UNC improved to 10-1 on the season with a 77-58 win over East Tennessee State in the Dean Dome on Tuesday night. The Tar Heels and Buccaneers played a fairly evenly matched first half that saw Carolina go to the locker room with just an eight-point lead before turning on the jets and putting plenty of distance between them and ETSU in the second half.
Carolina was led by a career night from Henri Veesar. The Heels’ started three guys taller than the tallest ETSU player and Veesaar definitely took
advantage of it down low. He finished with 26 points and eight rebounds before the starters were pulled after the game was well in hand. Veesaar’s 26 points beat his previous career-high of 24 points that he scored against St. Bonaventure. Caleb Wilson also put on a show, scoring 20 points and pulling down eight boards. No other Tar Heels finished in double figures. Derek Dixon finished with seven points in 14 minutes of action. Kyan Evans scored six points to go with his six assists and no turnovers. Jarin Stevenson had six points and four assists as well.
The second half was so lopsided that at one point Carolina had out-scored the Buccaneers 22-9. Hubert Davis decided to give the bench some extended minutes, which gave ETSU an opportunity to to make the score more respectable. Still, the Heels shot 46% from the field in the second half. Free throw shooting continues to leave something to be desired, if you’re looking for nits to pick, but it wasn’t a factor in this one.
After last year’s deficiencies with size down low, it is so nice to see a Carolina team be able to bully a smaller opponent with guys like Veesaar and Wilson. They present a big challenge for other teams, especially when they are both firing on all cylinders the way they were tonight.
Two non-conference games remain for the Tar Heels before they start ACC play against Florida State on New Year’s Eve Eve. Next up is Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic on Saturday which may feature the return of Seth Trimble.
