The men’s basketball team lost to the University of North Carolina Tar Heels 75-63 in the 219th meeting between two teams. In a hard fought game, the Wolfpack fell behind late and were not able to not catch up.
“It’s obviously a tough loss for us, “coach Sidney Lowe said. “I thought our kids gave great effort.”
Carolina got on the board first before the Wolfpack took the lead going on a 9-0 run. The Pack’s aggressive play led to leading in the game by as much as 10 in the first half. State’s frustrating defense and penetration on the offensive end kept the game close.
“Guys were ready to play,” Lowe said. “They knew it was a big game, and they were ready. We showed that the way we came out with the great energy. They knew it was going to be a challenge, but it was a great opportunity for us. They were fired up.
” Again, I’m proud of the effort. I am proud of the way our guys battled.”
The Wolfpack attacked the rim against the lengthy North Carolina frontcourt. Freshman point guard Ryan Harrow led the penetration of the Wolfpack after not playing the first meeting, which the Tar Heels won 84-64.
”I was just trying to get into the gaps and make the pass or make the shot myself because that was definitely what we needed to do with this team and them putting so much emphasis on Tracy [Smith] and C.J. [Leslie],” Harrow said.
The Tar Heels regained the lead with 1:41 left in the first half, ending the half 31-29.
The Tar Heels maintained the lead in the beginning of the second half until the Wolfpack tied the game at 50 with 10:40 left to go in the game. State did not gain a lead again in the second half of the game.
With sophomore forward Richard Howell out of the game with an injury; the Wolfpack got a heavy contribution from sophomore center Jordan Vandenburg.
“I wasn’t aware that I would get so much time but coach emphasized being aggressive, coming out and playing hard,” Vandenburg said.
An impassioned crowd in the RBC Center multiplied the energy the Wolfpack had on the court throughout the game.
Freshman C.J. Leslie led the way for the Wolfpack, with 13 points and 8 rebounds in his first experience in this rivalry at home in the RBC Center and said he felt the energy from the sellout crowd.
“We had high energy fans and we had a packed house,” Leslie said. “We just didn’t pull it out.”
Both teams finished the game shooting under 45 percent and as in the first match up, rebounding proved to be the difference as the Tar heels out rebounded the Wolfpack by 14.
North Carolina Freshman Harrison Barnes led the Tar Heels finishing with 16 points after a 0-6 first half. Barnes had a coming out party in the first matchup when he put up 25.
The series dates back to the 1912-1913 season with the Tar Heels now leading the series 144-75, including winning the last ten matchups between the two teams.
The Wolfpack has three more games before the start of the ACC Tournament, two of the three games will be in the RBC Center starting with Georgia Tech Feb. 26.
“I’m not worried about this group at all in terms of coming back ready to play,” Lowe said. “I know this was a big game and it’s going to take a little more out of them. They know that there’s still great things that can happen with the rest of the season going into the ACC Tournament, so they will be ready to go.”
