It wasn't easy for North Carolina to get over the midweek loss at home to Duke.
The hangover from Austin Rivers' buzzer-beating three-pointer that gave the Blue Devils their one-point win actually lasted into the second half of the Tar Heels' 70-52 victory over Virginia.
"It was difficult," junior forward John Henson said of bouncing back from that crushing setback. "One of my toughest losses I've ever had.
"We kind of came out a little slack, but we picked it up and got back on the right track and are where we are supposed to be."
The Heels went to the locker room up only three points at halftime but outscored the Cavaliers 35-20 over the final 20 minutes.
"We came out slow today in the first half," sophomore guard Kendall Marshall said. "But once we played Carolina basketball, we found a way to win."
The victory assured the Tar Heels of a piece of first place in the conference race with an 8-2 record. Tied with Duke and Florida State for first at the close of play on Feb. 11, they are 21-4 overall going into a midweek game at Miami.
NOTES, QUOTES
--North Carolina had two players with double-doubles in the win over Virginia. Sophomore F Harrison Barnes recorded his second of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Junior F John Henson picked up his 12th of the season and fourth in a row with 10 points and 10 boards.
Senior F Tyler Zeller almost joined the double-double party, but missed by a rebound. He had nine to go with his game-high 25 points.
Coach Roy Williams said he was "happy" for Zeller, but "ecstatic" for Barnes, especially with his rebounding.
"We've been trying to get more rebounding out of him," Williams said.
--North Carolina shot only 35.3 percent from the field against Virginia, the second time in four games the Tar Heels were held to under 40 percent. They shot only 31.0 percent in a win over Wake Forest, 44.3 in their win over Maryland, and 49.2 in their loss to Duke in their previous three games.
--The Tar Heels had not exactly lit it up from three-point range since going 10-of-16 from behind the arc in a win over Georgia Tech on Jan. 29. They went only 10-of-44 (22.7 percent) in their first four games since then and were only 2-of-16 in their last two games -- 1-of-6 vs. Duke and 1-of-10 vs. Virginia.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"I thought rebounding was the biggest key, which was a big plus in our favor." -- Coach Roy Williams, after his Tar Heels outrebounded Virginia 52-32 in their victory.
THIS WEEK'S GAMES
--at Miami, Feb. 15
Miami's Reggie Johnson is a load to handle physically inside as Duke found out. At over 290 pounds, he has the weight advantage over John Henson and Tyler Zeller. Johnson was playing in only his sixth game of the season when the two teams played Jan. 10 in Chapel Hill and had 12 points and nine rebounds as the Heels jumped on the Hurricanes early and won 73-56.
--vs. Clemson, Feb. 18
The Tigers have an inside threat in F Devin Booker. Andre Young and Tanner Smith can loosen things up inside with their three-point shooting.
FUTURES MARKET
Junior F John Henson needs only four points against Miami to reach the 1,000-point level for his career. He was bidding to become the 67th Tar Heel to get to the mark. Sophomore Harrison Barnes reached it in the loss to Duke and had 1,018 points for his career after getting 14 against Virginia.
PLAYER NOTES
--Freshman G P.J. Hairston sat out the game against Virginia because of a sore foot. It was the first time he has missed a game this season.
--Junior G Dexter Strickland had knee surgery the day before the Virginia game. He was injured on Jan. 19 and will not return this season.
