Field Level Media
Aug 20, 2012
Cameron Johnson and Nassir Little each scored 18 points as No. 8 North Carolina pulled away from No. 16 Florida State, winning 77-59 on Saturday in Chapel Hill, N.C., to snap the Seminoles' eight-game winning streak.
Luke Maye added 15 points and Coby White had 10 points for the Tar Heels, who defeated two ranked teams by an average of 17 points across a four-day period.
North Carolina (22-5, 12-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), which was fresh off toppling top-ranked Duke on Wednesday night, kept pace with Virginia and Duke atop the ACC standings.
Florida State (21-6, 9-5) had the longest ACC winning streak in its history, but was unable to reach six conference road victories -- something it hasn't accomplished since the 1991-92 season.
David Nichols scored 16 points and Terance Mann had 10 points for the Seminoles.
Maye grabbed 11 rebounds and Johnson had 10 boards. Little, a reserve forward, had 11 first-half points.
White shot 1 of 8 in the first half, but scored three baskets in the opening four minutes of the second half as North Carolina built a 48-38 lead.
Florida State threatened, but when Maye banked in a 3-point shot with about nine minutes left, it pushed the margin to 64-52.
North Carolina led 37-34 at halftime after leading by as many as 13 points. The Tar Heels shot 2 of 11 on 3-pointers before the break.
North Carolina forward Garrison Brooks, the main interior presence for the Tar Heels, picked up two fouls in less than six minutes.
The Tar Heels surged anyway, with Little scoring seven points as they took a 26-15 lead.
Florida State center Christ Koumadje had two fouls with more than six minutes left in the first half and was limited to seven minutes before halftime. He finished with six points in 14 minutes.
The Seminoles rallied within 31-29 but they never caught up.
Florida State won last season's meeting at home, but North Carolina has now won eight of the last nine meetings.
--Field Level Media