Just days after a big win over a ranked Kansas team, the North Carolina Tar Heels avoided a letdown on Tuesday as they hosted the Radford Highlanders. Despite a slow start, North Carolina used a run to close out the first half and grab a double-digit lead.
From there, they never looked back as they took down Radford 89-74 to move to 3-0 on the year.
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While UNC grabbed the lead early, the Highlanders fought back and actually took the lead at 19-16 with a 9-0 run in the first half. They found a groove led by Jaylon Johnson and Del Jones, going up a few times in that first half. But then it clicked for UNC.
After it was tied at 22 with 5:56 left in the first half, UNC went on a 22-9 run to take a 44-31 lead at the break. They kept that momentum going in the second half, outscoring the Highlanders 45-43 in the final 20 minutes. And they were led by Luka Bogavac, who found his groove in just his third game with the team.
Bogavc was one of four starters in double-figures, scoring a team-high 19 points. Henri Veesaar
UNC had four players score in double figures, all four being starters. Henri Veesaar had 18 and seven rebounds while Caleb Wilson finsihed with a double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing 14 boards.
Jarin Stevenson added 15 points in the win.
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This was North Carolina’s first game without senior guard Seth Trimble who suffered a broken bone in his forearm this past week. The guard is one of UNC’s best defenders, and the Tar Heels turned to Bogavac in the starting lineup at least for this game.
North Carolina will stay home and face off against NC Central on Friday night.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Tar Heels roll past Highlanders
