North Carolina Tar Heels at Arkansas Razorbacks

Luke Maye carries No. 9 North Carolina past Arkansas 87-68

The Tar Heels were smothering on the defensive end, holding the Razorbacks under 80 points for the first time this season. The Razorbacks shot just 32 percent in the first half and were dominated on the boards getting outrebounded 46-30.

Maye carried the Tar Heels offensively for the first 25 minutes before Williams and Joel Berry II got going. Maye made 11 of 16 shots and 11 of his rebounds came at the defensive end. Berry was just 3-of-12 shooting, but he made 7 of 8 free throws. Williams took just three shots in the first half, but was 6-of-9 shooting in the second half.

The Tar Heels (5-0) will face either Michigan State or UConn in the "Victory Bracket" championship game on Sunday night.

Jaylen Barford led Arkansas (4-1) with 21 points and C.J. Jones added 12 off the bench. Daniel Gafford, who was averaging nearly 16 points per game, was hampered by foul trouble and finished with just five points.

North Carolina used two first-half runs to take control. Down early, the Tar Heels rattled off 13 straight points to take the lead for good. They followed with a 14-4 run to close the first half and led 37-26 at the break.

Arkansas had a couple of second-half rallies that fell short. The first came after second-leading scorer Daryl Macon had to be helped off the court due to a leg injury suffered on a baseline drive. Barford scored five straight points and layups from Dustin Thomas and Gafford pulled the Razorbacks within 55-48 with 13:01 left.

Maye tipped in a miss and the Tar Heels scored nine of the next 13 points to build the lead back to 14 on Theo Pinson's layup with 9:20 remaining.

The lead remained there until consecutive 3s by Jones. Maye missed in the lane and a three-point play by Barford pulled the Razorbacks within 74-68 with 3:32 remaining. It was the final points for Arkansas. Berry hit two free throws and an offensive foul on Arkansas led to Pinson's thundering one-handed dunk and a 10-point lead with less than 3 minutes left.

THE TAKEAWAY

Arkansas: Macon was already struggling from the field before getting injured. Macon was 1 of 9 in the first half and 2-of-11 overall. He was 7-of-13 shooting with six 3-pointers in the opening round win over Oklahoma.

North Carolina: Maye's previous career-high in points was 26 against Northern Iowa in the season opener and his previous high in rebounds was 15 against Florida State last season.

UP NEXT

Arkansas: The Razorbacks will face either Michigan State or UConn on Sunday.

North Carolina: The Tar Heels will face either Michigan State or UConn on Sunday.

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