COLLEGE PARK, MD --- North Carolina became the first ACC team to reach 20 victories this season by pulling away from a tough Maryland team 83-74 at Comcast Center on Saturday.
UNC wasn't terrific in the first half, but it was outstanding in the second 20 minutes, handling adversity and playing some of its best hoops of the season on an afternoon Maryland was ready to play as well as it can.
Carolina improved to 20-3 overall and 7-1 in the ACC while the Terrapins dropped to 13-9 and 3-5.
Here are both teams' grades from this game:
UNC offense: The Heels made just 44.3 percent of their shots, but they were insistent on getting to the offensive glass, where they tallied 18 second-chance points. They should normally score more on put-backs, but this was more than enough. Kendall Marshall tied his career-high with 16 assists. He had six turnovers, but none in the final 19 minutes of the game. Grade: B.
Maryland offense: The Terrapins did a nice job getting to the rim in the first half with the dribble and overall aggressiveness. They shot 41 percent for the game, but made just 4 of 17 3-pointers, and they had only 7 assists on 25 made field goals. Had they flowed better, especially after the intermission, they could have won. Grade: C.
UNC defense: From about the 17 minute mark left in the second half on, the Tar Heels were very good on this side of the court. They got out on shooters better, didn't allow many looks near the rim, and showed once again they can be rather stout on defense. In the first half, though, they allowed too much dribble penetration, stuff around the rim, and just didn't fight as hard as it should have. Grade: B-.
Maryland defense: UMD forced Carolina to miss a ton of shots and forced 14 turnovers, but the Terps had no answer for Tyler Zeller (22 points in 22 minutes) and couldn't stop a determined UNC club over the final 10 minutes of the game. Grade: C-.
UNC intangibles: Carolina showed plenty of grit and fight in the second half, and it was enough to get the win. The Heels were excellent on the glass (46-39, including 19 offensive boards – 10 over the final 11:39 of the contest). This was a guts win, a really good road win for a team that is better off being challenged right now. Grade: A.
Maryland intangibles: Mark Turgeon is doing a heck of a job with his team. They were ready to play, forced the issue for most of the first half, but UNC flexed its muscles in the second half and was just more gifted. As Turgeon builds the program in his vision, efforts like this can be used moving forward, even despite the final outcome. Grade: B.
