UNC Basketball: Tar Heels comeback falls short against Florida State

The Tar Heels traveled to Tallahassee to take on Florida State on Wednesday. Find out how it went for the Tar Heels.

Playing at Florida State is a tough task for any ACC team. Heck, playing any road game is a tough task for any ACC team.

The Tar Heels played their first game of 2018 at Florida State, and it proved to be too much for UNC. Florida State built up a lead in the first half, and the Tar Heels tried to scratch back, but it was too late.

North Carolina actually took the lead in the second half, but Florida State continued to play well on offense down the stretch and pulled away from the Tar Heels.

The Game

Tar Heel fans knew this would be a tough matchup, and it really was.

The first half was a mess for the Tar Heels. They got off to a little bit of a slow start, and the Seminoles piled on.

FSU poured in nine threes in the first half alone, which was half of the total eighteen shots they made in the first half.

As a team, they were 9-20 from three, but the Tar Heels weren’t far behind.

UNC shot 6-13 from deep, but the score at the half was much different from the two teams percentages.

The Seminoles took a 51-40 lead into the half, the most points the Tar Heels have given up in the first half this year.

The reason for the eleven point lead was the shooting percentage from the field. FSU shot 55%, and the Tar Heels shot a weak 39%.

In the second half, the Tar Heels tried to put together a little bit of a run. Joel Berry came out knocking down shots, driving into the lane, and getting to the line.

The Tar Heels came out hot and tied it up with about twelve minutes to go at 58-58.

However, a crucial moment in the game came with about nine minutes to go in the half: Theo Pinson picked up his fourth foul of the game on a questionable call to say the least.

The Seminoles went on a nice run once Pinson went to the bench and got ahead by as much as nine.

Then Berry took over again.

He carried the Tar Heels all the way back within one point, 81-80 following a clutch steal by Pinson and another three by Berry.

But the Heels fell short at the end of the day. Kenny Williams had a look to win the game from half court, but it was deflected.

This loss knocks North Carolina down to 1-1 in ACC play, with a tough game coming up this Saturday.

Player of the game…

Joel Berry was the player of the game for the Heels, and there is no doubt about that. He carried North Carolina in the second half when it looked like Florida State was going to pull away from UNC.

Berry finished with a season-high 28 points on the night, including a clutch three that pulled the North Carolina within one late in the game.

That was as close as they would get in the end.

Berry also missed a floater with an opportunity to take the lead in the late seconds of the game.

On the rebound was when Pinson fouled out.

But had it not been for Berry, the Seminoles likely would have rolled all night. The Tar Heels were lucky that Berry had his A-game, which gave UNC a chance.

Notable Stat…

The notable stat of the game is the 49% field goal percentage that the Seminoles shot tonight.

They seemed comfortable all night on offense, which helped them knock down nine threes in the half.

FSU only made two threes in the second half, but the cushion they built early was the difference.

North Carolina still has a way to go on defense. They show potential at most times, but they have as many lulls on defense as they do promising stretches.

When the Tar Heels put it together on the defensive end, they will be a tough team to beat.

What’s Next?

Next, the Tar Heels will travel to Charlottesville for a battle against the Virginia Cavaliers. When the Tar Heels play Virginia, you can expect a low scoring game. Playing at Virginia is another task in its self.

This will be a tough test on how this Tar Heel team can operate in the half court. Virginia will be ready, so let’s hope the Tar Heels are as well.

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