CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — After 14 turnovers led to North Carolina’s second-worst halftime deficit of the season (41-29), freshman forward Walker Kessler erupted in the second half to lead UNC to a big win, 78-70, over No. 11 Florida State. The 7-footer finished with a career-high 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting with eight rebounds and four blocks.
UNC (15-8, 9-5 ACC) shot 25 percent (7-28 FG) in the first half and its 14 turnovers led to 15 points for the Seminoles (14-4, 10-3 ACC). In the second half, the Tar Heels shot 50 percent from the floor (16-32 FG) and made all 14 of their free throws. They drained their final 18 attempts from the charity stripe to finish 27-of-30 (90 percent) from the free throw line. R.J. Davis, Caleb Love and Kerwin Walton shot a combined 9-of-34 from the floor and 5-of-21 from beyond-the-arc but were a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line. They combined for 37 points.
There was a noticeable change in defensive energy for UNC in the second half. It forced 12 second half turnovers that contributed to 15 points for the game. The win for the Tar Heels marks the 900th of Roy Williams’ head coaching career, making him the fastest coach to reach the 900 mark. It is also the largest halftime comeback in the Dean E. Smith Center since 2006 for UNC.
Watch and read everything the Hall of Fame head coach told media members following the historic win:
