Tar Heels make themselves at home at Maples
Stanford heads to Portland, Ore., on Thursday to play in the PK80 Invitational, a 16team event that boasts five ranked teams, and the Cardinal got a taste of playing against the elite Monday night.
No. 9 North Carolina took control in the first eight minutes and rolled to a 96-72 win over the Cardinal before an announced sellout crowd at Maples Pavilion.
In a game that matched Cardinal head coach Jerod Haase and the Tar Heels’ Roy Williams, his longtime mentor at Kansas and UNC, guards Joel Berry II and Kenny Williams put on a long-range shooting show for the defending national champions.
“They have a championship culture right now, and I think we’re going to learn from that,” Haase said. “There are going to be lots of teaching moments from this game.”
Berry scored 29 points, hitting five three-pointers, and Williams had all 20 of his points, including six threes, in the first half.
“Our defensive structure means that guys like that shouldn’t be able to get clean looks,” Stanford guard Isaac White said. “It was a defensive lapse. Credit to him to hit the shots, but that’s something we need to look at.”
The Tar Heels (3-0), also headed for Portland, brought a huge contingent of supporters with them, and at times, it
sounded like a UNC home game.
“I like it — it puts a chip on my shoulder,” said forward Reid Travis, who led Stanford (3-2) with 21 points and had six rebounds. “I brought the guys together before the game and said, ‘I want you to look around and see all the blue in the gym. That should frustrate you because I know it does to me.’ ”
White, one of three freshman starters for the Cardinal, scored 20 points, and Michael Humphrey and Daejon Davis added 10 each.
Stanford made just 17 of 28 free-throw tries on a night when it needed every point. North Carolina was 11-for-15 on foul shots. It also scored 25 points off the Cardinal’s 19 turnovers.
The Cardinal and Travis started strongly, taking an 11-6 lead, but Williams hit four of his three-pointers and had 14 of his points as the Tar Heels went on a 24-4 run to take a 30-15 lead.
“I wish we had put together a better effort, so that the fans that came out would be more inclined to come back,” Haase said. “But we are going to build this thing ... brick by brick.” Briefly: Brandishing the Axe from the Big Game win over Cal, the Stanford football team crowded onto the court at halftime and received an ovation. … Dorian Pickens and Marcus Sheffield remained out of action with foot injuries. … It was UNC’s first game at Stanford since the final of the Stanford Invitational in 1983, an 88-75 win for the Tar Heels.
“They have a championship culture right now, and I think we’re going to learn from that.” Jerod Haase, Stanford head coach