University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Appalachian St
North Carolina Rolls Over Appalachian State, 99-69
November 17, 2000 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 17, 2000
By DAVID DROSCHAK
AP Sports Writer
BOONE, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina is one of the tallest teams in the country. The seventh-ranked Tar Heels proved they lack nothing from the outside in a 99-69 victory over Appalachian State on Friday night.
North Carolina (3-0) made 10 of its first 12 3-pointers en route to the lopsided win in the opening of the Mountaineers' new $38 million Holmes Center.
Joseph Forte led the Tar Heels with 20 points on 9-for-13 shooting, while Kris Lang added 16. The 6-foot-11 Lang didn't have any of North Carolina's 11 3-pointers, but the power forward made four 17-footers to show off his range.
Appalachian State fell to 3-52 all-time against teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference in coach Houston Fancher's Division I-A coaching debut. Shawn Alexander led the Mountaineers with 20 points.
North Carolina coach Matt Doherty wanted more of a killer instinct from his club late after 5- and 10-point wins to start the season in the NABC Classic last week. Doherty got his wish early as the Tar Heels shot 62 percent in the opening 20 minutes to go up 54-29 at the half.
Doherty was so pleased he greeted each player with a fist in the middle of layup drills prior to the second half.
North Carolina used a 25-7 run to build the big margin, getting eight points from Lang, seven from Brian Morrison on two 3-pointers and a free throw, and long-range shots from Jonathan Holmes and Jason Capel.
The 25-point halftime lead came without much help from Forte, who scored 38 in his last game against Tulsa. Forte took only four shots in the opening period as eight different players scored for North Carolina.
North Carolina's point guard battle between freshmen Adam Boone and Morrison also heated up in the first half.
Boone, held scoreless in his first two games, sank a pair 3-pointers in the first 2:30 to get off to a good start. Morrison replaced him minutes later and scored seven points in a span of 57 seconds to help the Tar Heels pull away.
Appalachian State honored the late Rufus Leach at halftime. Leach, last year's leading scorer as a junior, drowned June 9 at a nearby lake. School officials gave Leach's parents his No. 5 jersey and his diploma posthumously. 2nd Ld-Writethru
