Top-Seeded North Carolina Dominates Florida State, Advances To ACC Semifinals

By Raza Umerani

Staff Writer

March 14, 2024

WASHINGTON, D.C. — No. 1 seed North Carolina flexed its muscles and proved why it won the ACC regular season championship in an emphatic 92-67 victory over No. 9 seed Florida State in the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals on Thursday afternoon.

Fueled by a dominant performance on both sides of the ball, the Tar Heels (26-6, 17-3 ACC) utilized a 12-0 first-half run to get out to a 16-point halftime lead and never looked back, running away from the Seminoles (17-16, 10-10) in resounding fashion.

“I was just really proud of the guys,” UNC head coach Hubert Davis said to reporters postgame. “Their effort, energy and attention to detail defensively was good. … For us to dominate the boards on both ends was a huge key for us in allowing them to be successful out there on the floor.”

UNC took FSU’s formula for success in its second round victory over No. 8 seed Virginia Tech and executed it even better, using it to perfection. The Tar Heels had a whopping 48-22 advantage on the glass, pulling down 17 offensive rebounds which led to 17 second chance points. Additionally, they won the fastbreak scoring battle 26-6 and cashed in on 12 turnovers with 23 points.

“Our guys, our team, we understand that, for us to be successful, for us to have a chance to be the best team that we can possibly be, it starts with defense, and it finishes with rebounding,” Davis said. “That bleeds into us being efficient, especially in transition on the offensive end.”

Winning the clash on the glass was easy for North Carolina with Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram in the frontcourt. In addition to their 14 and nine point outings, respectively, Carolina’s star tandem each grabbed 10 rebounds — six of Bacot’s were offensive while Ingram snared five of his own. 

“We knew coming into the game that they were 14th in terms of allowing offensive rebounds, and we were number one or two,” Bacot said. “We knew we had an advantage on the boards”

Of course, it helped that the Tar Heels shot 52 percent from the field against the ‘Noles. The backcourt duo of Notre Dame transfer Cormac Ryan and ACC Player of the Year R.J. Davis had its way, with Ryan notching 14 points — ringing the bell with a game-high three makes from beyond the arc — and Davis pouring in a game-high 18 points.

On the other hand, Florida State was limited to just 41 percent from the field, making 25 percent from downtown.

Coming off of a career-best performance against Virginia Tech in which he scored 34 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, Seminoles forward Jamir Watkins was limited to just 10 points on 2-of-10 shooting. UNC’s elite forward play defended the VCU transfer exquisitely, and with their offensive prowess, they got him into foul trouble throughout the day.

“It was a huge emphasis on us to defend [Watkins] and make it hard for him just to catch the ball and not allow him to go to spots in space where he feels comfortable offensively,” Davis said. “To be able to do that without fouling him, it’s hard to do. It's really a great credit to our wing players, also our bigs just being in position to stop him from getting straight-line drives to the basket.”

With Watkins’ struggles, FSU struggled to find an offensive groove. Primo Spears had a team-high 17 points on 8-of-14 shooting, but much of that came with the game well out of reach. Only one other Seminole was in double figures as Jalen Warley poured in 10 points.

The Tar Heels will take on the winner of Pitt and Wake Forest (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) in the first ACC Tournament Semifinal on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.

“Both of those teams are hungry,” Bacot said. “It's important for us to get a great recovery and then lock in on the scout.”