The North Carolina Tar Heels have been up and down so far this season, yet still hold a top-15 spot in the AP Polls, and they helped that cause on Tuesday night. The 12th-ranked Tar Heels led the entire way on the road en route to a 90-82 win over the 15th-ranked North Carolina State Wolfpack in a major rivalry game. Luke Maye had 21 points for the Heels, who never trailed in their sixth straight road win in the all-time in-state series. North Carolina scored the game's first 12 points to set the pace, despite having to hold off multiple Wolfpack comeback attempts in the second half.
The Tar Heels had to hold off NC State without Cameron Johnson for the final 12 minutes of game time due to foul trouble , yet they still put an end to their rival's recent hot streak. Kenny Williams played a major role with his first-career double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, while the Tar Heels also went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line to seal the victory in the final 32.1 seconds. The victory was the 12th for North Carolina, while NC State suffered their first conference loss, despite getting 21 points from Braxton Beverly. They did tie the game twice, but never jumped ahead and saw the end of their seven-game winning streak that helped them climb the rankings.
Meanwhile, the eighth-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders had to rally on their home floor, but came away with a 66-59 win over the 23rd-ranked Oklahoma Sooners, 66-59. Jarrett Culver recorded his first double-double of the season with 23 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. That included scoring seven straight points himself, helping to break a tie late in the second half, and improving his team to 14-1 on the season. After that run, Aaron Calixte hit a three-pointer to pull the Sooners within two in the final minutes, but they would get no closer in the loss.
Christian James led the Sooners with 14 points, but they dropped to 1-2 in conference play. Brady Manek was a bit off for them, scoring just 13 points, as Oklahoma shot just 30 percent in the second half, while also committing 10 of their 14 turnovers after halftime. Both of their conference losses have come against top-10 teams, with their first coming in the conference opener, on the road against the Kansas Jayhawks. Oklahoma did lead by as many as seven points on the road, but a 12-4 run helped the Red Raiders jump ahead, and then Culver took over from there.
The Tar Heels had to hold off NC State without Cameron Johnson for the final 12 minutes of game time due to foul trouble , yet they still put an end to their rival's recent hot streak. Kenny Williams played a major role with his first-career double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, while the Tar Heels also went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line to seal the victory in the final 32.1 seconds. The victory was the 12th for North Carolina, while NC State suffered their first conference loss, despite getting 21 points from Braxton Beverly. They did tie the game twice, but never jumped ahead and saw the end of their seven-game winning streak that helped them climb the rankings.
Meanwhile, the eighth-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders had to rally on their home floor, but came away with a 66-59 win over the 23rd-ranked Oklahoma Sooners, 66-59. Jarrett Culver recorded his first double-double of the season with 23 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. That included scoring seven straight points himself, helping to break a tie late in the second half, and improving his team to 14-1 on the season. After that run, Aaron Calixte hit a three-pointer to pull the Sooners within two in the final minutes, but they would get no closer in the loss.
Christian James led the Sooners with 14 points, but they dropped to 1-2 in conference play. Brady Manek was a bit off for them, scoring just 13 points, as Oklahoma shot just 30 percent in the second half, while also committing 10 of their 14 turnovers after halftime. Both of their conference losses have come against top-10 teams, with their first coming in the conference opener, on the road against the Kansas Jayhawks. Oklahoma did lead by as many as seven points on the road, but a 12-4 run helped the Red Raiders jump ahead, and then Culver took over from there.
