North Carolina Tar Heels vs Pittsburgh Panthers Match Player Stats On Jan 05, 2019

Freshman guard Coby White scored 22 points for No. 15 North Carolina as the visiting Tar Heels drubbed Pittsburgh 85-60 in the conference opener for both teams Saturday afternoon at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh.

Luke Maye had 17 points and 11 rebounds and Cameron Johnson, a former Pittsburgh player, added 15 points for the Tar Heels (11-3, 1-0), who were never threatened in the second half on the way to their third consecutive victory.

North Carolina improved to 54-12 all-time in Atlantic Coast Conference openers.

Freshman Trey McGowens poured in 17 points and freshman Xavier Johnson had 14 points for Pittsburgh (10-4, 0-1). McGowens scored 10 of his points on foul shots. Malik Ellison chipped in 10 points for the Panthers.

Johnson, a graduate transfer in his second season with the Tar Heels after leaving Pittsburgh, made his first three 3-point attempts. North Carolina didn't visit Pittsburgh last season, so this marked his first time on a visiting team in the building. It was his 39th game in the arena.

White made four 3-point baskets as part of his 8-of-15 shooting. He was the only player on the team to shoot above 50 percent from the field.

Spurred by a 16-0 run, the Tar Heels built a 45-23 halftime lead.

North Carolina withstood some early foul troubles, with Pittsburgh going 10-of-15 on first-half free throws. The Tar Heels used 11 players in the first half, even without sophomore reserve forward Sterling Manley, who missed his second game in a row with a knee injury.

Pittsburgh went 10 1/2 minutes without a field goal, shooting 20.7 percent from the floor in the opening half. The Panthers missed on their first nine attempts from 3-point range and ended up 2-of-19 on 3s.

North Carolina has won the last four meetings with Pittsburgh.

It marked the first ACC game for the Panthers under first-year coach Jeff Capel, a former Duke player and assistant coach. The Panthers didn't win an ACC game last season.

--Field Level Media