North Carolina Tar Heels @ Florida State Seminoles Basketball Recap

North Carolina 72, Florida State 70

If Wednesday night’s ACC game at the Donald Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida, was any indication of the way March Madness is going to unfold, the 2011 NCAA Tournament is going to be one hell of a rollercoaster ride.

Buckle up, ladies and gentlemen: If the clash between the North Carolina Tar Heels and Florida State Seminoles winds up being an accurate portrayal of the college basketball that lies ahead in the next five weeks, sports fans across America are going to be riotously entertained. In a contest that was crazy, mind-boggling, and just plain nutty, North Carolina used a great shot from a gifted player to stay in contention for the outright Atlantic Coast Conference title. Harrison Barnes, the freshman who is finally making good on his immense potential, knocked down a stone-cold three-point jumper from the top of the key with 3.1 seconds left to carry Carolina to a two-point win over the upset-minded Seminoles. The victory enables UNC to move to 13-2 in the ACC, good for a flat-footed tie with Duke at the top of the league standings. Carolina now gets ready for the Blue Devils this Saturday night in the game that will decide the 2011 ACC champion.

How did this game unfold the way it did? First of all, a great deal of credit is due to coach Leonard Hamilton’s Florida State squad, a shorthanded team which was playing without injured forward and defensive stalwart Chris Singleton. Florida State made a strong impression with the NCAA’s Selection Committee, proving it could compete without its best defensive player.

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The Seminoles continually answered UNC’s runs with counter-moves of their own in a rousing second half. North Carolina carved out a 62-55 lead with 6:16 left in regulation thanks to lock-down defense that allowed just one point to FSU in a span of just over four minutes. The Tar Heels were on the verge of running away with the game at that point, but the Seminoles dug in their own heels. Florida State’s Bernard James scored six points in the next few minutes, powering an 11-4 run that pulled the Noles within one point of the visitors at 67-66 with 1:56 left.

Then, all hell broke loose.

UNC scored to gain a three-point lead and coaxed a miss from Florida State with roughly one minute left in regulation. Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall tracked down the rebound in the left corner of the court near his own basket. The Tar Heels had four timeouts at the time, but Marshall didn’t use the timeout while trapped by two FSU defenders plus the twin boundaries created by the sideline and the baseline. Marshall threw a desperation pass down the court, and it was predictably picked off by the Seminoles, who promptly scored a two-point bucket to stay in contention; Carolina still led, 69-68, but the Tar Heels lost a chance to put the game away. After a UNC turnover, Florida State gained a chance to take the lead, and when FSU guard Derwin Kitchen – the new leader on the Seminoles in Singleton’s absence – got fouled with 18.2 seconds left, he banged in two foul shots. Because of panicky decision making by its freshman point guard, North Carolina had turned a three-point lead into a one-point deficit in the final minute of regulation.

Fortunately, Harrison Barnes rode to the rescue… albeit in a high-wire fashion that made UNC coach Roy Williams squirm on the bench.

With FSU leading 70-69, Barnes got the ball at the top of the key. Since his team was trailing by one and not tied, Barnes could not afford to play for the last shot. He needed to give his teammates a chance to get the rebound if he missed. Barnes waited until the four-second mark to release a three-pointer; if he missed, it’s doubtful that UNC would have had enough time to get a decent look at a putback. Fortunately, though, Barnes was straight and true from me to you. His shot splashed through the twine with 3.1 left on the clock, and when Florida State turned the ball over on its last-gasp possession, Carolina had survived.

It wasn’t a textbook way to win after leading by three with a minute left, but North Carolina had done the deed just the same. With one more escape this Saturday against Duke, the Tar Heels will wind up with a most improbable ACC championship in 2011.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer