North Carolina hosted Miami tonight looking for a W in their ACC home opener, while Miami looked to stop their 10 game losing streak to the Tar Heels since 2006. Tar Heels may be feeling like they have to prove themselves once again after losing 4 starters to the NBA, and finding themselves outside of the top 25.
Not long into the game the fans could tell that this was gonna be a back forth game all the way until the final buzzer. North Carolina entered halftime with a 32-30 lead, behind the 10 points from James McAdoo. Miami big man Kenny Kadji knew he had to step up in the absence of fellow big man Reggie Johnson, who leads the team averaging 10 rebounds a game, and Kadji did just that entering halftime with 10 points and 5 rebounds. So which leader would keep up their level of play in the second half?
Both teams entered the second half shooting 46% from the field, and seemed to continue to match each other, as neither team would take a commanding lead for the opening eleven minutes of the second half. With 9 minutes left in the game the Tar Heels held a 52-51 lead, and proceeded to get outplayed for the remainder of the game. The final 9 minutes of the game were a nightmare for North Carolina, who went 3 for 14 from the field, 1 for 6 from beyond the arc, and was outscored 17-7, and included a stretch of nearly seven and a half minutes where they only sank one basket. Miami's run was not only accompanied by two big long range shots, but also two big blocks by Kadji.
Miami takes the late game lead and win 68-59. With that victory the Hurricanes are 2-0 in ACC play for the first time since joining the ACC in the 2004-05 season, and have beaten the Tar Heels for the first time since 2006.
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