UNC Takes ACC Tournament Crown

WRALSportsFan

UNC Takes ACC Tournament Crown

By Ryan Craig

Mar 12, 2007

153

comments

For the first time since 1998, North Carolina can call themselves the ACC Tournament champion. North Carolina State put forth a Herculean effort, but it wasn’t enough against a Carolina team with superior talent and depth, as the Tar Heels downed the Pack 89-80 to take the ACC Tournament crown.

Brandan Wright was named tournament MVP for his efforts, including his 16 point, four rebound effort in the title game. Wright became only the fourth freshman in tournament history to be named the most valuable player. The previous three were Phil Ford (UNC-1975), Sam Perkins (UNC-1981) and Jason Williams (Duke-2000).

Courtney Fells opened the game hot for N.C. State, going two for his first two from behind the arc, as the Pack looked to keep pace with a well rested Carolina squad that had yet to be tested yet in this year’s tournament.

Brandon Costner made sure things stayed close for the Pack when he responded to freshman Wayne Ellington’s fadeaway jumper with a three, and Danny Green’s two with a lay-in of his own. Costner, who finished the first half with 16 of State’s 34 points, continued to provide the spark for the Wolfpack, hitting again from deep after Ty Lawson scored on a nice drive down the lane.

Fatigue began to play more of a role as the half wore on, as State began making the mental mistakes they had avoided so well thus far in the tournament. Uncharacteristic turnovers from Ben McCauley and a giveaway by Gavin Grant fueled a late Carolina run as the teams headed to halftime.

With the teams tied at 32, Danny Green hit a jumper and Wes Miller nailed a pair of threes to put the Tar Heels ahead by eight. Brandan Wright, who led the Heels with 14 in the first half on 6-7 shooting, traded baskets with Costner in the final minute, as the clubs headed to the locker room with Carolina holding a 42-34 advantage.

Carolina outscored State 17-0 in transition in the first 20 minutes, with nine different players contributing on the scoring end in a half that saw seven ties and ten lead changes.

The Tar Heels exploded out of the gate in the second half, with the freshman tandem of Ellington and Lawson providing much of the offense. After a pair of Hansbrough free throws, Ellington stole the ball and laid it in, in transition. Lawson followed suit with a pull-up jump shot and a driving lay-in on the ensuing possession, prompting Sidney Lowe to call timeout.

State seemed to find renewed energy after the break in the action, as Grant and McCauley scored on back-to-back possessions, the latter off a nice feed inside from Engin Atsur to cut the Carolina lead back down 50-40.

Ellington made sure to stop the rally right there, however, hitting a tough, off-balance leaner in the lane to put Carolina back up by 12.

The Tar Heels widened the gap to 16 after a Deon Thompson turnaround jumper from the baseline and a Lawson lay-up, but Costner once again provided the answer, this time with a long three that cut the lead to 56-43.

State would trim the margin to single digits behind a Dennis Horner jumper off a screen, and a pair of Courtney Fells free throws, as State made an 8-0 run.

Down 64-52 after a Tyler Hansbrough three-point play, Horner hit a two to start a 13-4 run for the Pack that made it a one possession game at 68-65.

After State made it a one point game behind a Courtney Fells jumper, Reyshawn Terry put Carolina on his back, scoring eight straight points for the Heels, the final three of which put his team back up 78-72.

Brandon Costner had a three-point play to make it a three point game once again, but four straight free throws from Ellington and Lawson pushed the Carolina lead back to seven.

State refused to give up, but Carolina’s excellent free-throw shooting down the stretch was the difference. Carolina only missed one free throw on the afternoon, a Lawson miss with just more than 30 seconds left in the game, but Terry’s rebound on a State missed shot with seconds left locked up the crown for Carolina.

Lawson’s thunderous dunk with 0.8 seconds left put the finishing touches on, as the Heels will now sit back and wait to see if the Selection Committee rewards them with a number one seed for the NCAA Tournament.

Costner led the Pack with 28 points, as he set the ACC Tournament four-game record for points scored. Randolph Childress set the three-game record when he scored 107 points for Wake Forest during their ACC Tournament championship run in 1995.

Courtney Fells posted 19 points for State, and Ben McCauley ended up with 12 points and seven rebounds for the Pack.

Wright led a balanced Carolina attack with 16, while classmate Wayne Ellington added 16. Hansbrough finished the game with 15 points, including a perfect 11-11 from the line. Senior Reyshawn Terry had 13 in his final ACC Tournament game.

Web Editor: Ryan Craig

Most Recent Comments

Maddie, Since you know NOTHING, yet again, I'll enlighten you. UNC lost in the first round in '99. Duke lost in the first round in '96. Those are the only times either team has lost in the first round since the field was expanded to six rounds. Well, until this year. Send McRoberts a sympathy card Friday morning. He's kinda sensitive.

heels1 you should know all about FIRST ROUND LOSERS, what year was that?????????? oh, how many times ?????????

maddie i don't understand, you are in a unc and state post, we are the classy ones, you and dukeengineer need to go to the puke post board, oh, wait a minute they don't have one for first round losers

Dukeengineer, I love reading your comments, it's obvious how smart you are, you know most of these people don't understand you, you have too much class for them, love it !!!!!

Well, I guess I can see that being we are not your #1 rival (yet). HA!

WRAL Sports Fan

WRALSportsFan