University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Wake Forest
Men's Basketball Downs Wake Forest, 52-40
June 21, 1999 | Men's Basketball
January 23, 1999
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) - Termed too young and inexperienced to make an impact, No. 10 North Carolina was considered an afterthought to Duke and Maryland in the race for this year's Atlantic Coast Conference title.
That was more than a month ago, and before the Tar Heels posted a 3-1 ACC road mark, including Saturday's 52-40 victory at Wake Forest.
"We are a typical Carolina team that slowly evolves, and when March and April comes along, we're going to be better than we were today," said Ademola Okulaja, the team's only senior starter.
"We've got Carolina written over our chest and we know what that means. So far, we've done a pretty good job."
North Carolina played a near flawless second half, getting clutch offense from a host of players while limiting Wake Forest to 22 percent shooting en route to the 12-point victory.
"These last wins for us have really been big, especially winning at (N.C.) State and winning at Wake," said coach Bill Guthridge. "These wins are giant steps for getting us into the NCAA tournament and finishing in the upper echelon of the (ACC) regular season. They are gigantic wins."
The Tar Heels (17-4, 5-2 ACC) remained in third place in the league with their third straight win, gaining momentum heading to No. 2 and ACC-leader Duke on Wednesday night.
Okulaja and Kris Lang led North Carolina with 10 points each.
Meanwhile, the Demon Deacons (11-8, 2-5) have lost four in a row for the first time since 1992. Wake Forest sank an ACC-record tying 18 3-pointers here against North Carolina a season ago, but managed only 3-for-18 this time around as Darius Songaila had 10 points.
"North Carolina certainly has improved as much as anybody in the league since the beginning of the year," Wake Forest coach Dave Odom said of the Tar Heels, who limited his team to its lowest point total in 19 years. "They're going to go on and have a great year."
Wake Forest's point total was a season low and the lowest in the 197-game series since a 44-34 loss on Jan. 8, 1959.
The Tar Heels trailed at the half for the ninth straight time against Wake Forest in Joel Coliseum, but got four points each from Max Owens and Brandan Haywood in a 12-2 run to open the second half and took control of the game.
Cold-shooting Wake Forest did close within five points with 12:33 left, but Okulaja hit a pair of free throws and sank a 3-pointer as North Carolina built its first double-digit lead of the game at 41-31 two minutes later.
Following a Wake Forest basket, Lang made three straight shots and Okulaja hit North Carolina's first 3-pointer for a 17-point lead with 6:18 left.
"I thought a stretch there in the second half we played about as well as we are capable of playing offensively and defensively," Guthridge said.
"I told the guys that's how we're going to improve - winning on the road - that's when you've got to do the little things out there and just concentrate on playing great defense," said point guard Ed Cota.
The Demon Deacons managed just four baskets in the opening 15 1/2 minutes of the second half and were dominated on the glass 46-23 by the taller Tar Heels, playing their second game without starter Jeff Capel, lost for a month with mononucleosis.
"We need to find someone who can stop people on the perimeter and battle somebody on the boards," said Odom. "The 46-23 differential on the boards is nothing short of pathetic, absolutely nothing short of pathetic. We can't continue to get abused on the backboards."
North Carolina cut off Wake Forest's 3-point shooting in the first half after the Demon Deacons burned the Tar Heels for 12 in the opening 20 minutes a season ago.
Robert O'Kelley's shot from behind the arc 3:41 before halftime was the only long-range basket of the half for either team as Wake Forest built the biggest lead of the half - four - at 22-18.
O'Kelley, coming off a 27-point game at Florida State four days ago, was 4-for-12 from the field for nine points.
