Harrison Barnes, the Tar Heels' sophomore forward, left the game with 7 minutes, 49 seconds to play in the first half after suffering an ankle injury. After several minutes in the locker room, Barnes returned to the bench with a few minutes left in the half. According to the Tar Heels' media relations staff, Barnes rolled his left ankle and had it re-taped. He re-entered the game with 1:23 to play in the first half and scored four points before intermission.

As expected, John Henson and Tyler Zeller had strong starts. Henson led the Tar Heels with 10 first-half points, and Zeller had eight. Zeller already had nine rebounds - three on the offensive end. North Carolina held a 12-6 advantage during the first half in second-chance points.

As effective as the Tar Heels were in the paint at times, it was still an ugly game. Wake Forest shot 29.6 percent - and 2 of 18 from 3-point range - and the Tar Heels weren't much better. They made 22 of 71 shots, including 4 of 19 behind the 3-point line.

The Tar Heels didn't get much production out of their bench. Their reserves combined to shoot 0 for 8, and James Michael McAdoo scored the reserves' only points, which came on three free throws.