Jarkel Joiner scored 29 points, and helped spark a key spurt down the stretch, as No. 23 North Carolina State dealt another blow to visiting North Carolina’s postseason aspirations by winning 77-69 on Sunday afternoon at Raleigh, N.C.
D.J. Burns used a variety of low post moves for 18 points, Terquavion Smith and Casey Morsell both scored 12 points for NC State (21-7, 11-6 ACC), which avenged an earlier loss to North Carolina.
The Tar Heels (16-11, 8-8) have lost five of their last six games. Caleb Love’s 23 points and Armando Bacot’s 16 points and 12 rebounds led North Carolina.
Joiner scored on an acrobatic layup, a 3-pointer in transition and a jumper in North Carolina State’s late 9-0 run that created a 69-60 lead with four minutes to play.
The Wolfpack avoided what would have been its first back-to-back losses of the season. NC State reached seven consecutive ACC home victories in the same season for the first time in program history.
Since moving into the Top 25 for the first time this season two weeks ago, the Wolfpack have gone 2-2.
North Carolina hit three 3s in less than a three-minute span for a 54-48 edge. The Wolfpack scored the next seven points, capped by Jack Clark’s 3-pointer.
NC State didn’t have a turnover until the second half and ended up with just two.
North Carolina’s Pete Nance was 0-for-13 in a four-game stretch on 3-pointers until hitting from long range in the second half.
NC State led 32-31 at halftime despite shooting 30 percent from the field in the opening half. The Tar Heels checked in at 40 percent, including 2-for-9 on 3-point attempts.
The Wolfpack led 22-19 about 12 minutes into the game, though by that point all seven turnovers in the game were charged to North Carolina.
The Tar Heels trailed for almost the entire first half, and even when they finally went ahead it didn’t last long. Love drained a 3-pointer for a 31-30 edge, but fell to the court and was whistled for a technical foul via a flop warning. Joiner made both free throws at the other end, so there was no game action with North Carolina leading during that sequence.
–Field Level Media