with 13, including a late field goal to put Carolina up three with less than 30 seconds to play.

UNC closed the game on an 8-0 stretch to cement the victory.

Nigel Williams-Goss got hot over the final minutes for Gonzaga scoring eight straight points for the Bulldogs before turning his ankle with 1:25 left in the game. But those were the last eight points for Gonzaga.

This marks UNC head coach Roy Williams third national title, adding to championships at UNC in 2005 and 2009.

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