Warrior Insider

A scrappy effort by the University of Hawai’i was not nearly enough against the No. 5-ranked team in the nation. North Carolina pulled away from the Warriors in the second half for an 83-68 victory on Friday night.

A near-capacity crowd at the Stan Sheriff Center watched the Warriors fall to 2-2, while the No. 5 Tar Heels improved to 4-0. Hawai’i is the only opponent so far this season to hold the Tar Heels under 90 points, and finish within 20 points of the Tar Heels.

Noah Allen scored a game-high 22 points to lead Hawai’i. Jack Purchase added 14 points and Sheriff Drammeh 13 for the Warriors, who were out-rebounded 46-23.

Hawai’i actually opened the game with a 2-0 lead on a driving layup by Allen, but it would be short-lived. The Tar Heels took a 17-8 lead, but the UH reserve guard Brocke Stepteau brought the crowd back to its feet when the drained back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the North Carolina lead to 17-16 with 9:49 remaining in the first half.

The Tar Heels responded with a 13-2 surge to regain control at 30-18. North Carolina eventually took a 35-27 lead at intermission.

The Warriors got as close as 40-37 early in the second half, but North Carolina went on a 12-2 run to increase the lead to 52-39 with 13:25 remaining.

The Tar Heels built their lead to as many as 15 before Hawai’i cut it to 64-56 on a 3-pointer by Drammeh with 6:23 remaining. But North Carolina would eventually pull away in the final five minutes.

Isaiah Hicks led a balanced North Carolina offense with 16 points. Tony Bradley scored 10 points but grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.

More details, including video highlights and interviews, will be posted later.

(Game photo courtesy Brandon Flores / www.brandonfloresphotography.com)