University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
George Mason
No. 10 Tar Heels Handle George Mason, 115-81
December 7, 2003 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 7, 2003
By DAVID DROSCHAK
AP Sports Writer
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Sean May is scoring, Raymond Felton is working the ball and North Carolina is off and running under Roy Williams.
May scored 11 of his career-high 26 points in the first 5˝ minutes of the second half and the Tar Heels shot 61 percent in a 115-81 victory over George Mason on Sunday.
The No. 10 Tar Heels (5-0) remained one of five undefeated teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference in notching their first 100-point game under Williams. It was the most points for North Carolina since it scored 129 against Virginia Military in 1994.
"I feel comfortable with the kids and the junior class has had a tough two years," Williams said. "I'm hoping they are enjoying this success and I'm hoping it makes them more hungry to have more success."
ut Williams, who has been to the last two Final Fours with Kansas, laughed off a question about a national championship run.
"Just thinking about a question that has Final Four and my team in it shouldn't be in the same dictionary," Williams said. "We're not, we're just not. We're on the edge. If a couple of guys go down our team changes drastically.
"We're a long way away. I've coached a few games here. I didn't just get this gray hair from walking in the gym today."
May, who had 23 points and 14 rebounds against Illinois in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge on Tuesday, was strong again, going 10-for-12 from the field.
"We had no chance of stopping him individually and we tried to give help in there, but it was too little help and too late," George Mason coach Jim Larranaga said.
Felton, a preseason All-American, had a school-record 18 assists - 13 in the second half - while ACC scoring leader Jawad Williams and Rashad McCants scored 21 points each.
Jeff Lebo had 17 assists in a game for North Carolina in 1988 and Ed Cota matched that mark 11 years later.
"He really made some nice decisions," Roy Williams said. "I told him there have been a lot of big-time basketball players played here and he's got more assists in one game than any of them."
Mark Davis led the Patriots (4-2) with 21 points.
Felton's steal and dunk with 5:17 left put the Tar Heels over the century mark and pushed the lead to 30 in what amounted to a near perfect half for North Carolina, who trailed by two at halftime.
The Tar Heels went on a 15-2 run to start the second half against a George Mason team favored to win the Colonial Athletic Association title.
May hit a bank shot, sank a 17-footer and added a reverse layup during the spurt, forcing Larranaga to call two timeouts. The stoppages didn't work as May added a three-point play and a layup, and the Tar Heels went up 67-54. The Patriots never got closer than 11 the rest of the way.
"When all you have to do is catch it and lay it in it makes it easy," May said, referring to Felton's sharp passes to the post. "Ray is a heck of a player."
The Patriots weren't intimidated by Smith Center or North Carolina's mystique, making their first seven shots to lead by nine points after less than four minutes. The Tar Heels regrouped with a 14-0 run.
"The whole halftime talk was about having responsibility to guard your man," Roy Williams said.
George Mason was able to contend despite missing second-leading scorer Lamar Butler, who injured his left foot and returned to the bench on crutches in the second half.
"That really hurt us because he's such a good 3-point shooter," Larranaga said. "He's been nursing a sprained foot and his toes have been bothering him. The X-rays did not show a break, which is good news."
