Notre Dame Fighting Irish at North Carolina Tar Heels

24-point run lifts UNC over Notre Dame 78-47 in ACC semis

Then everything changed.

"We could make our travel plans at halftime," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. "Let me put it that way."

It was relentless and riveting, and it put UNC (27-6) in its 34th league final and fifth in the past six years. But the Tar Heels have gone 0-4 in that span, including a loss to the Fighting Irish a year ago.

UNC will meet No. 4 Virginia on Saturday night. The Cavaliers beat No. 11 Miami 73-68 in the second semifinal.

"We turned the corner defensively a little bit these past several weeks," Paige said. "We're definitely hitting our stride, but I still don't know what our peak is, which is probably a good thing."

He scored half of his 16 points during the big, rout-making run, and that might have been the best news of all for UNC. He was supposed to be one of the team's stars but has struggled much of the year, and was shooting less than 30 percent over his previous three games.

Four others scored in double-figures for North Carolina, including Johnson and Joel Berry II with 12 apiece.

Bonzie Colson led Notre Dame (21-11) with 15 points, while Zach Auguste had six points and 10 rebounds after getting 19 and 22 in a quarterfinal victory over Duke.

With more size up front, North Carolina was able to seize control under the basket. By halftime, the Tar Heels held edges of 21-12 in total rebounds and 18-4 on points in the paint.

And their D?

That was something else.

Notre Dame shot 30 percent, finished with a season-low point total and had 17 turnovers.

"They were fabulous. Their defense was a different level than what we've seen or played against," Brey said. "We really had nowhere to go."

In all, the Fighting Irish went more than 11 minutes between field goals.

Sure, Notre Dame wiped out a 16-point deficit to beat Duke in overtime Thursday. And the Fighting Irish erased a 15-point hole while coming back to defeat North Carolina last month. This, however, was different.

"Once they saw we weren't going to stop scoring," UNC's Pinson said, "I felt like they (were) just like, `OK, let's just keep playing and not get embarrassed."

WELCOME BACK, MARCUS

In addition to 4-for-7 shooting on 3s, Paige had seven assists and zero turnovers.

"I guess you could call it the `old' me, but I didn't think I ever left," Paige said, "even though I hadn't been playing at the level I had previously been playing at."

TIP-INS

Notre Dame: Previous season low for points came in a 68-50 loss to Miami on March 2. ... Entered making 47.6 percent of its shots this season.

North Carolina: This was the largest margin of victory in an ACC Tournament semifinal. ... Its 95th win in league tourney play ties Duke for most in history.

UP NEXT

North Carolina: Plays No. 4 Virginia or No. 11 Miami on Saturday.

Notre Dame: NCAA Tournament.

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• TV Channel: Notre Dame at North Carolina 2021 College Basketball, week 18, is broadcasted on ESPN.
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