How it fell apart for NC State in the second half of its loss to UNC

N.C. State was in control of North Carolina early in the second half on Tuesday night.

The Wolfpack had the best version of senior guard Markell Johnson going and a 52-45 lead after a layup by forward D.J. Funderburk with 14:45 left.

And then, the Tar Heels went on a game-changing 22 to 4 run to seize the game and another win in the series for coach Roy Williams (who is 32-4 as UNC’s coach vs. the Wolfpack).

What happened during the game-changing 7 minutes and 5 seconds?

Empty trips

Let’s start on the offensive side of the ball. Johnson, who runs hot and cold from game to game, had 10 points in the first half and another six to get N.C. State’s lead to 52-45. During the Tar Heels’ 22-4 run, Johnson missed two shots and had a turnover lead to a dunk by UNC freshman point guard Cole Anthony (19 points, 5 assists).

N.C. State had 11 possessions during the UNC run and had as many shot attempts (five) as turnovers. The Wolfpack went 1 of 5 on field goals during the 11 trips and went 2 of 2 from the foul line.

Two of the possessions were affected by a whistle from the stands. On Johnson’s turnover, which Anthony stole near the 3-point line and went in for an uncontested dunk, and on the next possession — a turnover by guard Devon Daniels — some of the players from each side stopped over the confusion with the whistle.

During the stretch, N.C. State got two points from the foul line from Daniels and a layup by Funderburk, set up by Johnson. The Wolfpack point guard finished with a team-high 21 points and 10 assists.

N.C. State’s possessions during the 22-4 run:

▪ 14:07 C.J. Bryce missed 3-pointer, good look. NC State leads 52-45.

▪ 13:31 Daniels missed runner, tough shot

▪ 12:33 Bryce turnover

▪ 11:53 Daniels drive (fouled by Justin Pierce), made both free throws. Game tied 54-54

▪ 11:21 Johnson missed 3, open look

▪ 11:05 Johnson missed contested layup

▪ 10:19 Johnson turnover, bad pass (led to Anthony dunk)

▪ 10:01 Daniels turnover, confusion over whistle

▪ 9:31 Funderburk layup. UNC leads 61-56

▪ 8:47 Bryce tied-up (turnover), possession arrow to UNC

▪ 8:20 Bryce traveling violation (turnover)

Rebounding lapses

On the defensive side, N.C. State coach Kevin Keatts would like to have those 7 minutes back. This is not the typical high-scoring, well-oiled machine that Williams has had at UNC since 2003. The Heels rank No. 335 in the country in 3-point percentage and No. 304 in free-throw percentage. But UNC still ranks in the top 10 in the country in rebounding margin and offensive rebounds.

During its 22-4 run, UNC went 4 of 5 from the foul line and guard Christian Keeling, who went into the game shooting 28.2 percent from 3, made a pair of 3s. five of UNC’s 13 offensive rebounds came during the stretch (compared to zero for the Wolfpack).

In all, UNC had 10 possessions and scored 22 points on eight of them. Only one of their possessions ended in a turnover.

One sequence, in particular, defined the game, Keatts said. Sophomore guard Leaky Black made a layup in transition to cut N.C. State’s lead to 52-50 at 13:26. Black was fouled by N.C. State guard Braxton Beverly and went to the foul line.

Black missed the free throw but forward Justin Pierce was able to tap the rebound back out to Black. On the reset, junior forward Garrison Brooks missed a layup but Pierce was able to get the offensive rebound for a second reset. Black missed a 3 but Brooks was able to get an offensive rebound and give the Heels a third reset. Anthony made good with the extra chance and drove to the basket for a layup and to tie the game at 52.

“We knew coming in, how good of a rebounding team they are,” Keatts said. “They did a good job (with) 13. They beat us on the glass again. That one possession was very frustrating to me.”

UNC finished with a 13-7 advantage on the offensive glass and 13-6 in second-chance points.

Keeling took over from there. The grad transfer from Charleston Southern, who was recruited by N.C. State last summer, made a pull-up jumper in transition, a contested 3 and and a deep 3 over UNC’s next five possessions. He finished with a season-high 16 points and made 7 of his 9 shots to go with seven rebounds.

Brooks, who turned in a game-high 30 points, finished off the run with a three-point play at 8:33 for a 67-56 lead. Brooks was 8 of 15 from the floor and 14 of 16 from the foul line.

The game was basically even from there (a 20-18 N.C. State edge) but it was decided during the surge by the Heels.

UNC’s possessions during the 22-4 run:

▪ 13:51 Robinson pull-up jumper, fouled by Bryce. He makes the “and 1,” free throw. N.C. State leads 52-48

▪ 13:26 Black layup in transition, fouled by Beverly. Black missed the free throw, rebound tipped out by Pierce, controlled by Black. Brooks missed layup, Pierce rebound and Black missed a 3. Brooks rebound and Anthony drove for a layup. Game tied at 52.

▪ 12:13 Black missed in transition, gets his own own rebound. Brooks fouled by Johnson on a layup attempt. Brooks makes both free throws. UNC leads 54-52

▪ 11:32 Brooks layup attempt blocked by Jericole Hellems

▪ 11:14 Keeling pull-up jumper in transition. UNC leads 56-54

▪ 10:38 Keeling contested 3. UNC leads 59-54

▪ 10:16 Anthony dunk after Johnson turnover. UNC leads 61-54.

▪ 9:45 Anthony turnover, bad pass

▪ 9:05 Keeling 3. UNC leads 64-56

▪ 8:33 Brooks layup and is fouled by Funderburk. He makes the “and 1.” UNC leads 67-56

This story was originally published February 26, 2020 at 11:56 AM.

Joe Giglio

The News & Observer

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Joe Giglio has worked at The N&O since 1995 and has regularly reported on the ACC since 2005. He grew up in Ringwood, N.J. and graduated from N.C. State. Support my work with a digital subscription