UNC Basketball: Tar Heels drop another home conference game
UNC basketball loses its second consecutive home contest, and seventh overall in the last 10 games
Pittsburgh’s Trey McGowens scored a game-high 24 points to go along with eight assists, six rebounds and four steals, as the Panthers topped the Tar Heels 73-65 at the Dean Smith Center on Wednesday night.
McGowens hit 8-of-17 shot from the floor, and 4-of-8 from the three-point line. He did commit four turnovers and four fouls, but was the catalyst for a second-half Panthers run that helped them close the gap on the Tar Heels. Justin Champagnie scored 22 points on a 7-for-12 shooting night, including 4-for-7 from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Xavier Johnson added 17 points, three rebounds and three assists for the Panthers.
The Panthers shot the ball just 52 times for the game, but connected on 44.2 percent of their shots. They struggled to hit shots from deep in the first half, but finished the game shooting 9-for-22 from three-point range. They also connected on 18-of-22 foul shots en route to improving their record to 11-4 on the season, and 2-2 in conference play.
On what turned out to be another abysmal home performance from the Tar Heels, junior forward Garrison Brooks led the way with 21 points and 10 rebounds. He hit 9-of-12 shots for the game, and connected on the very first three-pointer of his college career. Armando Bacot had 15 points and nine rebounds, and Brandon Robinson added 13.
North Carolina shot poorly again — a common theme in nearly every game this season — hitting just 41 percent of its shots on the game. The Tar Heels missed 16 of their 21 three-point attempts, and connected on a miserable 58.8 percent of their free throws (10-for-17). They committed 17 turnovers, and a number of them were completely senseless errors.
North Carolina falls to 8-7 on the season, and 1-3 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. They host Clemson next, a program that has never beaten the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill. With the way that the Tar Heels are playing this season, that streak is in serious doubt.
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