No. 10 UNC fades late, falls to Virginia Tech, 80-69
BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Justin Robinson scored 19 points and Virginia Tech pulled away in the second half to beat No. 10 North Carolina 80-69 on Monday night.
Ahmed Hill added 18 points for Virginia Tech (14-6, 3-4 Atlantic Coast Conference). Hill scored seven in a row to start the decisive 13-3 burst, which turned a 51-48 lead into a 64-51 advantage with just under eight minutes remaining. Kerry Blackshear Jr. added 16 points.
Joel Berry and Luke Maye scored 23 points each for the Tar Heels (16-5, 5-3). North Carolina never got closer than eight points in the final eight minutes.
The Hokies ended the first half on a 15-2 run to lead 39-32 at the break. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Berry sparked the Tar Heels early in the second half, but then Hill's 3-pointer started his personal 7-0 run.
As the final horn sounded, fans that had been chanting "just like football" streamed onto the court
BIG PICTURE
North Carolina: The Tar Heels like to play at a fast pace, but were not as adept at getting back on defense against the Hokies, who scored numerous baskets before 10 seconds had come off the shot clock.
Virginia Tech: The Hokies are second nationally in field goal percentage at .521, and while they came up short of that against the Tar Heels, they outscored North Carolina 32-26 in the paint and outrebounded them 36-35.
UP NEXT
The Tar Heels return home to face North Carolina State on Saturday.
Virginia Tech travels to South Bend, Indiana to face Notre Dame on Saturday.
