Cameron Johnson and Luke Maye each posted a double-double, and No. 3 North Carolina cruised to a 79-66 win over host Boston College on Tuesday night in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
Johnson finished with a team-high 22 points to go along with 12 rebounds. Maye had 17 points and a career-high 20 rebounds for North Carolina (25-5, 15-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), which increased its winning streak to six games.
Ky Bowman scored 23 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead the Eagles. Nik Popovic finished with 20 points and seven rebounds for Boston College (14-15, 5-12), which lost for the fourth time in its past five games.
Tar Heels coach Roy Williams returned to the bench three days after a vertigo attack nearly caused him to collapse to the court. Assistant coach Steve Robinson caught Williams as he fell during the contest against Clemson and took over when Williams left the game to undergo testing, but the top assistant was back in his familiar role on Tuesday.
North Carolina roared to a 48-25 lead at the half. Maye had a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds) before the break, and Johnson led all scorers with 16 points in his first 18 minutes.
Bowman had 15 points in the first half, but the rest of the Eagles combined for only 10 points.
Boston College went on a 7-0 run to pull within 14 points with 10:35 remaining in the second half, but North Carolina never relented its comfortable advantage. Bowman hit a 3-pointer and Popovic made back-to-back baskets during the run.
The Tar Heels responded with an 8-0 run to pull ahead 71-49. Johnson started the scoring frenzy with two layups, then Coby White and Kenny Williams added layups to complete the run.
North Carolina rested its starters in the waning minutes as Boston College chipped at the deficit.
After a three-day break, North Carolina will wrap up its regular-season schedule with a home game against No. 4 Duke on Saturday night. The Tar Heels won the first meeting 88-72 last month after Duke star Zion Williamson left with an injury.
Boston College will host North Carolina State on Saturday afternoon in its regular-season finale.
--Field Level Media
North Carolina | Boston College | |
Cameron Johnson 22 | Scoring | Ky Bowman 23 |
Cameron Johnson 5 | Assists | Jordan Chatman 5 |
Luke Maye 20 | Rebounds | Ky Bowman 9 |
Nassir Little 4 | Free Throws Made | Ky Bowman 2 |
Seventh Woods 2 | Steals | Steffon Mitchell 3 |
Cameron Johnson 1 | Blocks | Steffon Mitchell 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
North Carolina | 79 | 42.1 | 7-22 | 8-13 | 22 | 53 | 2 | 5 | 11 |
Boston College | 66 | 34.3 | 12-36 | 6-10 | 11 | 32 | 7 | 6 | 8 |