University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
NC Central
Tar Heels Beat NC Central, 76-60
November 15, 2014 | Men's Basketball
by Aaron Beard, AP Basketball Writer
CHAPEL HILL—North Carolina had trouble pushing the tempo and setting up preseason All-America Marcus Paige.
Coach Roy Williams figured it was a good season-opening lesson for his sixth-ranked Tar Heels, who beat North Carolina Central 76-60 on Friday night.
"I like the fact that you play a pretty doggone good team and you have some struggles," Williams said. "Everybody's got to look at themselves and the things we made mistakes (on), they've got to learn from it and try to change it."
Brice Johnson scored 12 points to lead the balanced Tar Heels (1-0), who scored the first 11 points and led by double figures nearly all night. UNC shot 44 percent, though Paige managed just eight points on 2-for-8 shooting while seeing some box-and-one defensive attention.
"I think we could've got Marcus open a lot more," said sophomore Kennedy Meeks, who scored 10. "There were more opportunities for us to set those easy screens just so he could get an open shot and get in a rhythm."
J.P. Tokoto also scored 10 for UNC, which won its 10th straight opener.
Anthony McDonald scored 16 points to lead the Eagles (0-1), who entered with a reshaped roster following a 28-win season that included a trip to the NCAA tournament.
The Eagles earned their first win against an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent last year (North Carolina State), but the preseason Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference favorite couldn't follow up and fell to 1-14 against ACC teams.
Coach LeVelle Moton said his team would've preferred to run more, but slowed the tempo against the fast-paced Tar Heels. His team had also battled numerous injuries of late, which limited them to just six players at a recent practice.
"We were just nervous in the first half," Moton said of the slow start. "The look on my kids' faces, I know that look. So we just needed to settle down."
N.C. Central got no closer than six in the first half and trailed 28-19 at half. They never got closer after the break and finished the game shooting 32 percent.
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