RALEIGH, N.C. – Joel Berry II scored 18 points to help No. 10 North Carolina beat rival North Carolina State 97-73 on Wednesday to stay alone in first place in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Luke Maye added a career-high 13 points for the Tar Heels (22-5, 10-3), who shot 56 percent while dominating both the paint and the glass to blow out the Wolfpack for the second time in a month. UNC had won the first meeting 107-56 for the second-worst loss in N.C. State’s history.
UNC finished with a 60-22 edge in points in the paint and a 41-25 rebounding advantage that led to a 27-13 edge in second-chance points.
Dennis Smith Jr. scored 27 points but little else went right for the Wolfpack (14-13, 3-11), who continued their accelerating descent that has led to growing uncertainty about the future of sixth-year coach Mark Gottfried.
Picked to finish sixth in the 15-team league, the Wolfpack sits ahead of just one team in the standings with four regular-season games left. And since earning its first win at Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium since 1995, N.C. State has lost six straight games – four coming by at least 24 points.
No. 18 Cincinnati 68,
South Florida 54
Kevin Johnson scored 14 points and Gary Clark had 13 points and 14 rebounds as No. 18 Cincinnati bounced back from its first loss in two months with a 68-54 victory over South Florida on Wednesday night.
Seton Hall 87,
No. 20 Creighton 81
Khadeen Carrington tallied the final 10 points of his career-high 41 in the closing minute and Seton Hall made a big stride toward the NCAA Tournament with an 87-81 victory over No. 20 Creighton on Wednesday night.
Arkansas 83,
No. 21 South Carolina 76
Jaylen Barford tied his career high with 23 points and Arkansas got its first road win over a ranked opponent in almost three years with an 83-76 victory over No. 21 South Carolina on Wednesday night.
No. 23 Maryland 74,
Northwestern 64
Melo Trimble scored a career-high 32 points on 12-for-17 shooting, and No. 23 Maryland strengthened its position in the Big Ten with a 74-64 victory over Northwestern on Wednesday night.
No. 24 Butler 110,
St. John’s 86
Avery Woodson scored a season-high 20 points and Andrew Chrabascz also had 20 on Wednesday night as No. 24 Butler blew out St. John’s 110-86.
The Bulldogs (20-6, 9-5 Big East) ended a two-game home losing streak.
Federico Mussini had 20 points to lead the Red Storm (12-15, 6-8), who never had a chance after giving up the first seven points of the game.