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Off the cuff: UNC coach Hubert Davis said he was proud of the Tar Heels effort against a favored Michigan team he said is "unbelievably talented."

The second half was the Tar Heels' best half of the season but they set the tone late in the first half with a late 7-0 run. It had been a frustrating half as Carolina missed a number of relatively easy shots but a bucket by Bacot, followed by a long two from Black and a three by Love set the tone for the second half

Coach Davis said he wanted the Tar Heels to get the ball down in the post more in the second half to Bacot and Garcia. They did and it opened up the outside shot as well.

The coach and players all pointed to the boisterous and supportive Carolina crowd. "There was a lot of energy in the building," Coach Davis said.

A number of former Tar Heel players were in attendance, adding to the excitement, including Antawn Jamison, Tyler Hansbrough and Tyler Zeller.

Tar Heels 72, Michigan 51
Heels whip ranked Michigan team by 21

North Carolina, which led by only two at the half, blitzed Michigan in the second half to win 72-51, putting together its best game against a ranked team. (12/1)

The Tar Heels, playing at home, trailed much of the first half but outscored the Wolverines 7-0 over the last three minutes, highlighted by a high-arching three pointer by Caleb Love, to hold a slim 29-27 lead at the half.

A 14-4 Carolina run early in the half, following by a 20-5 run midway through the half, wrapped this game up in impressive fashion. A three from nearly straightaway from Dawson Garcia followed by a rebound follow by Garcia helped the Heels to their first double-digit lead of the game at 46-35 with just over 12 minutes to play.

Love, who tallied a game-high 22 points, sank a floater in the lane to give the Tar Heels their biggest lead of the game at 68-43.

"He was great," UNC coach Hubert Davis said of Love. "He got after it on the defensive end and was aggressive on the offensive end."

The Tar Heels turned the ball over only six times while forcing 13 Michigan turnovers and holding the Wolverines to 35 percent shooting. Carolina shot more than 60 percent in the second half to finish 47 percent shooting.

"We competed tonight," UNC's Armando Bacot said. "We've been hearing we can't play defense but that was a pretty good defensive effort."

Bacot, who finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds, said he took it to Hunter Dickinson on the offensive end to get the star Wolverine in foul trouble. He attributed the team's improvement to attention to detail.

Coach Davis attributed it to good practices, including the best one of the season on Tuesday. "We had eight days off and we got a chance to get back to fundamentals on the defensive end."

Bacot helped the cause with three blocks while Love came up with three steals.

The Tar Heels, now 5-2, begin the ACC schedule early with an afternoon matchup at Georgia Tech Sunday.

Box Score

Caleb Love scored 22 points to lead the Tar Heels over Michigan in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge. (UNC Sports Information photo)

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