Feb. 5, 2007

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by Ethan Lin

CHAPEL HILL -- In Chapel Hill on Wednesday, the story was all about sharing the ball. The 10-0 Tar Heels scored 133 points, 80 of which came in the second half. Eight of C.B. McGrath's eleven players scored in double figures, and the Heels made 30 assists throughout the match.

Carolina did not lead the entire game, however. The Monarchs got off to an early 7-0 lead after the tip-off. After tying the game at 17 with 13:00 to play in the first half, however, the Tar Heels never looked back. Though the pesky Monarchs tied the game several more times throughout the half, Carolina managed a 15 point lead at the half, 53-38.

McGrath made a rare move during the first half - he called a timeout.

"Basically," said McGrath, "[We] lacked intensity early in the game."

But that all changed after halftime.

"Coach came in and got us fired up," said freshman forward James Gallagher, who had 12 points and a team-high 9 rebounds. "He said the way we were playing, we were lucky to be up."

That extra boost in the locker room just might have hit home for the Tar Heels.

Carolina opened the first 10 minutes of the half with a 37-9 run, and were up 92-47 with 9:50 to go in the game. The Monarchs only went on to score 12 more points, 21 total in the second half. The Heels scored 41 points in the last 10 minutes to win, 133-59.

"[Carolina] was the best team we played all year," said Methodist coach Tim Ryerson. "We played hard and were into the game mentally, but they hit their shots, were bigger, and of course were well coached."

Of the eight scoring Monarchs, only one had double digits with 13 points. Terrence Petree led the Heels in scoring with a career high 21 points, followed by Robert Johnson and Michael Cvelich with 17 and 16, respectively. Brad Jones and Michael Cvelich also added 7 rebounds apiece.

Terrence Petree discussed his performance off the bench.

"Defense leads to offense, and my legs felt good, so I tried to provide energy on the defensive end."

When asked about the Heels' remaining schedule, Petree, who also had 4 steals, added:

"Though it was a great win, we can't be satisfied or content. We have a lot more work to do."