UNC, junior Luke Maye dominate Davidson on boards in 85-75 victory

North Carolina clobbered Davidson on the boards Friday and beat the Wildcats 85-75 at Friday before a crowd of 11,395 at Spectrum Center.

The 13^th-ranked Tar Heels (7-1) outrebounded Davidson (3-3) 54-23, with junior forward Luke Maye grabbing a career-high 17. Maye added 24 points, although point guard Joel Berry led the Tar Heels with 27.

UNC’s rebounding advantage translated on the scoreboard, with the Tar Heels outscoring the Wildcats 48-18 in the paint.

The Tar Heels, who led 43-37 at halftime, put the game away midway through the second half, outscoring the Wildcats 8-0 at one point, capped with an acrobatic layup by Theo Pinson. It eventually became a 20-6 run for North Carolina and Davidson never recovered.

The Wildcats had stayed in the game to that point with their 3-point shooting (7-of-17 in the first half). But Davidson went cold in the second half, going just 12-of-30.

The Wildcats entered the game leading the nation in 3-pointers per game (13.8), assist-turnover ratio (2.48) and assists per game (21.8). The Wildcats essentially equaled those numbers against the Tar Heels, with 14 3s, 19 assists and seven turnovers. But it was the rebounding that separated the teams. North Carolina was particularly effective on the offensive boards (19-4) and the Tar Heels turned that into a 25-5 edge in second-chance points.

Three who mattered

Maye, North Carolina: The Tar Heels’ junior forward, who attended Hough High and was heavily recruited by Davidson, made 10-of-18 shots for 24 points, adding a career-high 17 rebounds.

Berry, North Carolina: The Tar Heels’ senior point guard was excellent on all fronts, scoring 27 points and handing out four assists.

Jon Axel Gundmundsson, Davidson: The Wildcats’ unsung sophomore guard has had another strong all-around game, scoring 19 points, to go with six assists, six rebounds and two steals.

Observations

▪ Most heads-up play of the game: After Berry threw up an air ball, Maye recognized he could get to the ball before it bounced out of bounds. He flicked it bounced it in off Davidson’s Rusty Reigel, who couldn’t control it. The ball went bounced out of bounds and to the Tar Heels.

▪ Davidson’s Kellan Grady and North Carolina’s Andrew Platek were teammates last season at Northfield (Mass.) Mount Hermon School. Grady hit a 3-pointer over Platek in the first half, using a pump fake to send his former teammate past him. A few moments later, Grady scored on a back-door cut past Platek.

Worth mentioning

▪ The Wildcats’ next game is Tuesday against Virginia Military at Belk Arena. A possible spectator will be former Wildcats star Stephen Curry, whose Golden State Warriors play the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday. North Carolina faces Tulane on Sunday at the Smith Center.

▪ Davidson was 7-of-17 from 3-point range in the first half and an identical 7-of-17 from from inside the arc, 14-for-34 overall.

▪ North Carolina’s 43-37 halftime lead was largely attributable to the Tar Heels’ 28-14 dominance on the boards. Maye had 10 of them.

This story was originally published December 1, 2017 at 10:42 PM with the headline "UNC, junior Luke Maye dominate Davidson on boards in 85-75 victory."