CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Leaky Black’s basket and the team’s defensive stop enabled North Carolina to avoid heartbreak on Saturday afternoon and find its first ACC win of the season, 66-65, over Notre Dame.
With 9.1 seconds on the clock, Black drove to his right and took the Notre Dame defender head on. The ball rose up, bounced off the glass and found the bottom of the net to give North Carolina (6-4, 1-2 ACC) the lead. Ryan Cormac dribbled the ball up the court, found an open Juwan Durham along the baseline, but he couldn’t hit the shot. The ball bounced out-of-bounds as the buzzer sounded.
Notre Dame (3-6, 0-3 ACC) led 57-50 with 7:39 remaining in the game. Freshman Caleb Love then hit second basket of the game, a three-pointer, to start the Tar Heel comeback. Day’Ron Sharpe made the next six points to spark a 9-0 UNC run.
The final 4 minutes and 19 seconds was a back-and-forth showing. After an emphatic Sharpe dunk put his team up one with 1:35 remaining, UNC broke down defensively, giving Prentiss Hubb an easy layup. All signs pointed to another last-second defeat, something the Heels suffered all too often last season, including at the hands of the Irish.
The Tar Heels played a relatively clean game, committing eight turnovers, including two in the second half. It had five turnovers in the first five minutes and three the final 35 minutes.
Two freshmen led the show for the Tar Heels offensively. Sharpe led the Tar Heels with 25 points and added nine rebounds, seven of which were offensive boards. Kerwin Walton caught fire from deep once again. The freshman guard was the only other Tar Heel in double figures with 12 points on 4-for-8 three-point shooting. Nate Laszewski led the Irish with 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting on three-pointers.
UNC outrebounded Notre Dame, 48-27, and outscored the Irish in second-chance points, 18-5.
Sharpe Takes Over
The Greenville, N.C. native single-handedly kept his team in the game in the second half. After six points and two rebounds in the first half, the 6-foot-11 freshman took over down low. If UNC needed a bucket, the Tar Heels got the ball in his hands.
He had 19 of UNC’s 37 total points in the second half. With 4:19 remaining in the game, Sharpe gathered the offensive rebound and drew the foul. He drained both free throws to give his team the 59-57 lead. It was a perfect example of the way he fought under the rim the whole game to gather a game-high 7 offensive rebounds.
His 25 points were the most by a Tar Heel this season and is the only 20-plus point performance in 10 games this season.
A First Half of Runs
After making its first three three-point attempts and going shot-for-shot with Notre Dame in the first eight minutes, the Tar Heels went cold. They missed seven straight shots over the span of five minutes and 12 seconds.
The Fighting Irish went on a 9-0 run to take the lead, 23-17.
The roles then reversed as UNC caught fire to go on a 10-0 run thanks to a Brooks three-pointer, a Leaky Black converted and-one, a Bacot dunk and two made free throws. The Tar Heels utilized ball movement, successful entry passes and protected the basketball – things Roy Williams has been asking for all season.
Up Next
UNC will hit the road when it travels to Miami on Jan. 5. The Hurricanes are 4-4 (0-3 ACC) after losing to Clemson, 66-65, on Saturday. They have dropped two straight and have not won since defeating Jacksonville, 73-64, on Dec. 19.
